Eldersafety.org

Website: www.seniordrivers.org

This website from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety provides driving tips for seniors. It also serves as an international information clearinghouse for traffic safety professionals.

From the site you can access information about CarFit and order Roadwise Review, a computer-based self-screening tool for seniors. There are also links to a resource site about Supplemental Transportation Programs for Seniors (STP), which provides useful information for communities seeking to start a volunteer-based STP.

Website: http://www.aarp.org/states/ma/ma-news/is_your_community_livable.html

A livable community facilitates personal independence by offering affordable and appropriate housing, supportive features and services, and adequate mobility options. This website provides specific information about livable communities. It includes a Livable Communities Evaluation Guide and rating tool to help you determine if your community is "livable."

1-800-AARP-NOW (1-800-227-7669)

Website: www.aarp.org/drive

The AARP Driver Safety Program is the nation's first and largest classroom driver refresher course designed specifically for motorists age 50 and older. The eight-hour course is taught in two, four-hour sessions spanning two days, and costs $10. The course helps drivers refine existing skills and develop safe, defensive driving techniques. AARP members and non-members alike may take the course. There are no tests.

Upon successfully completing the course, graduates of the AARP Driver Safety Program may be eligible to receive a state-mandated multi-year discount on their auto insurance premiums. Since 1979, over 9 million people have completed the course. The AARP Driver Safety Program course covers the following topics: vision and hearing changes, effects of medication, reaction time changes, left turns and other right-of-way situations, new laws and how they affect you, and hazardous driving situations.

Website: www.aafp.org/x23744.xml

The American Academy of Family Physicians provides resources and information for both the aging driver and their family aimed at keeping aging drivers safe and mobile. Examples of publications available include:

• Tips for Safe Driving

• How to Help the Older Driver

• Getting by without Driving

• Am I a Safe Driver?

• Successful Aging Tips

Website: www.granddriver.info

This public information program, created by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, is designed to help educate individuals about programs and services available to keep people driving safer longer.

Catherine Kosinski

Phone: 312-464-4179

E-mail Address: catherine_kosinksi@ama-assn.org

Website: www.ama-assn.org

The American Medical Association (AMA), in cooperation with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, created the Older Drivers Project in January 2002. Through this project, the AMA is working to increase physician awareness of the public health issue of older driver safety and to encourage physicians to add driver assessment to their geriatric medical services. To accomplish these goals, the AMA has developed physician tools for assessing and counseling older drivers, which are available through the Physicians Guide to Assessing and Counseling Older Drivers and a national training program. The Physicians Guide to Assessing and Counseling Older Drivers is a ten-chapter guide that presents the tools for physicians to help them incorporate assessment of driving related skills into their clinical practice. This guide is available for download from the AMA web site (www.ama-assn.org). The Older Drivers Project Training Program is designed to outreach to physicians and other health care professionals through local training seminars on the issue of older driver safety. During these seminars, participants will learn about the growing public health issue of older driver safety, and how physicians and other health care professionals can address this issue in the clinical practice setting.

Elin Schold Davis, Coordinator AOTA Older Driver Initiative

Phone: 1-800-729-2682 x2046

E-mail Address: ESCHOLDDAVIS@aota.org

Website: www.aota.org/olderdriver/

The American Occupational Therapy Association\'s Older Driver site is an excellent Web-based resource for occupational therapists (OT) interested in driving issues, as well as for physicians and others who refer patients to OTs. Look for professional development information and continuing education opportunities, an older driver listserve for OTs, and a national database of OTs who conduct driving evaluations. The website also provides information for referrers and consumers.

Nancy Ceridwyn

Phone: 415-974-9613

E-mail Address: nceridwyn@asaging.org

Website: www.asaging.org/cdc

This module is part of a series of Web-based health promotion programs funded through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is an exceptional tool for professionals who are interested in providing driver wellness activities and feel confident to present these programs without technical assistance.

The module describes an array of ways in which most older adults can take action to enhance their driving safety and remain mobile and connected to their communities. This module features physical and mental exercises for older drivers with excellent driving skills and shows how older adults can use them to maintain those skills. Highlighting the importance of discussions before a driving crisis arises, the module encourages older adults, their loved ones and the entire community to openly discuss driving issues and begin planning desirable options. The module also points to the ways, means and challenges that some communities have devised for those older adults who have reduced or retired from driving.

Nancy Ceridwyn

Phone: 415-974-9613

E-mail Address: nceridwyn@asaging.org

Website: www.asaging.org/drivewell

The DriveWell Toolkit, developed by the American Society on Aging and funded through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, is a stand-alone, turn-key program on older driver safety and mobility. The DriveWell Program:

• Provides technical assistance through the Experts in an ongoing capacity, including offering additional orientation to new resources that become available;

• Offers information through the Experts on new resources, new research, and promising practices in older driver safety and mobility;

• Serves as the hub for sharing experiences and learning among Experts conducting orientations to local professionals and older adults and their loved ones.

The DriveWell Experts Bureau provides communities nationwide with hands-on assistance to most effectively use information resources. The Experts work with community-based professionals who will deliver the driving fitness and safety programs to older adults, their families and other community stakeholders. The Experts will answer questions from local professionals on the most effective ways to present and distribute the information. The Experts Bureau is a central component of the DriveWell program.

Nancy Ceridwyn
415-974-9613

E-mail Address: nceridwyn@asaging.org

CarFit® is an educational program developed by the American Society on Aging in collaboration with AAA, AARP and the American Occupational Therapy Association offering older adults:

• The opportunity to check out how well their personal cars "fit" them.

• Information and materials for community-specific resources and activities that could make their cars "fit" better, enhance their safety as drivers, or increase their mobility in the community.

The program uses a trained team of volunteers and health professionals who work side-by-side and collaboratively with each participant requesting a car check at a scheduled CarFit event.

711 S. Vienna
Rustun, LA 71270

Phone: 800-290-2344

Fax: 318-255-4175

E-mail Address: webmaster@driver-ed.org

Website: www.driver-ed.org

ADED - The Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists supports professionals working in the field of driver education / driver training and transportation equipment modifications for persons with disabilities. As a nonprofit association, ADED provides education and information dissemination, research support, and encourages the development of equipment that can help maximize the transportation options for persons with disabilities.

ADED offers a Driving Rehabilitation Specialist Certification.

Patrice Frazier

Phone: 714-885-2305

E-mail Address: Frazier.patrice@aaa-calif.com

Website: www.aaa-calif.com

Many drivers over age 55 realize their driving skills could use a little tune up. The Auto Club offers a safe driving class that addresses changes that occur with aging, how they affect driving and ways to compensate. Members 55 and older who complete the eight-hour class receive a DMV certificate (valid with any California insurer for three years) that may qualify them for auto insurance discounts. While the class is tailored specifically for the mature driver, anyone can attend.

At selected district offices, the Auto Club has fog charts available, along with instructions on how to use the chart. This enables Auto Club member and their families to self-test their ability to see in low contrast situations (rain, fog, night, etc.). Recommendations for those who do poorly on the test are also available.

The Auto Club has suggestions and advice for an Older Adult Driver Safety Media Event that includes having seniors drive a prescribed course, display/demonstration vehicles with senior-friendly features, a fog chart demonstration, an after-market parts display (e.g. pedal extenders), and a demonstration of correct mirror adjustment and hand placement on the steering wheel.

In addition, the Auto Club provides a variety of printed materials related to older adults and traffic safety. These are available free of charge to individuals and community groups. A computer-based self-test is being developed on the national level and it is expected to be available by January 2005.

566 El Dorado Street #100
Pasadena, CA 91101

Phone: 626-792-2292

Fax: 626-792-6117

E-mail Address: info@beverlyfoundation.org

Website: www.beverlyfoundation.org

Located in Pasadena, California, the Beverly Foundation's mission is to enhance "the quality of life of the years that have been added to life", thus bettering the health and well being of older adults and that of their caregivers, and their families. In keeping with its mission, the Foundation targets the audience of professionals, caregivers, family members and seniors themselves. Both quantitative and qualitative research is undertaken in three subject areas: senior mobility and transportation within the community, innovative community based care for seniors, and productive opportunities for seniors.

A recent project that represents the work of the Foundation to improve older adult mobility is the STP Mobilizer Project. The STPs Mobilizer Project is a Supplemental Transportation Program (STP) research, demonstration and product development project being conducted by the Beverly Foundation in partnership with the AAAFTS. This project consists of three components:

1. STAR Search Surveys: 2001, 2002, 2003
   National Survey of Community-based STPs Options

2. PasRide: A Volunteer Friends STPs
   An 18-month demonstration in Pasadena, California of Supplemental Transportation Programs for Seniors

3. Technical and Education Materials related to STPs Adult Day Services in California – A quantitative and qualitative study of the strengths and weaknesses in Adult Day Service Programs in California

Other recent projects conducted by the Beverly Foundation in an effort to improve Older Adult Traffic Safety include: Assessment of At-risk Senior Drivers, an national qualitative study in partnership with Lifespan, Inc. and the U.S. Department of Transportation; Senior Driver Safety in Pasadena, a behind-the-wheels senior driver safety demonstration project; and the Senior Drivers on Alert, a guide to senior transportation information and services in Pasadena.

April Freeman

E-mail Address: April_Freeman@dca.ca.gov

Website: http://www.bot.ca.gov/task_force.htm

The California Board of Occupational Therapy (Board) is pleased to be a participant in the Older Californian Traffic Safety Task Force. Occupational therapists (OTs) are in a unique position to identify, minimize, or correct impairments that may interfere with safety in a traffic environment. Occupational therapy will provide opportunities for emerging impairments to be detected and for appropriate referrals, rehabilitation and/or corrective steps to occur.

For consumers in need of driver assessment and/or rehabilitation, the Board has developed and maintains a directory of California OTs who offer services in these areas. The Board continues to ask those who are involved in driver rehabilitation and/or assessment to contact the Board for inclusion in the directory. The directory is on the Boards website, at www.bot.ca.gov.

California Department of Health Services, P.O. Box 997413, MS 7211
Sacramento, CA 95899-7413

Phone: (916) 552-9874

E-mail Address: cacenterforpa@dhs.ca.gov

Website: http://www.caphysicalactivity.org/

The California Center for Physical Activity connects people to active-living resources and helps them develop more walkable and bikeable communities. Programs specifically for seniors include the Active Aging Program, which helps provide regular physical activity including strength training and resistive exercises that can halt bone loss, restore muscle mass and strength, improve balance and flexibility, relieve arthritis symptoms, lift depression, aid sleep, help control weight, and improve sense of well being.

Walkable Neighborhoods for Seniors is another project that encourages local coalitions residents, community leaders, and local government officials to improve community walkability for older adults. Coalitions identify and then pursue environmental and policy solutions that improve pedestrian safety and make it easier for older adults to walk in their communities.

This website also links you to the centers Healthy Transportation Network, which assists Californias local officials design more walking- and bike-friendly communities.

Julie Likes, California Highway Patrol

Phone: 916-657-7222

E-mail Address: Jlikes@chp.ca.gov

The Older Californian Traffic Safety Task Force is a collaborative statewide effort led the California Highway Patrol. This Task Force is charged with implementing the recommendations from the report, Traffic Safety Among Older Adults: Recommendations for California. The Task Force also seeks to increase the capacity of law enforcement, aging services, health, transportation and other professionals to implement strategies to improve traffic safety for older adults through education and training, and to increase the awareness of the problem of traffic-related injuries among older Californians. The Task Force is developing a number of tools for use by health care providers, aging service providers and law enforcement. It is also hosting trainings for aging service providers, traffic engineers and other professionals.

Stephen C. McGough, Commander, Grants Management Section 053, 2555 First Ave.
Sacramento, CA 95818

Phone: (916) 657-9090

This project seeks to customize specific traffic safety outreach efforts that reach out more effectively to older Californians, Hispanics, and Asian Americans. Because there are more than 25 Asian languages spoken throughout California, the Asian American component of this project includes conducting a language survey to facilitate outreach efforts on the broadest feasible community base.

Project activities and goals include directing current Older Californian Traffic Safety (OCTS) Task Force activities, implementing task force action items, and expanding the CHP website to include issues relevant to older drivers. CHP will conduct presentations, demonstrations, and events focusing on drivers, pedestrian, and child-restraint safety.

Educational efforts targeting the Hispanic community will be conducted in Spanish, while the educational efforts targeting the Asian American community will be conducted in the three Asian languages identified through a project survey as the most commonly spoken in California. The multilingual approach to community outreach will further more effective communication and understanding.

Mr. Pat Moore, 355 Convention Way
Redwood City, CA 94063

Phone: 650-369-6261

E-mail Address: banjopat@comcast.net

In an effort to enhance its service to the older driving population in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, the California Highway Patrol\'s Redwood City Area has embarked on a one year pilot program entitled; Older Driver Traffic Safety; Unlocking your Potential. This is a free three-hour course open to members of the public who are 55 or older. The basic design of the program stems from the Driver Wellness Program of the American Society on Aging, which has been endorsed by the Older Californian Traffic Safety Task Force. The seminar offers senior drivers an opportunity to tune-up their driving skills, refresh their knowledge of the rules of the road and learn more about normal age-related physical changes and how they may be able to adjust to those changes to become better, safer and more alert drivers.

Shirley Carey

Phone: 415-565-2895

Fax: 415-437-2938

E-mail Address: Shirley_Carey@csaa.com

Website: www.seniordrivers.org

The California State Automobile Association (AAA) serves the Older Driver in a variety of ways, and it currently exploring additional programs for this growing population. AAA Foundation's web site, SeniorDrivers.org, focuses on senior drivers. CSAA and AAA offer brochures and booklets on the subject of the older driver. In small quantities, most can be obtained free. To order, go to www.aaafoundation.org, then click on "products." Request for larger quantities should be faxed to 415-437-2938. Fees may apply to large orders, depending on the quantity and the brochure requested. Titles include: How to Help an Older Driver, Drivers 55 Plus Check Your Own Performance, The Older Wiser Driver, and Straight Talk for Mature Drivers.

On March 23, 2004 CSAA piloted a new program: AAA Senior Safety Challenge. Sixty-nine seniors, ages 65-89, were invited to the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma to participate in a pilot program. The day was a success and CSAA is planning to make this an annual event.

Seniors drove cars through stations set up in the parking lot. Racecar instructors taught defensive driving skills such as crash avoidance and braking techniques. Parallel parking and left-hand turns were also addressed. Two occupational therapists were on hand to demonstrate proper body position in a car, and also they also tested strength and reaction time. There was no threat of losing your driver's license - all exercises were solely informational for the driver. The day was all about self-awareness of declining skills and to teach interventions that could extend driving years.

In 2003, AAA launched a priority initiative, Lifelong Safe Mobility. In its first phase, AAA's R&D developed Roadwise Review, a CD-ROM for computer use. Seniors can assess their skills in the privacy of their home, or wherever a computer is available as in a Senior Center or library. The product will be made available in late 2004 or early 2005.

This is a 24-month study being funded by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. This project involves public education to encourage and assist aging adults and their families to plan for the time when driving may not be a safe mobility option. The focus is on how individuals, families, and communities can plan for and facilitate giving up the keys. The project will develop a multi-media public education program, and will commence in 2004.

Nicole Kaplan, 1527 Fourth Street, #200
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Phone: 310-576-2994 x 239

Fax: 310-576-2499

E-mail Address: nkaplan@centerforhealthyaging.org

Website: www.centerforhealthyaging.org

Center for Healthy Aging (CHA), a private, non-profit organization serving older adults and their families has been awarded a grant from the Automobile Club of America (AAA) Traffic & Safety Foundation. CHA is conducting a program called "Getting Around: Alternatives for Seniors Who No Longer Drive." The program is primarily a public education effort to raise awareness of the issues and encourage people to start thinking about remaining mobile if they can no longer drive. The unique focus of the project is on individual and family responsibility with support from local community programs. The project includes three key components:

1. Production of a multi-media public education effort including a video for national broadcast and an interactive web site;

2. Implementation of a countywide pilot project to develop a response mechanism for support and transportation resources to persons who voluntarily or involuntarily give up driving; and,

3. Development of class curricula and a manual to be made available to driving organizations and schools, senior centers, and appropriate community agencies throughout the country to help individuals and families plan for the eventuality of not driving. (This component is not part of the AAA Foundation grant).

Patti Yanochko, MPH, PO Box 997413, MS 7214
Sacramento, CA 95899-7413

Phone: 530-342-6803

E-mail Address: pyanochko@projects.sdsu.edu

Website: www.eldersafety.org

This project focuses on examining seniors' abilities to drive safely when suffering from health problems. Older adults with health issues frequently turn to their health care providers for insight on their driving decisions.

The Center for Injury Prevention Policy and Practice will develop training modules for health care professionals to enhance their ability to screen, assess, and refer their older adult patients. Project leaders will consider the program a success once:

• training modules have been developed, tested, and transferred to CD-ROMs,
• courses have been delivered to a minimum of 150 health care professionals, and
• all project objectives have been met.

Diane Winn, RN, MPH, Associate Director, 101 The City Drive, Building 200, Suite 715 (MC128-02)
Orange, CA 92868

Phone: 714-456-7579

E-mail Address: dgwinn@uci.edu

The UCI Older Driver Traffic Safety program funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety has two components. The first involves providing education, training and resources related to senior driving for medical students, physicians and nurses at UCIMC and also for other medical providers in Orange County. Elements of this include reviewing and selecting existing materials that are available for medical providers to use in screening and counseling their patients and families related to senior driving; presentations for physicians and other health professionals in Orange County; a 1/2 day local conference addressing senior driving issues for direct service providers, healthcare professionals and law enforcement; and working with the Student Senior Partnership Program (SSPP) to implement a system for educating medical students over their first three years of medical school about issues related to older drivers.

The second component of this program is to provide educational outreach to seniors through many venues throughout Orange County. This will involves establishing a Senior Driver Resource Center with materials in English, Spanish and Vietnamese in the clinical offices at the Division of Geriatrics, at Laguna Woods/Leisure World and in the UCI Senior Mobile health van. Presentations will be made at senior centers throughout Orange County and a Healthy Driving class will be provided as part of the Patient Health Education Program at UCIMC.

Jason Patton, 250 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Suite 3335
Oakland, CA 94612

Phone: 510-238-7049

Fax: 510-637-0192

E-mail Address: JPatton@oaklandnet.com

Website: www.oaklandnet.com/government/traffic-safety-grant.html

Founded in 1995, the Oakland Pedestrian Safety Project (OPSP) promotes pedestrian safety and access in Oakland, California. Based on the three "E's" of education, enforcement and engineering, the OPSP works with city agencies and community-based organizations to develop comprehensive solutions to pedestrian problems through coalition-building and community outreach.

OPSP has several programs that enhance the safety of older pedestrians in Oakland. Senior Walking groups are organized and provided with walking equipment such as pedometers and safety vests. The Senior Walking Groups receive multilingual pedestrian safety education that includes the basics of crosswalk operation, information about the signal system, and right-of-way issues at unsignalized crosswalks.

With the recent Caltrans approval for in-street signage, OPSP hopes to provide in-street Senior Pedestrian Crossing Signs near senior centers and other locations with high older pedestrian activity.

Website: www.easterseals.com

Transportation Solutions for Care givers:
http://www.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ntl_tsc_resources
Easter Seals Project Action:
http://projectaction.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ESPA_homepage
Easter Seals Project Action Database link:
http://projectaction.easterseals.com/cgi-bin/traveler.cgi

Easter Seals provides services to children and adults with disabilities and other special needs. It also helps support their families. Easter Seals Project Action maintains a database of transit systems (buses, shuttles, taxis, airport service, etc.) that are accessible for people with disabilities.

Transportation is vital for older adults quality of life as well as that of their caregivers. When physical and cognitive impairments prevent seniors from driving or using public transportation, caregivers often become primary transportation providers. In recognition of this, Easter Seals has also created a program called; Transportation Solutions for Caregivers (TSC). TSC develops tools and resources that improve transportation services delivery for older adults and their caregivers.

Keith Harrison

E-mail Address: Keith.Harrison@fhwa.dot.gov

Website: www.fhwa.dot.gov

While the development of the Older Driver Highway Design Handbook is a significant accomplishment, FHWA understands the need to do more than merely deliver a publication. It is necessary to encourage the implementation of the recommendations to improve the safety of the highway system.

To bridge the gap from the delivery of findings to implementation and awareness, FHWA has developed a workshop, as a companion for the Older Driver Highway Design Handbook, to be presented to FHWA division offices, state departments of transportation (DOTs), and local officials. The workshops are designed for state and local design and traffic engineers and for the staffs of FHWA division offices and resource centers to introduce them to the changes that occur with aging and to familiarize them with the recommendations contained in the handbook. The workshops are part of a continuing effort by FHWA to improve the safety and mobility of older drivers. They represent another mechanism to deliver the results of the extensive research that has been conducted in the area of older drivers to those who can put the findings to good use.

Beth Alicandri

Phone: 202-366-6404

E-mail Address: Beth.Alicandri@fhwa.dot.gov

Website: www.fhwa.dot.gov

The Older Driver Highway Design Handbook (Publication No. FHWA-RD-135) summarizes the results and findings of the FHWA older driver program. It is designed to provide guidance to highway designers and traffic engineering professionals in accommodating the needs of older drivers while enhancing the safety of all road-users. The handbook supplements the standards and guidelines in existing highway design manuals – including state design manuals, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) "Green Book," and the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) – but does not constitute a new standard of required practice. The handbook provides recommendations for geometrics, signing, and pavement markings in five major areas of highway design and traffic engineering:

• Intersections (At-grade)

• Interchanges (Grade separation)

• Roadway curvature and passing zones

• Construction/work zones

• Highway-Rail Crossing (Passive)

Website: www.la4seniors.com/independent.htm

This website for seniors in Los Angeles County provides links to resources to help them stay independent. Information is provided in several languages including; English, Armenian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Pilipino, Russian, Spanish, and Yiddish.

Website: http://www.mtc.ca.gov/library/oats/Senior_Mobility_Toolkit.pdf

This Senior Mobility Toolkit was released in 2003 by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and Nelson/Nygaard Consulting Associates in the San Francisco Bay Area. The toolkit highlights successful efforts to promote senior mobility in the areas of pedestrian safety, transportation services, funding, using volunteers, housing accessibility modifications, and safe driving. Examples provide ideas that local agencies can adapt to their own circumstances. The site also offers information that advocacy groups and elected officials can use to promote new initiatives. Numerous links to resources on the Web are provided.

Jones Moy (Project Director), Monterey Park Police Department, 320 West Newmark Avenue
Monterey Park, CA 91754

Phone: (626) 307-1221

The goal of this program is to reduce pedestrian injuries and fatalities. The program will aggressively address speed, DUI, pedestrian safety, seat belt compliance, and bicycle helmet education and enforcement.

Jones Moy (Project Director), Monterey Park Police Department, 320 West Newmark Avenue
Monterey Park, CA 91754

Phone: (626) 307-1221

This project's primary goal is to reduce traffic-related injuries and fatalities involving Monterey Park's senior population. The program is developing a traffic safety initiative that uses enforcement, education, and publicity as countermeasures that will be delivered in a culturally specific manner.

Sergeant Dave Elliott

Phone: 626-307-1481

E-mail Address: delliott@montereypark.ca.gov

The City of Monterey Park is home to a sizeable older adult population and has a high rate of fatal collisions involving older adult pedestrians. In order to address this issue, the Monterey Park Police Department conducts several programs aimed at improving older adult traffic safety and reducing the number of collisions that involve older adults through education, involvement and enforcement.

Safety education efforts include the Mature Driving Program, the Pedestrian Safety Class, and a Traffic Safety Booth. The Pedestrian Safety Classes are free of charge and have been conducted at many senior-housing complexes. The Traffic Safety Booth gives officers the opportunity to make personal contact with citizens and to disseminate traffic safety information to seniors, particularly about proper methods to operate traffic lights and maneuver crosswalks.

The Monterey Park Police Department involves older adults in helping to increase the safety of their community through a Neighborhood Watch program. Through the Senior Bicycle Safety Helmet Giveaway Program, officers keep older adults physically safe by giving free bicycle helmets to older adults they see bicycling without a helmet. In order to publicize the importance of Older Adult Traffic Safety, the Monterey Park Police Department is airing a Public Service Announcement (PSA) in April/May 2004. The PSA will be translated into three languages: Chinese, Spanish and English.

The Monterey Park Police Department strictly enforces laws that promote older adult traffic safety. One method of enforcement is the Pedestrian Decoy Operation in which an undercover police officer will cross a street, and if a driver does not stop for the police officer, other officers will ticket the driver.

Website: http://www.n4a.org/

The National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (N4A) is the umbrella organization for the 655 area agencies on aging (AAAs) and more than 230 Title VI Native American aging programs in the United States. N4A has two programs that deal with senior mobility, the Aging in Place Initiative and the Older Driver Safety Project.

The Aging in Place Initiative is designed to facilitate a community dialogue about aging in place. It also has helps leaders develop action plans to ensure programs and services are available that make communities good places to grow old.

Website: http://www.seniordrivers.org

"Safe Mobility for a Maturing Society: Challenges and Opportunities" is a national policy and planning report issued in 2003 by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Website: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/menuitem.31176b9b03647a189ca8e410dba046a0/

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has many injury prevention resources for available on the NHTSA web site for older road users. Older road users include drivers, passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists. NHTSA's mission with respect to older road users is to keep them safely mobile through programs directed toward reducing traffic-related injuries and fatalities among older people. Through research and outreach activities, NHTSA's programs help aging individuals recognize their changing abilities and adapt their transportation practices appropriately. Whether driving, walking or cycling, if unsafe choices are made, family friends, physicians, other health-care providers, and licensing officials can be pivotal in providing older persons with options for maintaining safe mobility. These individuals can also identify drivers with functional limitations that impair driving performance and direct older drivers to safer transportation alternatives.

The web site includes information about research and programs that enhance older adult traffic safety as well as educational information for older road users. Examples of publications available for downloading include:

• Evaluating Drivers with Medical Conditions in Utah

• Model Driver Screening and Evaluation Program

• Older Road User Research Plan

• Safe Driving for Older Adults

• A Compendium of Law Enforcement Older Driver Programs

• Family and Friends Concerned about an Older Driver

• Brochures about driving with various health conditions

Website: www.safeaging.org

The National Resource Center for Safe Aging (NRCSA), formerly known as the National Resource Center on Aging and Injury (NRCAI), is a collaborative effort involving the Graduate School of Public Health and the Department of Gerontology in the College of Health and Human Services at San Diego State University. It is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its National Center for Injury Prevention and Control in Atlanta, Georgia.

The mission of the NRCSA is to gather and share the best information and resources on senior safety, including prevention, pedestrian and motor vehicle safety, and prevention of elder abuse. The NRCSA invites both public health professionals and older adults and their families to recognize safe aging as a national priority. For public health professionals, the safe aging web site provides a resource database, model programs as well as an event calendar. For older adults and their families, the web site provides a consumer library that includes brochures, fact sheets, and information about senior safety programs. A SafeAging Listserv will be available beginning in Summer 2004. If you would like to be notified when the listserv is available to join, send your name and email address to safeaging@sdsu.edu.

Website: www.oregonsafemobility.org/safe_mobility_consortium.html

Sponsored by the Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division (DMV), Shifting Gears in Later Years is a statewide campaign to increase awareness about Oregon's comprehensive policy for licensing mature drivers. Part of this effort is Oregon's Medically At-Risk Program for health care providers; certain health care professionals in Oregon are required to report drivers with cognitive or functional impairments.

6296 Rivercrest Drive, Suite K
Riverside, CA 92507-0738

E-mail Address: rsmith@vitalco.net

Website: www.livingpartnership.org

This organization operates several programs geared towards older adult traffic safety. A supplemental transportation assistance program is available for people who can no longer drive or who no longer should be driving. A quarterly journal is published called Meeting the Challenges, which is read by over 30,000 seniors in Riverside County. Each issue deals with at least one or more transportation related issue. In addition, several older adult fitness courses are offered by this organization, which serve to aid in keeping older adults fit and flexible so that they are able to drive safely longer. More information about these programs, visit www.livingpartnership.org.

Kristen Anthony, 3909 Bradshaw Road
Sacramento, CA 95827

Phone: 800-825-7262 ext. 240

Fax: 916-366-1762

E-mail Address: Anthony@safetycenter.org

Website: www.safetycenter.org

Safety Center Incorporated, a chapter of the National Safety Council, offers a six or eight hour training course that follows the same concepts of the Standard Defensive Driving Course, but includes several modifications to allow for the maturing process of the body. This course is designed to refresh drivers understanding of basic defensive driving techniques, to introduce new skills, and to cover various techniques drivers can use to help offset the effects of aging on driver performance. The Mature Driver Course will soon be incorporating driving wellness concepts from the American Society on Aging's Road to Driving Wellness Module, which includes tools such as the Driving Self-Assessment Questionnaire.

Michael Radetsky

Phone: 415-581-2418

E-mail Address: Michael.radetsky@sfdph.org

As pedestrians, older San Franciscans are substantially over-represented among pedestrian fatalities and injuries. They are also hindered in their independence and community involvement by an unfortunately appropriate fear of traveling about. While the Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Program does not have a separate program for seniors, we work very closely with a number of local senior-serving agencies and advocacy groups. The Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Program has also funded a variety of senior pedestrian safety oriented community projects. For the past 3 years, the Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Program has been fortunate to have an on-staff epidemiologist focused on pedestrian injury to analyze pedestrian safety and injury issues, including senior issues, and has created reports that have helped to focus attention on these issues.

Officer Natalie Dewberry

Phone: 310-458-2201 x 4847

E-mail Address: Natalie-dewberry@ci.santa-monica.ca.us

"BE SAFE ~ BE SEEN," a new traffic safety program focusing on senior pedestrian safety has "hit the streets". Pedestrian Safety is an issue that affects pedestrians of all ages, but is especially important for the senior community who tend to walk more often and get injured more easily. The program goal is to raise awareness so that pedestrians will consciously think about safety as they go about their daily lives and take extra precautions. The program has also produced a video on older pedestrian safety.

To schedule a presentation at a local event, service organization meeting or senior assisted-living facilities contact Officer Natalie Dewberry in the Santa Monica Police Department's Traffic Enforcement Office at (310) 458-8993. This project was funded by a federal grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety.

Jill Cooper, University of California Traffic Safety Center, 140 Warren Hall #7360
Berkeley, CA 94720-7360

Phone: 510-643-7625

E-mail Address: cooperj@berkeley.edu

The Traffic Safety Center (TSC) performs research on the epidemiology of motor vehicle injury in older adults, examining data sources such as the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, the National Household Transportation Survey, the US Census, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, and others. The objective of this program is to contribute to the literature of older driver research.

As part of this Initiative, the TSC collaborates with many public and campus groups to study older adults and mobility. Our goals are to conduct research into ways of promoting safe driving, safe walking, and safe mobility in general. The TSC works with on-campus groups to research engineering, environmental, and educational programs to enhance seniors' ability to remain mobile. The TSC also works with the Older Californian Traffic Safety Task Force to collaborate with other groups interested in traffic safety. For work to further pedestrian safety, the TSC is a member of the California Pedestrian Safety Task Force and is working on applied research that will help promote pedestrian safety (including older adult pedestrians) at intersections along a major State highway.

David R. Ragland, PhD, University of California Traffic Safety Center, 140 Warren Hall #7360
Berkeley, CA 94720-7360

Phone: 510-642-0655

E-mail Address: davidr@berkeley.edu

As part of the Study of Physical Performance and Age-Related Changes in Sonomans (SPPARCS), this project examines health conditions and functional status as it relates to driving behavior. Subjects are persons 55 years and older who live in the city and surrounding area of Sonoma, California. This project is supported by funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (SPPARCS is a community-based, longitudinal study of age-related changes in physical activity and functioning, supported by funding from the National Institute on Aging.)

TSC papers to date:

MacLeod KE, Ragland DR, Satariano W. Health and functional predictors of driving cessation among the older adult population, in preparation, 2004.

Ragland D, Satariano W, MacLeod KE. Driving cessation and increased depressive symptoms, Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, in press, accepted 2003.

Satariano W, MacLeod KE, Cohn T, Ragland DR. Problems with Vision Associated with Limitations or Avoidance of Driving in Older Populations, Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, in press, accepted 2003.

Ragland DR, Satariano W, MacLeod KE. Reasons given by older people for limitation or avoidance of driving. Gerontologist, in press, accepted 2002.

Lucy Bullard, Assistant Director, Project Coordinator: Walkable Neighborhoods for Seniors, 8 Eastmont Town Center
Oakland, CA 94605

Phone: 510-729-0796

Fax: 510-729-0796

E-mail Address: LBullardUSOAC@aol.com

Website: http://www.usoac.org/

United Seniors of Oakland and Alameda County (USOAC), is an East San Francisco Bay Area CBO whose mission is "to provide institutional support for Seniors, to collectively participate in the public arena, to act from a position of strength, to enable the elderly to address the critical issues, and to change the conditions that impact their lives." USOAC has developed a track record of promoting pedestrian safety by establishing senior crossing zones, spearheading the Oakland Pedestrian Safety Project, as well as through the Intergenerational Traffic Safety Education Project and the Young Driver Traffic Safety Project. It is in this framework that USOAC launched the Walkable Neighborhoods for Seniors (WN4S) Project.

USOAC-WN4S Project promotes walking among older adults by offering access to group walks and increases awareness about pedestrian issues among public officials, planners, engineers, health professionals, advocates, older adults and the community at large. The WN4S Project has created six walking clubs in Alameda County, California in the past year. USOAC is currently extending its efforts to train elderly peer walking club leaders to start six new walking clubs. WN4S has organized a Healthy Living Festival and senior walk-a-thon and has hosted two Walkable Community Workshops facilitated by Charlie Gandy of Livable Community Consulting in November 2003. One of the tools USOAC developed and used is a Senior Walkability Audit composed of a pedestrian survey, site assessment and photo documentation of barriers. Other tools include an Active Living Toolkit, site specific walking maps, walking club T-shirts, and other outreach materials.

Diane Winn, RN, Center for Trauma and Injury Prevention Research, 101 The City Drive, Building 200, Suite 715
Orange, CA 92686

Phone: (714) 456-7579

This project will address three at-risk populations: senior drivers, teens and young adults, and non-seatbelt users in non- or limited- English speaking populations. For seniors, this project will establish a Senior Driving Resource Center and community satellite center, develop a resource kit, and conduct education for seniors, police, and medical professionals.

Website: www.umtri.umich.edu/library/pdf/2000-14.pdf

Developed by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, this workbook allows seniors to screen themselves. It is designed to help educate them about age-related changes in abilities and habits that could affect safe driving. The workbook also gives seniors specific instructions on what to do if they identify a concern while screening themselves.

Tom Vu, Program Coordinator

Phone: 916-444-5864

E-mail Address: tvu@saclung.org

Website: www.walksacramento.org

The goal of the Walkable Neighborhoods for Senior Program is to organize groups of seniors to be advocates for all types of improvements to make their walking environment better and safer in all ways. This is accomplished through several objectives:

• Neighborhood Identification
  Using a list of criteria, several neighborhoods were chosen that are low-income, high-minority communities. Statistics show that people of ethnic backgrounds are more prone to pedestrian/vehicle collisions, and this tendency increases with age.

• Organization of Senior Walking Groups
  In partnership with the 50+ Wellness Program of the City of Sacramento, senior walking groups are organized. These groups also serve as advocates to lobby for improvement of the walking environment.

• Identifying Problems
  The senior walking groups identify barriers to walking in their community. This could be anything from crime, poorly designed sidewalks, lack of lighting, etc.

• Drafting a Long Term Action Plan
  With input from residents and transportation officials, a long-term action plan is drafted that provides a variety of options that residents can adopt to enhance their walking environment.

This program has provided health benefits to participants and a renewed sense of community. Neighbors are meeting for the first time, and elected officials and government representatives are meeting with constituents. WALKSacramento also conducts other projects that are not aimed solely on older adults, such as the Safe Routes Sacramento Program.

Barbara Harrison, Director, Education and Outreach
Tel: 310-394-9871 ext. 45, 

Fax: 310-394-0866

E-mail Address: Bharrison@wiseseniorservices.org

WISE Senior Services, located in Santa Monica, California, conducts several older adult traffic safety programs. Key elements include:

• Orientation and mobility training classes: Monthly classes for new paratransit clients. The focus is on transportation options and alternatives, mobility when driving is not an option, trip planning, as well as how to access WISE/Santa Monica Dial-A-Ride and other paratransit and public transportation. We will soon add a pedestrian safety component.

• WISER RIDER: A monthly newsletter that is published for clients and is available for public distribution via website, vans, walk-ins and at public locations.

• Transportation & Mobility Forums: An annual event focusing on transportation and mobility for Santa Monica seniors and persons with disabilities.

• Transportation Safety for riders & drivers: Quarterly demonstration classes provided by our operations provider to assist in educating riders about safety when riding the vans.