Elderly & Disabled
Streetsblog Basics
As Baby Boomers Age, They Take Their Foot Off the Gas
They may be remembered as the driving-est generation. Baby Boomers, who came of age in the heyday of suburbia, have always driven more than any other generation. At the height of their driving years, boomers averaged 51 miles per day. They continue to drive 17 percent more than all other age groups, according to a recent report from AARP.
November 13, 2012
Report: New York’s Transit and Walkability Keys to Age-Friendly City
The best places to grow old aren't in Florida or Arizona, according to a report released today by the Milken Institute, a California-based think tank. Phoenix's woeful transportation system, which offers few travel options for people too old to drive everywhere, disqualifies that purported haven for retirees. No, the best places for the fast-growing 65-plus demographic are ones more like, well, New York City.
July 31, 2012
DOT Proposes Traffic-Calming Redesign for Deadly Adam Clayton Powell Blvd
After more than three years of delay and debate, safety improvements may finally be coming to one of Harlem's deadliest avenues. Under a plan tentatively okayed by Manhattan Community Board 10's transportation committee last night [PDF], Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Boulevard will get wider medians, shorter crossing distances, and narrower traffic lanes in an attempt to improve safety for all users of the street.
May 10, 2012
Active Living For All Ages: Creating Neighborhoods Around Transit
Streetfilms teamed up with the Public Policy Institute at AARP to bring you a look at how Arlington, Virginia plans for its senior population using transit-oriented development (TOD). Arlington has been practicing TOD since the late 1970s, when Washington's Metrorail first began service there, and it's proved very effective in accommodating the population growth of this inner suburb.
April 17, 2012
Wider, Straighter, and Faster Roads Aren’t the Solution for Older Drivers
This response to a new report from AASHTO and TRIP on safety issues for older drivers was written by Gary Toth, senior director of transportation initiatives for Project for Public Spaces, and co-signed by Congress for the New Urbanism, the WALC Institute, and Strong Towns.
March 6, 2012
AASHTO’s Vision of Safe Streets for Seniors: Bigger Type on Highway Signs
Last June, Transportation for America brought the nation’s attention to the fact that older Americans are increasingly stuck in the suburbs without adequate transportation options, leading them to see family and friends and even doctors less. That same month, the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on transportation access for older Americans.
March 2, 2012
DOT Proposes Five Ped Refuges For Hillside Avenue in Queens
One of the most dangerous streets in Queens is slated for a safety upgrade, with the Department of Transportation proposing five new pedestrian refuge islands along Hillside Avenue [PDF]. The intervention is a relatively modest one, however, with no narrowing of the roadway and fewer pedestrian refuges than a previous proposal for the corridor.
February 24, 2012
Time to See Older Drivers Through Dry Eyes
“Have you cried at your desk at work yet today? Would you like to?” Time Magazine asked last week, inviting its readers to indulge in emotion on behalf of an Iowa couple whose story went viral last week. Gordon and Norma Yeager died as the result of a car crash, the same way about 630 Americans die per week but with scant media attention. The Yeagers, after seven decades of marriage, passed away holding hands in the hospital.
October 24, 2011
PlaNYC Program Will Bring 1,000 Sleek New Benches to City Sidewalks
Joined by East Harlem seniors, advocates and City Council members, transportation commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan today kicked off a program to provide new and improved sidewalk seating.
October 20, 2011
Complete Streets Passes Legislature Unanimously, Cuomo Expected To Sign
Complete streets legislation passed both houses of the state legislature unanimously yesterday. With Governor Andrew Cuomo expected to sign the legislation, safer and more inclusive road design should be coming soon to streets across the state.
June 21, 2011