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Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

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Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#111

Post by IIAOPSW »

I tried having the Uber discussion with my grandmother. We tried to tell her that its all the same mobility that you're used to. We tried explaining that this isn't some patronizing service for seniors but in fact something everyone is doing. We tried explaining how its actually more economical then owning a car. We tried to explain that letting my Grandfather stay on the road is a terrible idea that will get them and/or someone else killed. My aunt even got her an ipad and showed her how to use the damn thing. FFS you press the button and a car comes. The concepts not hard and she's not that senile.

But what do we get in response for all our efforts? "I just don't want to."

Even in the face of viable technical solutions to the problem of old people on the road, you still have to solve the unsolvable issue that old people are insanely stubborn.

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#112

Post by dundercoder »

volkl48 wrote: post #110
dundercoder wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have. I’d have to move out of state and into a fairly urban city to get decent transit. The schools here are fantastic and I love just about everything here, except the lack of transit. We may get to that point, but for right now I work remotely (platform engineering) and just grin and bear the rest.

If you get to the point of considering moving, you may wish to look into a college town. They'll typically have far more extensive transit than the average mid-sized city/town does.

That is a good point.

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#113

Post by [deleted] »

jonathanyc wrote: post #86

I think this is an awful situation, but at what point do we call seniors’ desires unreasonable? Is their want to stay in their suburban homes which are designed for cars really something the state should be concerned about when the working poor struggle to afford the subway?[1] I think we should make relocation easy for the elderly who aren’t able to get around. I think it is terrible if they can’t move from their ho…

[deleted]

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#114

Post by virmundi »

dundercoder wrote: post #101

I’m 36, live in the suburbs, and in recent years have gone (legally) blind from Retinitis Pigmentosa. Voluntarily giving up my license was one of the hardest and most important decisions I’ve made. There is literally 0 public transportation here. Not even Uber or Lyft have come around. America’s sprawl and dependence on cars is incredible. It wasn’t until I spent time in London, Oxford, and Paris that I could recogni…

Out of curiosity, why give up your license? It's a great ID. You don't have to use it. I know plenty of people with licenses to carry concealed, but don't.

To you point about car dependence, not using one is humiliating, at least for me. I live about .25 miles from my office. I walk daily to and from (twice). I feel, and have seen, people look at me like I'm poor. It is a foreign concept to many that walking or biking might be better (especially in Florida where on those rare 30 degrees nights, me, a Hoosier, is right at home, but right now it's a balmy 68).

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#115

Post by Sophistifunk »

lgas wrote: post #60
jseliger wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do people push for rail Visit Japan (or these days China) and you will understand. This reminds me of people who say, "What's the big deal about electric bikes?" Ride one and you'll know. See what Japan and China are doing WRT rail and you'll know.

Given the difficulty and expense associated with going to Japan, perhaps you could describe it to us here using words.

Their public transit system is great, and you pay for it with rechargeable cards that can also be used for all sorts of other shit in vending machines and retail locations.

And unless you're (statistically) fairly short and thin for a westerner, you won't fit in anything.

But hot-damn does looking out the window at Fujisan while doing 300km/h do a good job at distracting you from having your knees around your ears.

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#116

Post by harryh »

opportune wrote: post #42
rayiner wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But you don’t really get to pick. Dense European style cities are outlawed in the US. Hell, dense European style suburbs are outlawed here. My pre-zoning code suburb has lots that are less than 3,000 square feet. It’s awesome—easy to walk and you see your neighbors all the time. But it’s completely illegal to build more neighborhoods like mine. The minimum lot size now is more than five times bigger—we have legally m…

Dense suburbs are only "outlawed" because certain places, usually at the municipality level, zone the buildings that way. You know it is also "outlawed" for most European cities to build too high vertically too right? Also, it varies from city to city (and within cities). Although most of the 20-35 crowd probably would prefer a denser city, old people prefer owning homes with lawns, so they wouldn't even want to live…

old people prefer owning homes with lawns

That's fine, but why do old people need it legally mandated that everyone has to do that?

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#117

Post by oftenwrong »

brians wrote: post #94
AnimalMuppet wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, it's outlawed - in your suburb. It's not a nationwide ban, though. It's not even (I presume) statewide, or even city-wide. (It may be true that there literally are no municipalities in the US with zoning codes that allow dense neighborhoods, but I would be highly surprised.)

This is a great focusing question. There was a study a Few years about about which cities and suburbs could be built under their current zoning laws. I remember it showing that Somerville—a dense collection of 3-decker houses near Boston—was completely impossible to build under its current laws. I don’t have the link handy, but happy googling.

http://cityobservatory.org/the-illegal-city-of-somerville/

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#118

Post by BigJono »

virmundi wrote: post #79
sjg007 wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There should be county sponsored transportation for medical appointments. Also it seems uber could work?

Historically churches and other community groups, including the Masons, would help in this regard. It appears as if this gone now. For example, black churches use to have get out the vote buses that helped people register. They would work with their paritioners and the large community to make sure that people could get to DMVs or wherever the locality required people to sign up. It appears like that is largely gone.…

I feel like there's a void to be filled here. Something that allows people to build a sense of community without all the make-believe crap.

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#119

Post by MarkSweep »

dragontamer wrote: post #75
lgas wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given the difficulty and expense associated with going to Japan, perhaps you could describe it to us here using words.

You pretty much can get anywhere in Japan using rail / subway alone. https://www.japan-guide.com/g17/2361_01.png Subway maps cover cities to insane details. https://bento.com/pix/subway/tokyo_subway_1700.gif

This map covers the whole Kantō area and shows all the train lines you can use a Suica card on:

PDF: http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/routemaps/pdf/RouteMap_majorrailsu...

Re: Once seniors are too old to drive, our transportation system fails them

#120

Post by sjg007 »

sevensor wrote: post #77
sjg007 wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There should be county sponsored transportation for medical appointments. Also it seems uber could work?

> There should be county sponsored transportation for medical appointments. How's your experience been with that kind of service? There's a reason lawbreaking octogenarians still ride golf carts down the sidewalk to get to the doctor's office, hoping they won't get ticketed. > Uber. I'm sorry. Did I mention my grandmother is 96? Ninety-six ?

Yes, but you or another relative could order the uber for her. Are you sure there isn’t county based medical transport? Also since she is 96 she might be able to get away with an ambulance! It may take someone advocating for her but it’s not disallowed de facto.
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