For several years, American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) has encouraged states to implement the Federal Highway Administration?s roadway engineering guidelines for older drivers and pedestrians. More recently, AARP has endorsed the planning concept, complete streets. Complete streets are those that are designed for the safety and comfort of all road users, regardless of age and ability. Naturally this definition should extend to the needs of older road users. But does it in practice? And do the engineering solutions offered for older drivers work for pedestrians and bicyclists, the major focus of the complete streets movement? The AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) embarked upon this project to discover the nexus betweenthese two, as of yet, distinct areas of research and practice. To do thisPPI formed an interdisciplinary team of planners, engineers, and policy advocates to review the safety research and offer both policy and design recommendations that can be used by engineers, planners, and citizen advocates in their quest to build safe, more livable streets for everyone. The next several years marks unprecedented opportunity to affect our built environment. The Federal Highway Administration is undergoing an update to its Highway Design Handbook for Older Drivers and Pedestrians; local and stategovernments in ever-increasing numbers are adopting complete streets policies, and Congress has introduced complete streets bills at the same time it is holding hearings on highway safety in anticipation of reauthorization of surface transportation legislation. It is PPI?s hope that this research report and accompanying design document will stimulate new understanding and thinking that will lead to better streets for all Americans.
Samenvatting