In 2008, Project for Public Spaces collaborated with AARP to create and publish a set of documents that would provide the elderly with the knowledge and tools needed to successfully interact with their local Department of Transportation.   The processes involved with addressing concerns about local infrastructure can be intimidating if one does not have a clear understanding of how they system operates.   A person may become frustrated when he or she feels their opinion on a matter has not been heard.

In an effort to remove these barriers, PPS has released three resources to act as guides for anyone wishing to create a more livable community through new transportation design.  These documents are designed to empower citizens and provide them with the proper tools to engage their local department of transportation. A Citizen’s Guide to Better Streets: How to Engage Your Transportation Agency, Streets as Places: Using Streets to Rebuild Communities, and Great Corridors Great Communities: The Quiet Revolution in Transportation Planning are available for free download on their webpage.  The publications are a joint effort of PPS’s “Building Community Through Transportation” campaign and AARP’s “Livable Communities” initiative. These programs focus on empowering citizens and providing adequate mobility options for aging Americans.

A series of related webinars by PPS was made available to AARP constituents and focused on three key elements of the A Citizens Guide to Better Streets handbook most relevant to the aging population:
•    Understanding the Transportation Planning Process
•    Dealing with Government Bureaucracies
•    Keeping in Mind How Your Community’s Own Decisions Affect Road Projects

Project for Public Spaces is a national planning, design, and educational organization.  The primary mission for Project for Public Spaces (PPS) is to continue to carry out William H. Whyte’s vision of creating accessible public spaces and act as the central hub of the global place-making movement by educating people and connecting them to ideas, expertise, and partners in their endeavor to create vital public places.  This collaboration fulfills PPS’ mission to educate people on how on how to create stronger communities with public space.

For more information visit:  http://www.pps.org

Or Contact:   

Renee Espinar
PPS Associate
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212-620-5660