Veronica Daniel, 63, is one of the group's leaders, writing out safety issues in her notebook.
Daniel and other elderly members are on a road-condition-inspection mission, examining roads, taking notes on dangerous intersections in need of traffic lights, stop signs, and sidewalks in need of repair. Then, they report them to the Department of Transportation, according to MetroFocus.
Since 2010, East Harlem, Upper West Side and Bedford-Stuyvesant have become New York's first Aging Improvement Districts, aimed to help older New Yorkers age better and more easily.
Ruth Finkelstein, senior vice president for policy and planning at the New York Academy of Medicine told MetroFocus: “The core transportation in New York City is walking, and older adults are no different than anybody else.” Ms. Finklestein also said the city needs to give seniors more time to cross the street, to mark some of the crosswalks more clearly, and install countdowns and curb cuts.
Although Brooklyn seniors generally praise the city's transit system, they bemoan the difficulty in walking to the closest bus or subway. The poor condition of the streets, dodging traffic, means its more likely they'll stay at home and lose out on expeditions to see family, or go to entertaining outings.
Dwellers in Assisted Living and Continuing Care need assurance that travel is safe from their residences.