The United States is experiencing an increase in its elderly population. According to Census Bureau estimates, this population should increase by 104.2% from 2000 to 2030, which translates into 72.1 million elders by 2030. This demographic change will affect the transportation system, like any other socioeconomic system. Thus, this study seeks to understand the dynamics of elderly activity-travel behaviour and its potential effects on the transportation system to better identify and meet seniors’ transportation needs. The Urban Travel Route and Activity Choice Survey (UTRACS), an automated, Internet- and GPS-based prompted-recall survey that was coupled with learning algorithms, was employed for that purpose. In this report, the study team analyses elderly tour formation, activity-trip planning, mode-choice selection, and activity timing. (Author/publisher)
Abstract