Creating safe & walkable communities for older adults

Next to driving or riding in cars, walking is the most frequent mode of transportation for older adults. Walking is a key to maintaining physical and mental well-being, as well as social engagement. Unfortunately, older pedestrians are at greater risk than younger people of falling, or if involved in a crash, of suffering serious or fatal injuries. Given the demographic imperative of a rapidly aging population, public health must provide leadership to develop safer and more walkable communities so that older adults, including those with functional impairments, can continue to be mobile. This presentation will draw from WalkWise, DriveSmart, a community-based intervention to improve conditions for safe and enjoyable walking. Funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it employs an academic-community partnership with the goal of creating a model for community change and broad dissemination. While the overall intervention includes community education, law enforcement, and encouragement of walking, this presentation will focus on strategies for assessing and modifying the environment. We will review steps to identify, engage, and build good working relationships with key partners, such as planners and engineers; methods for assessing the walking environment, including walking audits, e.g., use of the CDC Healthy Aging Network Audit Tool; and strategies for achieving concrete change, e.g., developing at least one safe walking route per neighborhood as a starting point. WalkWise, Drive Smart is based in Hendersonville, NC, a community of approximately 10,000 residents, of whom 31% are aged 65 or older. Lessons learned may be applicable to similar communities.