Planning to Retire? Add Transit to Your Checklist

Written by Judy Bortman

We’ve heard the phase, “Location, location, location,” when scouting for places to buy or rent a home.  It’s now the mantra for the millions of seniors who are retiring, downsizing and selling the family home. They’re leaving the suburbs where driving was the only way to get around and migrating to the city where walkable neighborhoods and public transit abound.

Why this seismic shift?  Several factors are intersecting:

Americans are living longer:
According to Business Insider, the 65-74 age group is 10 times larger than in 1900 and the 85+ age group is 40 times larger.  Centenarians, people who are 100 years of age or older, is a word you’ll hear popping up more often in the coming years. There’s even a selection of Hallmark cards to celebrate that landmark birthday.

U.S. Census data from 2010 reveals that there are about 50,000 people over 100 in the United States, almost three times as many as there were in 1980.

Boomer Power:
Baby boomers, people born from 1946 to 1964, are retiring in droves. It’s estimated that 10,000 “boomers” in the United States are turning 65 every day until the year 2030.  The volume of this demographic wields tremendous social and economic clout as children of the 1960s continue to be trend-setters.  They’re leading the march from the suburbs to the cities.

Giving up the keys is a large part of the equation:
Many seniors want to stay active physically and mentally.  This means going out of the house, taking classes, doing volunteer work, getting together with friends and scheduling appointments.

Moving to a city or senior-friendly community can enhance the quality

of life for seniors who are no longer able to drive.  They can walk or take public transit

to appointments and activities that support their mental and physical well-being.

If you live in the suburbs most, if not all, of these activities require transportation which means driving by yourself.  Once a suburban senior no longer drives, they are isolated from activities, friends and are frequently challenged to get around to appointments and services. By living in cities, seniors can walk or take public transit, become “carfree” and still continue their lifestyle.

An excellent article about incorporating transportation into retirement planning, When Planning for Retirement, Consider Transportation, appeared recently in the New York Times.

It cites the American Journal of Public Health which states that Americans are outliving their ability to drive, on average 10 years for a woman and seven years for a man, and offers ideas to help incorporate transportation into retirement planning.

Is My Location Walkable?

Seniors who are researching places to move can get a snapshot of shops, services and transit in the neighborhood by checking the Walk Score for an address and measure its walkability.


The higher the Walk Score number on a scale from 0 to 100, the more you are able to walk to shops, services, recreation or connect to transit.

I wanted to try Walk Score so I looked up the walkability of the TransOptions office at 2 Ridgedale Avenue in Cedar Knolls . Our score is 29, on the low side, which means (as I already knew) that most errands require a car.
                                                             
If you scroll down on Walk Score page for the location you’ve entered, you’ll find public transit options including the route numbers for the local NJ TRANSIT buses that stop by our office.  This free site is a great place to start exploring “walkable communities” anywhere in the United States.

Change is a Challenge for most seniors
One of the programs I give at senior groups is called, Retiring from Driving: A Kinder Way to Give Up the Keys.  I address a “tough topic” - the normal, physical decline that happens with aging and how it impacts and limits seniors’ driving ability and safety.

Many seniors have told me that they feel uncomfortable driving at night, on highways, in rush hour traffic and during inclement weather. Most of these seniors are living in the suburbs, in the same home where they’ve lived for 40 years and raised their children.  They’re reluctant to change their residence or their transit routine because they don’t want to give up the keys and lose their independence.

There will come a time when change is inevitable, when the physical responsibilities of suburban homeownership become challenging or even overwhelming including cutting the grass in summer, raking leaves in the fall and shoveling snow in winter.  At this turning point the maintenance, time and cost of keeping upkeep of house make it a burden rather than a joy.

Perhaps then they’ll have to decide if it’s time for a change and at that point, may consider moving from the suburbs to the city.  Some seniors will decide to age in place and find people to assist with home maintenance.  Others will realize that it’s time to explore options that include selling the family home, cashing in on their investment and relocating to an apartment, condo or senior community where someone else handles the maintenance.

Seniors who decide to move to a city or walkable community may not even realize that walking to activities and taking public transit can add years to their lives.  By walking to shops, appointments and services, seniors are stretching their minds as well as their physical beings. Living in a city can even help them live longer. Perhaps they’re on the path be becoming centenarians!

A Walking Lifestyle: Reaping the Benefits

Written by Judy Bortman 

Putting one foot in front of the other is a simple act that gets you from place to place.  We’re learning that walking is so much more. It’s a lifestyle.

The CDC (United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends 150 minutes per week of moderate walking.  Their research has shown that walking has a positive impact on the quality and longevity of your life.  Walking:
• Reduces stress
• Helps you sleep better
• Improves your mood, memory, learning ability and concentration
• Lowers the risk of chronic disease
• Lowers blood pressure, reduces cholesterol and strengthens bones
• Contributes to longevity
• Walking instead of driving reduces pollutants going into the air
• And it’s free transportation!

For whatever the speed or purpose, why do you walk?  Why should you walk? What is a “walking lifestyle?” Would you really reap benefits from being more ambulatory?

The Walking Gait Cycle

First and foremost walking is a way to get from place to place - for a purpose or as recreation.  Whether you’re going from the living room to the kitchen, getting from your car to the front door of your office or from your house to the corner bus station, walking is how people (who are physically able) get around. Walking for exercise, relaxation or a social stroll all contribute to a walking lifestyle.

Why Walk?

Personally I really like to walk and enjoy going for walks that suit my schedule and energy level of the day. Some days walking is a peaceful escape, a time to unwind, a chance to think or problem solve or just appreciate my surroundings.  Other days it’s a flexible way to exercise and enjoy being outside.

I imagine if you asked ten people why they walk, you’d get ten answers. I decided to do just that and polled friends, relatives and co-workers asking why they walked. Just as I expected, their replies were a cross section of reasons:

• It makes me feel good.
• I walk my dog.
• I like to be outside in nice weather.
• It’s exercise and a great way to get places a short distance away         instead of driving.
• It’s a habit.
• It’s a hobby.
• It’s my preferred way to get around in winter when the roads         aren’t conducive to driving.
• It’s like moving meditation.
• It’s a relaxing way to do errands especially after work; I park the         car and don’t deal with rush hour traffic.
• It makes me forget about time and things on my to-do list.
• It’s an easy way to stay fit.
• It’s free.
• It’s portable. I take short walks during lunch hour and feel         energized during the afternoon.
• It’s a great way to get around transit-friendly cities while on         vacation or business travel.

A poll among Americans conducted by Christopher Fleury for Kaiser Permanente and GFK in 2013 reveals the body, mind and heart motivations for people to walk.

Walkability - The New Metric

The term “walkability” is a measure of how friendly an area is for walking.  Streets that include features such as wide sidewalks, clearly marked pedestrian crossings and good lighting enable pedestrians to share the road with bicycle riders and motorists in a safe and accessible manner. They’re called “walkable streets.”

You can even measure the walkability of the street where you live or work at Walk Score and get a commute report to see options for getting around that neighborhood by car, bus, bike and foot.   The higher the walk score number, the more you are able to walk to work, shops, services, recreation or connect to transit.

Illustration from Walkonomics.org, a British-based company that rates the  walkability of streets and plans to do so for every street in the world.

Last fall I attended the first national conference on walking conducted by America Walks in conjunction with Kaiser Permanente. Leading walking proponents, urban planners, physicians and public health officials from across the United States gathered to grow the walking community and share their research on how walking benefits wellness and stimulates the economy in walkable towns and businesses.

The mission of America Walks is to make American cities and communities walkable places where people can and want to walk.  Their information and resources for growing “walkability” are available at http://www.AmericaWalks.org.

Attendees at the America Walks Conference “walked their talk”by taking the stairs rather than the escalators between meeting sessions and conducting a mid-morning “walking meeting.”

              

Walking to and at Work

In northwest New Jersey, a walking commute is the exception, rather than the rule.  However, there is a way to have a commute “hybrid” by incorporating walking into your trip to and from work.

Whether you drive, take the bus or train or ride a bicycle to work, sooner or later you’ll be walking from the parking lot or transit station to get to your office.  Walking for even part or of your commute helps reduce traffic congestion which in turn helps the air you breathe while walking. You’ll soon feel the benefits of taking more steps and doing less driving.

Consider adding a few more steps to your day by parking your car a little farther from your office building entrance, taking the stairs instead of the elevator and getting in a short walk before lunch or as a mid-afternoon break.  Walking for even ten minutes during the day can help you feel more alert and ultimately be more productive.  It burns calories, too.

Charles Dickens took a walking break every afternoon at 2pm.

Charles Dickens, perhaps the greatest of the Victorian novelists, was a man of strict routine.  Every day, Dickens would write from 9a.m. to 2p.m.  After that, he would put his work away and go out for a long walk. “If I couldn’t walk fast and far, I should just explode and perish,” Dickens wrote.

According to engineering professor Barbara Oakley, author of the new book, A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Science (Even If You Flunked Algebra), Dickens knew how to make his brain function at a very high level. And for this, Dickens’ walks were just as important as his writing sessions.

Credited to Chris Mooney.  From his podcast at Inquiring Minds 

Walking to School

In 1960, nearly 60% of students in grades K-8 in the United States walked or biked to school.  Today, only 11% are walking or biking.  This staggering statistic is being addressed, in part, by free Safe Routes to School (SRTS) programs implemented by Transportation Management Associations, like TransOptions, in a growing number of walking-savvy municipalities and school districts.

Initiating walking as a mode of transportation to school benefits the students, their parents, their schools and their communities:
• Children are noted to be alert upon arrival at school and more         focused in the classroom.
• Students improve in the classroom and even improve their         attendance record.
• Children learn to navigate their neighborhood and meet their         neighbors.
• Lines of traffic near schools are reduced meaning less congestion,         improved air quality and a safer walking/biking environment.
• Bus transport costs may be reduced.
• An easy opportunity for children to be physically active each day.         Increasing walking/biking as part of daily life can help reduce         obesity and instill lifelong, healthier habits.

Environmental Benefits of Walking

Walking is inherently important to human health; it also benefits the health of our ecosystems. Walking doesn’t generate air pollution or produce chemicals.

Idling cars create ground level ozone which is known to be an irritant to those with respiratory illnesses like asthma; it also has a negative impact on native plant life.

By walking instead of driving, there are fewer vehicles on the road and less traffic congestion which in turn decrease pollution from ground level ozone.

Walk for Longevity

The first moment that a child takes his or her first steps is a lifetime benchmark. Prince George recently took his first steps and his photo, sans parents holding his hands, got global media attention. He’s achieved a milestone.

Prince George taking his first steps

Walking is a benchmark for seniors, too.  It helps them stay physically agile, mentally alert and contributes to their overall longevity.  Seniors who have made walking part of their lifestyle are better equipped to remain independent when they’re no longer able to drive; they can walk to errands and appointments or to get to public transit. The growing number of seniors is swelling the ranks of walkers as 8,000 baby boomers in the United States turn age 65 every day from now until 2030.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is already “taking steps” to make his borough walkable and safe
for seniors.  Two-hundred-and-two people aged 65 and up were killed by cars in Brooklyn between 2003 and 2012, according to a study conducted by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign.

Borough President Adams is addressing this growing concern. He has proposed a new plan to move school crossing guards from their normal posts to intersections near nursing homes and senior centers while the school kids are in class. I imagine it’s just a matter of time before this concept is replicated in more towns nationwide.

A Quality of Life Elixir

Walking just 30 minutes per day for five days a week (a total of 150 minutes per week) sustains a walking program and enhances your well-being.  What’s even better is that the thirty minutes of walking can be done throughout the day and still be just as effective.

Try walking 10 minutes during your lunch hour, 10 minutes after work and park a little farther out in the parking lot for errands or appointments.  Without much effort you can complete 30 minutes of daily walking.

Take a few moments, right NOW and follow Dickens’ advice.  Get up.  Go for a walk, even for five minutes.  It’s free and you’ll feel good.  That’s a winning combination!

Retiring from Driving: A Kinder Way to Give Up the Keys?

Written by Judy Bortman

Part 2 of 2.

Retirement is a major life decision that arrives after years of preparation and calculations. It's a milestone that we know will arrive someday. Most likely substantial thought has gone into the financial aspects of retirement.

I'd imagine that less time is spent pondering how retirement will change our daily routines and ingrained habits. Just as a senior spends considerable time thinking, planning and discussing retirement from work, shouldn't he do the same when it comes to driving?

Semantics can help re-tune a senior's mindset and transform a confrontational act of surrendering the keys to a conscious, planned process of "retiring" from driving.

If I were a senior citizen approaching the time when it was no longer safe to drive, I'd feel traumatized if I were suddenly told that the keys to my car were being taken away and I was being given a lifetime driving "time out."

Rather, if family members had started a dialogue some years before about the day when I need to modify, cut back and eventually stop driving, I'd find the transition more palatable because it was gradual, rather than abrupt.

"Retiring" is a relatable concept and a kinder-gentler way to plan for the day when it's time to relinquish the keys. It sounds like a planned, logical process with a goal in sight rather than the single, abrupt act of taking away the keys and stripping a senior of their freedom to come and go at will.

Making change is never easy, especially for seniors. However, fine-tuning our vocabulary, having candid conversations and spending time to find transit options can ease the transition from motorist to passenger.

Like the proverbial elephant in the room, giving up the keys is a large issue for seniors that's not going away and can't be ignored.

According to AARP, members of the Baby Boom generation will be turning 65 at a rate of 8,000 a day until 2030. Soon one in four drivers will be over 65. Many seniors drive for years beyond that benchmark; our driver's licenses don't have an expiration date. Are seniors that you know starting to show signs that they're not fit to drive?

Active and agile seniors have told me that they remain on the road by adjusting their driving to their abilities and their comfort zone. They prefer to navigate on local streets, during non-rush hour times and primarily during daylight hours.

While there are many road-savvy seniors, some wait too long to stop driving. During my commute, I occasionally see a Silver Alert message on the electronic billboard along Route 287, identifying the car of a senior driver who's "gone missing.

Silver Alerts broadcast information about missing persons, especially seniors, to aid in their return.

About 6 in 10 dementia victims wander at least once. According to the Alzheimer's Association, if they are not found within 24 hours, up to half of wandering seniors with dementia suffer serious injury or death.

Just as we're sometimes at a loss as to where we put the car keys or joke about having a "senior moment" because we forget what we were about to say, seniors can mentally "go missing" while driving.

They forget where they are, where they’re headed or why. Their family and friends are concerned when they don't arrive at their destination in a timely manner and anxiously await word that their car has been sighted. Hopefully the senior motorist is found and gets home safely.

When a behind the wheel "walkabout" occurs, a huge highway billboard is most likely not the first sign that it's time to give up the keys. Likely, a senior’s memory has been slipping before the Silver Alert incident and there have been signs that a senior driver is no longer fit to be behind the wheel.

It's never too soon to monitor the behind the wheel habits of a senior in your life by regularly checking their driving. If you observe these common warning signs, it’s time to start the dialogue about giving up the keys:

• Having two or more traffic tickets, collisions, fender-benders or "near-misses" in the past two years may result from diminishing skills, depth perception or reaction time.
• Confusing the gas and brake pedals or having difficulty working them may be a sign of waning leg strength.
• Ignoring or missing stop signs and traffic signals means the driver may not spot the signs in a crowded or moving visual field.
• Weaving, straddling the lanes, signaling incorrectly and not checking mirrors or blind spots can signal diminishing driving ability.
• Getting lost or disoriented easily, even in familiar places can indicate memory problems. 

Getting advice from the senior's physician can help determine when it's time to give up the keys.

• A number of groups and organization have helpful senior driving information:
• AAA, long a resource for drivers, has a resource-rich website dedicated to senior driving that can help seniors, their families and friends address age-related driving transitions.
• AARP also offers senior driving suggestions. Their Smart Driver™ Course is a refresher for drivers age 50 and older and helps by providing skills and tools to drive safely, thus adding to the time they remain independent.
• A website called Talk Early Talk Often has suggestions on how to begin and evolve a "giving up the keys" dialogue. The key is for seniors to take steps to transition gradually and maintain as much freedom and control of their life as possible like the other aspects of retirement.

Start today to help a senior you know face the music and gracefully give up the keys by "retiring" from driving. Sooner or later, we'll all need to move over to the passenger seat.

As Ruby and the Romantics reminded us so melodically in their 1963 hit song, Our Day Will Come.

Retiring from Driving: A Kinder Way to Give Up the Keys?

Written by Judy Bortman

Part 1 of 2.

My uncle is 87 and still driving. It's a scary thought for his well-being and for those he may encounter on the road. Like many seniors he's downsized and lives in an independent living community. Driving remains a necessity because there are few transit options. Shops and services are nearby, but on a busy road. How long can he safely drive even a short distance? When will it be time to "give up the keys?"

Just as we experienced normal body changes during puberty, aging has its own set of unique changes. Slower reflexes, vision adjustments (longer to focus and adjust to light), diminished hearing and memory lapses.

This leads me to question whether my uncle or any advanced senior is really fit to drive. How do you measure behind the wheel "fitness?" Physical strength, mental alertness, flexibility, visual clarity and rapid reaction times are all required. At some point, family or friends will need to have a heartfelt discussion about when, where and how often a senior can drive safely and what driving limitations are necessary to accommodate aging. Is it time to "give up the keys?"

Some changes to driving habits seem obvious. Say good-by to E-Z pass, only drive during the day, in non-peak times and near home. My uncle has made these adjustments and we’ve discussed the "limited range" of his driving, but I still worry. We're inching closer to the time when he'll need to relinquish the keys altogether. For now that benchmark remains on the horizon but it’s getting closer with each birthday.

According to a new survey released by Liberty Mutual Insurance, the majority of senior drivers are behind the wheel regularly, even those with limited physical abilities. While many seniors are safe drivers, the time will come when they, too, have to confront the reality that it’s time to limit or stop their driving.  

"'Giving up the keys' isn't being addressed by a majority of seniors or their children."

"Only 6 percent of seniors have spoken with someone, typically their children or a doctor, about their driving ability."

-Liberty Mutual Insurance Survey

8,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 every day.

Seniors fear losing their independence, becoming less active, having difficulty finding alternative transportation and feeling isolated. The Liberty Mutual survey revealed that more than half of children with senior parents were concerned about their parents' driving abilities yet nearly one-third avoided initiating the conversation.

According to AARP, members of the Baby Boom generation will be turning 65 at a rate of 8,000 per day until 2030. Soon, one in four drivers will be over 65.

If there's a senior driver in your family, it's never too soon to start the dialogue about giving up the keys. Helpful videos from The Alzheimer’s Association and Liberty Mutual provide specific suggestions of what to say and may help you ease into the conversation.

To my surprise my uncle was more receptive to talking about giving up the keys than I had expected.  If there's a senior driver in your life, start the "tough love" conversation. Don't wait until it’s too late!