Portland is a PR machine for light rail & streetcar
Here are Some Facts About Portland Oregon
“It must always be remembered how cost-effectiveness works in the public sector: the cost IS the benefit.” - author unknown
Debunking the Myths of Elderly Travel Needs
Myth One: As people age, they first lose the ability to drive; they then use public
transit if it is available; when unable to use public transit they walk, and finally,
unable to walk they use special transit services.
Although widely believed, this “progression” is largely wrong. In fact, driving is often the
easiest physical task for older people.50 Long before they lose the ability to drive, older people
may be unable to board or ride public transit, or to walk to a bus stop or train station.
Even though many may still be able to use special transit services, the overwhelming majority
of older people, regardless of their stage of disability, are able to ride in a car and choose
to do so first.
The dangerous corollary to this first myth that the elderly opt for public transit or special
transit services is that, in fact, there are few special services available, whether provided by
a transit operator or a social or human service agency. First, special transit services are only
available where there are regular transit services—which are almost nonexistent in rural
areas and very limited in suburban areas, home to more than two-thirds of the elderly. Only
14 percent of the elderly who live in rural areas report having any kind of transit services
within a half-mile. As the Community Transit Association of America (CTAA) noted:
The past two decades have seen many forms of transportation virtually abandon
rural areas. Small town residents often travel hundreds of miles just to access the
nearest airport; intercity bus service is a shell of its former self; taxi service is scant
and expensive; and passenger rail services often only streaks through the countryside
in the middle of the night.51
In 1996, CTAA found that two of five rural counties had no public transit, and
another 25 percent had service equal only to one trip per month.52
Second, even in urban areas, many elderly people do not live close to existing bus lines
and thus are ineligible by reason of geography for any special services that exist. In most
communities, special services are only available within three-fourths of a mile of existing
bus routes and only during regular bus route hours (i.e., the minimum requirements of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)). Although most experts suggest that one-quarter
mile is better measure of transit access for older people, in 1995, only 43 percent of the
elderly in suburban areas reported living within one-half mile of public transit.53
Third, most elderly people are ineligible for special transit services even if they live near
existing bus routes. The complementary paratransit requirements of the ADA have put a
July 2003 • The Brookings Institution Series on Transportation Reform 11
tremendous burden on most urban paratransit systems; transit systems must provide a very
high level of expensive service to those certified as ADA-eligible. In response, the overwhelming
majority of metropolitan transit operators have severely restricted eligibility for
those services. Many elderly do not qualify because their disability is not severe enough;
being unable to drive or having minor handicaps rarely qualifies one for services.54
Most communities also host many small, special paratransit services provided by nongovernmental
organizations, organizations supporting the aged, and public and private social
services agencies. However, these providers generally transport only those involved in specific
agency services and do not serve a large percentage of the elderly.55 Overall, as currently
financed and delivered, special paratransit services serve a very small proportion of a very
large population and will serve an even smaller proportion of the growing elderly population
in the future. They can serve as one part of a “family” of transportation services, but they are
not the only or even a major strategy for meeting the mobility needs of older people.56
Myth Two: Older people who drive meet their mobility needs without assistance;
those who cannot drive have substantial unmet needs.
Older people who drive still face mobility barriers. Long before they cease driving, people
begin to adjust their travel patterns to address personal limitations by, for example, not
driving at night or to congested areas. As suggested above, this self-regulation helps keep
them safer.57 However, most policy discussions fail to recognize how this behavior can negatively
affect one’s lifestyle. We currently underestimate the impact of reduced driving and
overestimate the impact of driving cessation because cessation is viewed as a single point in
time after which mobility falls drastically. In fact, long before they give up driving, older
people gradually lose mobility and independence as they gradually reduce their driving.
In a Tucson study that followed 1,300 older drivers for five years, those who ceased to
drive one year after being interviewed made substantially fewer trips after cessation than
they had in the previous year or than did those who continued to drive. The most striking
fact, however, was that those who stopped driving were already making substantially fewer
trips one year before compared with those who continued to drive, even controlling for age,
self-reported health status, and other variables.58
Myth Three: All loss of mobility skills is permanent; older people either have the
skills needed to drive, use public transit, or walk—or they do not.
In reality, the mobility needs of the elderly are complicated. Public policy discussions in
general often fail to recognize the varying abilities of older people. People may stop driving
temporarily because of a heart attack or other serious illness but begin driving again as
their health improves. Older people may need walkers and other mobility aids on some days
but not on others. They may be able to travel by conventional public transit on a sunny day
but need a ride on a rainy day. Thus, they may require differently options on different days
or in different seasons of the year.
A corollary to this myth is that people who can drive will rarely use other modes no matter
how those options are provided. This assumption reduces the incentive to focus
attention on older drivers or older people who have mobility options. Indeed, most U.S.
transit ridership among the elderly stems from those who do not drive. However, in Australia,
Europe, and Canada, elderly car drivers make up a meaningful percentage of transit
users.59 When given a reasonable set of transportation options, older people in those countries
appear to choose the best or most convenient mode for each trip.60
Thus, it may be possible to structure public transit and other services to reduce car use
among the elderly even if these options do not remove all need (or preference) for a car.
The existence of such options before an individual ceases to drive may make older people
more willing and able to use other transport options when they do stop driving.
From: Chapter IV. Debunking the Myths of Elderly Travel Needs
The Mobility Needs of Older Americans: Implications for Transportation Reauthorization
Sandra Rosenbloom1
from: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/20030807_Rosenbloom.pdf
Also see: Survey: cars most needed of all “goods and services.”
A few paragraphs From:
The Mobility Needs of Older Americans:
Implications for Transportation Reauthorization
Sandra Rosenbloom1
from: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/20030807_Rosenbloom.pdf