Cars, Suburbs, & Aging Society

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

Another problem about cars + suburbanization that cannot be overlooked is
that as we get older, we tend to lose or experience the deterioration of
many of our mental & physical abilities: sight, memory, hand-eye
coordination, and so on. That means that many of us will also lose our
ability to drive a car long before we die. And industrialized nations are
seeing larger + larger proportions of their populations falling into the
categories of the old and the very old.

Does it make sense to leave lots of elderly people trapped in suburbs
(which most likely lack convenient places to shop, to hang out, etc.),
carless + immobile + isolated, dependent on the kindness of younger friends
who may or may not be always available for help with grocery shopping,
doctor appointments, etc.?

Yoshie