Engineer and Planner Resources

Engineering and Planning for the elder road user takes into account the changes in vision, fitness and flexibility, attention span, and reaction time that occurs as we age. Engineering and planning with Florida's aging population in mind is critical to the mobility of Florida's seniors.

Making left turns and getting stranded in the crosswalk when the signal changes can be challenging for all road users, but especially those that are experiencing age-related changes.

Context Sensitive Solutions

In order to have to be an effective community and meet the needs of all citizens, it is important in the planning stages to take into consideration the safety of pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and public transit users of every age.

Transportation agencies have been advancing the concept of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) in which transportation projects are planned, designed, and implemented to meet the needs of communities and the environment. CSS adds to the traditional methods of project development by emphasizing collaborative and interdisciplinary decision making and by insisting that the context of a project is thoroughly understood before any design decisions are made. The CSS process seeks to balance safety and mobility with scenic, aesthetic, historic, environmental values that will enhance the community.

Contextsensitivesolutions.org, the Transportation community's Online Resource Center for Context Sensitive Solutions can be accessed at this link: http://www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/gen/homepage

Protected Left Turns

Protected left turn lanes that use a dedicated left turn signal assist the older drivers who often have trouble making left turns due to an inability to accurately judge the speed and distance of the approaching traffic.

FHWA Publication - Public Roads, January/February 2007, Vol. 70, No. 4, "Older Drivers at a Crossroads," by David A. Morena, W. Scott Wainwright, and Fred Ranck can be accessed at this link: http://www.tfhrc.gov/pubrds/07jan/02.htm

FHWA Publication "Safety Effectiveness of Intersection Left- and Right-Turn Lanes" can be accessed at this link: http://www.tfhrc.gov/safety/pubs/02089/appa.htm

Roundabouts

The Florida Roundabout Guide was developed by the FDOT to assist district offices and local agencies in identifying appropriate sites for roundabouts and determining their preferred configuration and operational features. The Florida Roundabout Guide can be accessed at this link: http://www.dot.state.fl.us/TrafficOperations/Doc_Library/PDF/roundabout_guide8_07.pdf.

The FHWA Highway Design Handbook for Older Drivers and Pedestrians Roundabout recommendation can be accessed at this link: http://www.tfhrc.gov/humanfac/01103/chp1rec.htm#q

Roundabout educational information can be accessed on the Roadway web page.

Pedestrian and Bicyclist Facility Design

The FHWA Highway Design Handbook for Older Drivers and Pedestrians has several areas within the handbook that contain recommendations for older pedestrians.

Pedestrian crossing design, operations, and control can accessed at this link: http://www.tfhrc.gov/humanfac/01103/chp1rec.htm#p

Pedestrian control devices can be accessed at these links: http://www.tfhrc.gov/humanfac/01103/chp1rec.htm#n
http://www.tfhrc.gov/humanfac/01103/chp1rec.htm#o

Pedestrian crossing times can be accessed at this link: http://www.tfhrc.gov/humanfac/01103/ch1.htm#i106

Pedestrian and Bicycle Facility Design Courses can be accessed at this link: http://www.pedbikeinfo.org/training.htm

Engineering Pedestrian Facilities Report can be accessed at this link: http://www.walkinginfo.org/engineering

Refuge Islands

Seniors can also sometimes experience difficulty crossing the street because their walking speeds tend to slow with age. Refuge islands, particularly for multi-lane highways, can provide older pedestrians a safe place to wait for the signal to change and countdown pedestrian signals provide older pedestrians with information on how much time remains to safely cross the street.

The FHWA course on Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation can be accessed at this link: http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/ped_bike/univcourse/pdf/swless15.pdf

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