UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies

The focus of this study was on the identification of barriers to transit use by older adults and on testing improvements and interventions that hold promise for increasing ridership. Baseline measurements of ridership and perceptions of transit use were gathered at two study sites in the San Francisco Bay Area. Among the challenges and barriers to transit use by older adults are lack of information about service and schedules; waiting outdoors in uncomfortable station areas; lack of security and perception of crime; inconvenient pedestrian access to stops; and lack of training for drivers in the needs of older riders. The report includes a summary of surveys of seniors' perspectives, results of two travel training interventions, and a handbook to be used by transit and senior services agencies.