Press Releases

For Immediate Release

MEDIA ADVISORY

Conference: "Mobility Matters" -- Improving Transportation for Older Adults

CONTACT:

Marjorie Blackwell:
510.464.7884

Jacob Avidon:
510.817.5765

OAKLAND, Calif., March 22, 2000

Who:	Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC)
What:	Conference: "Mobility Matters" -- Improving Transportation for Older Adults
Where:	MetroCenter Auditorium, 101 Eighth Street, Oakland
When:	Thursday, March 30, 2000 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) will host a day-long conference on the transportation challenges faced by older people in the Bay Area. More than 100 representatives of Bay Area transit agencies and public agencies and organizations that serve senior citizens will discuss the problems older people face in trying to stay mobile and what can be done to improve their means of transportation.

According to the Association of Bay Area Governments, the Bay Area currently has approximately 821,000 residents 65 and older. By 2020, this number is expected to exceed 1.5 million. Plus, the number of Bay Area residents age 85 and older is expected to jump 78 percent from 122,000 today to 217,000.

Conference speakers will include MTC Chair James Beall and Executive Director Lawrence Dahms; Vic Sood, General Manager, Livermore-Amador Valley Transportation Authority; Michael Winter, Federal Transit Administration official, and Jon Burkhardt, specialist in transportation for older adults.

National senior transportation studies conclude that the automobile is the most popular way for seniors to travel as it offers the most freedom, but as people age, their ability to drive becomes limited. The studies show that seniors who live within a short walking distance of stores and services will walk if they are physically able and the area is "senior friendly," and they will use well-developed, senior-friendly public transportation. Seniors do not want to depend on others for transportation, i.e. being driven by others, calling for paratransit or adhering to infrequent, fixed-route schedules.

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