None of us is getting any
younger. Which is why we should all start
thinking now about the challenges that seniors face when it comes to “getting
there”.
That’s one of the top
priorities of the SWCAA, the Southwest Connecticut Agency on Aging. Because, to maintain an independent life,
seniors need to be able to get from their homes to doctors appointments, social
engagements and even volunteer work. And their care-givers need to be able to get
to their clients’ homes.
In the SWCAA region
(Greenwich to Stratford) 20% of all residents are over age 60. By 2020 that proportion will be 25%. And with aging come issues of vision and
cognition, especially behind the wheel.
Giving up your private car
is a much-feared rite of passage for seniors, usually prompted by coaxing from
their kids who start noticing dented fenders.
The DMV has no mandatory retirement age for driving, though if you
accumulate enough points on your license you may need re-testing.
That’s not to say there
aren’t folks over the age of 90 who are still good drivers. But seniors are also smart enough to avoid
driving on the interstates and the parkways and they don’t like driving at
night.
With both parents often holding
down daytime jobs, it’s often the senior who’s tasked with picking up
grandchildren after school in addition to tending to their own numerous medical
appointments.
But what happens when seniors
lose their cars and the sense of independence they provides? They become isolated, sometimes going days
without social interaction, provoking depression and even accelerating
dementia.
That’s why SWCAA is doing a
regional assessment of all our towns and cities to see what alternatives might
be available. Clearly in big cities like
Stamford and Bridgeport there’s mass transit.
But in rural towns like Monroe and Weston, there’s none.
Most communities do have
some sort of ADA transportation, but that’s only if you can prove you’re
disabled. While mandated by the Federal
government, such senior shuttles only guarantee a 30 minute window when it
comes to pick-ups, often leaving clients anxiously waiting outside in the cold,
worrying if they’ve missed their ride.
Even in communities with bus
service, seniors may not be big fans if they have to walk long distances to the
bus stop… or cope with long walks home carrying groceries.
Sometimes church groups will
organize driver-volunteers while in more affluent towns there are non-profits
that specialize in assisting their residents aging issues, including
transportation.
Another attractive
alternative are services like Uber and Lyft which whisk you door to door, on
demand. But even these services have
problems: they’re not affordable if
you’re poor and not accessible if you don’t know how to run a smartphone app.
SWCAA is hoping that a
special “senior version” of Lyft and Uber can be developed where seniors can
call a dispatcher to book a ride and handle payments. That way the seniors have someone they can
talk to, someone who can also follow-up and make sure they got to their destination
safely. That “human touch” means a lot.
Self-driving cars may soon
be on our streets, but we’ll see if seniors feel comfortable with that tech,
too.
Whatever the alternative,
transportation is essential to keeping our seniors active and engaged.
Posted with permission of Hearst CT Media
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