Safe Routes for Seniors is a New York State Department of Health funded project based in the northern Manhattan neighborhoods of Washington Heights, Inwood and Harlem. The goal of the project is to encourage seniors to walk more by improving their pedestrian environment. According to health professionals, walking is one of the easiest, least expensive ways for people of all ages to get daily exercise and stay healthy. But is it necessary to engineer streets specifically for vulnerable users like young children, senior citizens and those with mobility and visual impairments? The answer is yes. Why? Because constructing streets with these users in mind creates an environment free of significant difficulties, potential conflicts with cars and encourages people of all ages and abilities to walk and be outside. And when streets are safe and inviting to those walking, people walk more, both for transportation and for recreation.

In many respects New York City is a great place for people to grow old; the census shows an increasing number of elderly live here. However, there are improvements that can be made, especially around areas with high concentrations of older residents, to make New York a more healthful environment for our seniors.

After talking with many seniors, conducting interviews and surveys throughout northern Manhattan and watching elderly pedestrians navigate the streets throughout the city, we have come to the conclusion that there are a number of design standards that should be adopted to make streets safe for seniors. Engineering streets specifically for seniors takes the regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) one step further to make room for the sensory changes that occur as people age. So what would streets ideally look like, based on what elderly pedestrians have told us? Here are some ideas:

• The street should be as flat as possible, with minimal convexity for drainage and a smooth transition from the curb to the street.
  
  
• Large streets would have wide median refuge areas with benches. Refuges should be as large as possible and contain such things as plantings and shelters.
  
  
• All bus stops near senior centers would have shelters and benches.
  
  
• Drivers would be prohibited from turning during the first 10 seconds of a traffic signal phase. This time is needed by seniors to ascend the curb and begin a safe crossing unobstructed by turning vehicles.
  
  
• Drivers would be required to stop 15 feet before a junction. This would require moving the stop bar back away from the crosswalk and placing a tactile surface on the stop bar. To further protect elderly pedestrians, where appropriate, the crosswalks would be built up or "raised" to line up with the curb. The addition of a raised crosswalk forces drivers to reduce their speed at the intersection.
  
  
• On busy commercial streets and bus routes, all curbs would be extended into the crosswalk to create better views for pedestrians and drivers.
  
  
• On streets where there is more space than is needed to move traffic, the street would be put on a "road diet," that is lanes or parts of lanes would be reclaimed for wider sidewalks, planted medians, and/or bicycle lanes.