Transportation planners around the country are working
to ensure the mobility of the rapidly increasing population
of older people. Not only is the size of the senior
population expected to grow rapidly, the most rapid
growth is expected to occur in the oldest age groups,
which have the most severe mobility problems. To make
matters worse, more and more older people will be
living in places that are poorly served by public
transportation. Even in places where transit service
is good, many seniors do not use it because they have
little familiarity with transit and are used to relying
on personal automobiles as the most convenient mode
of travel.
Meeting these challenges will involve action by all
levels of government and community organizations in
order to:
- Help older people drive as safely as long as
possible.
- Ensure that older drivers stop or curtail their
driving when they are no longer safe.
- Make transit services available and attractive
to older people.
- Expand transit services and develop new kinds
of public transportation.
- Create communities where older people can walk
safely and access transit.
Nelson\Nygaard is working with numerous government
agencies and non-profit organizations on solutions
to the challenge of mobility by older people. Three
recent reports stem from work for the Metropolitan
Transportation Commission (MTC), the transportation
planning agency for the San Francisco Bay Area, and
a fourth was commissioned by AARP.
The
Older Adults Transportation Study (OATS)
charts a regional strategy for senior mobility,
with concrete steps that all levels of government
and community agencies can take. The report
includes data and analysis about the growth
in the numbers of older people, where they will
live, and what kinds of transportation they
need. |
The
Senior Mobility Toolkit, an outgrowth of the
OATS project, documents examples of innovative
efforts to promote senior mobility with examples
from the San Francisco Bay Area and elsewhere.
Examples include: programs to promote pedestrian
safety, programs to help older people become
comfortable using transit, shuttles and circulators,
helping older people access and use public transportation,
using volunteers effectively, private financing,
increasing the affordability and availability
of taxicabs, and housing accessibility modifications.
|
With
MTC's support, Nelson\Nygaard helped the California
Commission on Aging (CCOA) develop recommendations
for the State of California to help keep older
people mobile. The full Statement of Findings
on Senior Related Transportation Issues is posted
on the CCOA's web site. |
The
AARP Public Policy Institute commissioned Nelson\Nygaard
to prepare an analysis of The Impact of Federal
Programs on Transportation for Older Adults.
The resulting report examines FTA grant programs,
Medicaid, Medicare, the Older Americans Act
Title III program, and the Americans with Disabilities
Act, explores how they affect older adult mobility
and recommends changes. |
For more information about these reports contact
David
Koffman.
