Older adults need walkable towns but also more transportation options

To grow old in your community, you need to be able to get around in your community. That’s why transportation is listed a key priority of age-friendly organizations across the globe. In car-dependent Bergen County, it can be daunting to find alternatives to driving.

The government programs that provide free or low-cost transportation to senior citizens must prioritize doctor’s visits and dialysis over trips to the movies or the hair salon. 

Even with those clear priorities set, sometimes the Bergen County Division of Transportation, which offers weekday by-appointment-only service to seniors and people with disabilities, must disappoint. 

A regular driver calls in sick and no substitute can be found. A route to a senior center is full, so residents in farther-away towns can’t reserve a seat.

These were some of the concerns raised at the annual public hearing held this summer on transportation funding for senior citizens and persons with disabilities.

Speaker after speaker testified that a lack of transportation robs many seniors of the community connections that are crucial to their physical and emotional well-being. The common refrain: “We need more options.”