SAN DIEGO COUNTY
San Diego County's Aging and Independence Services, part of the county's Health and Human Services Agency, has set out to comprehensively address transportation needs for seniors in the community. Current programs include:

Specialized Transportation Referral and Information for the Disabled and Elderly, STRIDE
The County is launching an Internet-based transportation database for social service agencies and the public called "Specialized Transportation Referral and Information for the Disabled and Elderly," or STRIDE. Users will be able to input personal preferences, such as location, special needs, or fee range, and be provided with information on transportation options meeting their criteria.

Taxi Vouchers
Taxi vouchers are made available through two senior centers, the Senior Community Center in downtown San Diego and the Poway Regional Express Senior Transportation Organization.

Travel Training
Individuals and groups receive free classroom training on the use of public transportation. Students then take public transit trips to practice their new skills, earning free transit passes upon completion of the training. Initial evaluation of the program has shown that seniors who complete it are continuing to use public transit.

Volunteer Escorts and Drivers
Volunteer caregivers and escorts accompany or drive seniors to destinations of their choice. Escorts may be current caregivers, or provided by participating organizations throughout the county. Driver escorts are screened and trained in safety and sensitivity and typically accompany passengers on all their trips.

Shuttle Programs
Senior shuttle transportation and mileage reimbursement programs are provided throughout the San Diego metropolitan area. One such program, the "Out and About" Vista Senior Transportation program at the Brengle Terrace Senior Center, was recently awarded a Healthy Lifestyles and Wellness first place award in the California Park and Recreation Society Aging Section's Spotlight on Senior Center Awards.

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

Older Adults Transportation Workshops
The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), the transportation planning, coordinating and financing agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, is conducting a study to develop a strategy to address the growing transportation needs of older adults.

Driver Escort Programs
"Be the Wheels" is a fee-based program offered by the Jewish Family and Children's Services in San Francisco to help seniors get to medical appointments and go grocery shopping. For the past 25 years, a corps of volunteer escort drivers has been providing seniors with door-to-door transportation as well as assistance during and after trips. In addition to safe transportation, the program can also provide seniors with social contact and friendship.

"Seniors in Motion" is a new Berkeley-based program offered through the Jewish Family Children's Services of the East Bay. It was started with funding from a local philanthropist who wanted to improve transportation services for other seniors after experiencing transportation barriers herself with the loss of her driving license. Serving senior centers in the East Bay, volunteer drivers provide rides to all destinations as well as in-home assistance. "The loss of your driver's license should not affect your quality of life. We wanted to provide rides to all the places that seniors were already going," said Director Katana Simmons.

Shuttle Service
In West Oakland, a free shuttle service is currently serving 600 seniors at five participating senior sites. The shuttle operates three days a week and provides transportation between four locations: the West Oakland Health Center, Gateway Marketplace, Oakland Main Post Office, and the West Oakland Senior Center, which also offers riders lunches provided by Bay Area Community Services (BACS).

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