Drivers over the age of 70 would be banned from the roads if they fail compulsory eye tests as the Government tries to reduce the number of road deaths.
Ministers are drawing up the biggest shake-up of driving rules for almost two decades.
An overhaul could the drink-drive limit cut and tougher penalties for uninsured drivers and failing to wear a seatbelt, according to a report in The Times.
The proposals developed by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander are expected to be contained in a road safety strategy due to be published in the autumn.
They come amid concern about the number of people being killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads.
Last year, 1,633 were killed and almost 28,000 seriously injured in traffic incidents, and numbers have remained relatively constant following a large fall between 2000 and 2010.
Government sources said it would represent the most far-reaching reforms since the Road Safety Act came in under Tony Blair in 2006.
Labour sources believe the figures show that key road safety messages about wearing seatbelts and avoiding drink-driving no longer work. They are concerned about a rise in drug-driving and the number of older people who continue to drive despite having failing sight and other medical conditions.
A recent coroner's report on the deaths of four people killed by drivers with failing sight said the UK had the “laxest” rules in Europe as it was one of only three countries to rely upon self-reporting of visual conditions affecting the ability to drive.
The number of drivers over the age of 60 involved in collisions where someone is killed or seriously injured on Britain's roads has increased by 47% since 2010, leading ministers to consider compulsory eye tests every three years for drivers aged over 70 and a driving ban for those who fail.
Other proposals are reported to include allowing the police to bring prosecutions for drug-driving on the basis of roadside saliva tests rather than blood tests as increasing numbers of drivers are being caught with drugs in their system.
A government source told The Times ministers believed they had a “responsibility” to start reducing road traffic accidents again.
“It cannot be right that one person is killed or seriously injured on our roads every 18 minutes,” they said.
“Just think of the impact on those people and their families. We cannot sit by and simply do nothing.”
Edmund King, the president of the AA, said such a strategy was “long overdue”.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, added it believed professional eye testing should be a standard element of licensing for all drivers.
