Safety for Older Adults—In and Out of the Car

Are you interested in Older Driver Safety? Do you need another reason to focus on keeping older drivers safely behind the wheel as long as possible? US researchers traveling to Japan and Australia to conduct a technology scan were told repeatedly that the risk of injury and death for older road users is much greater as a pedestrian than it is as the operator or passenger of a vehicle. They then explored a range of options that could improve driver safety as well as pedestrian safety—for example, creating separate lanes for cars, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Their findings are summarized in an article in the August 19, 2008 Transportation Research Board e-newsletter, found at http:www.trb.org/news/newsletter.asp?296. Click on “Older Road Users: The International Technology Scanning Program Summary Report” under Federal Research News. Planning, engineering, and design innovations are presented in the report, along with the conclusion that policies and programs that benefit older adults may have begun as improvements for users of all ages and that, conversely, improvements specifically for this age group were actually helpful for users of all ages. Hence, the universal value of infrastructure and policy changes that make roads safer for older pedestrians and drivers.