For many seniors today, not driving is not an option. But cities and towns are investing in new, safe, and affordable ways to get around.
Driving is a dilemma. On the one hand, it’s convenient, empowering, and, across America, necessary for daily life. On the other hand, it’s dangerous, polluting, and expensive. All of us face the likelihood that one day, our health will force us to put down the keys. Innovators in on-demand and public transit are fighting today for better options for everyone in that scenario.
Seniors Want Better Transit Choices
Anyone who owns a car knows how it eats your paycheck, and many seniors simply can’t afford to drive. More than 17 million adults over 65 in the United States, or about one in three, are economically insecure, and the median income for seniors in 2022 was $29,740. Car ownership costs about $10,000 per year on average: you do the math.
Whether because they can’t afford it, or because their physical or mental health makes driving unsafe, more than half a million people in the U.S. stop driving every year. According to a national 2018 survey, 40% of adults over 65 who don’t drive said they can’t do the things they need and want to do. These seniors said that stopping driving made them feel dependent on others (63%), frustrated (39%), and trapped (30%). For care partners, the time and expense of driving their loved one where they need to go can be a major stressor. Since stopping driving creates so many frustrations, it’s not surprising that the percentage of drivers over 85 who still drive increased from 50% to 59% between 2000 and 2020.
Sandy Markwood, CEO of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, responded to the data. “The results of the survey make clear that many older adults feel that giving up the car keys greatly limits their access to medical care, grocery shopping and opportunities for socialization, but it doesn’t have to be that way,” she told USAging. “There are excellent transportation programs available and the Aging Network is aggressively advocating for more resources to ensure all communities, including rural areas, are prioritizing transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities. In this day and age, the inability to drive is no reason for a lesser quality of life.”
Innovations in On-Demand Transit
A number of urban and rural municipalities have long offered an essential service: on-demand transit. In Miami, for example, the On-Demand Transportation Service provides free rides to seniors for a variety of errands, including to doctor’s appointments and senior centers. More recently, companies and towns are innovating on this model, and, eventually, autonomous vehicles may play a big role. Today, in Ventura, California, Uber Health enables healthcare providers to order rides for their patients. This solution means an older adult who doesn’t have a smartphone or a car can still get to their medical appointments. The platform is even HIPAA-enabled.
In southwestern Virginia, Mountain Empire Older Citizens serves as the area agency on aging and public transit provider for Wise, Lee, and Scott counties. They launched a successful “microtransit” service in their rural community called MetGo!: “Think of us like a minibus that comes when you want, where you want.” Or, think of it as a hyper-local ridesharing app, at no cost. MetGo! is available to any county resident, and for many, the best part is that, like an Uber or Lyft, the ride arrives within minutes. That kind of quick response means everything to the seniors who tend to feel trapped when they have to give up driving.
Advocating for Public Transit Solutions
Ridesharing is essential for people who can’t navigate public transit or don’t live in an area with public transit. But senior transit advocates largely agree that there’s a long-term, large-scale solution that really will make giving up the car keys a moot point. You guessed it: better public transit infrastructure. Americans overwhelmingly support investment in public transportation. The return on investment could be huge: the American Public Transportation Association estimates that, over 20 years, every $1 billion invested in public transport would return $5 billion in GDP. More public transit reduces greenhouse gas emissions and makes environments easier for everyone to navigate, while making it possible for older adults and people with disabilities to travel with freedom.
One way to stay up to date on public transit campaigns and victories in your area is by following Voices for Public Transit (VPT), which aims to “help transform America’s public transportation network into the truly flexible, accessible, sustainable mobility resource it can and should be—and that every community deserves.” That’s a vision of a future where seniors and care partners have choices, and putting down the car keys feels like no big deal.
Sources:
https://www.ncoa.org/article/get-the-facts-on-economic-security-for-seniors/
https://t4america.org/transit/
https://www.nhtsa.gov/book/countermeasures-that-work/older-drivers
https://www.nadtc.org/resources-publications/resource/2023-innovations-showcase-2/
https://www.wri.org/insights/3-ways-reimagine-public-transport-people-and-climate
