Mapping transport disadvantages of elderly people in relation to access to bus stops: contribution of geographic information systems

Abstract

Easy access to public transportation facilities is a critical issue for elderly people, since the elderly rely on public transportation and are one of the more mobility-constrained groups. Yet, the specific factors affecting the accessibility of elderly people to public transportation, such as the slope of streets and the speed at which they walk, are rarely considered in accessibility analysis. The objective of this chapter is to investigate the influence of these factors on the access to public transportation using a geographic information system (GIS). It was concluded that the consideration of the streets’ slopes and the speed at which elderly people walk provides better estimates of the accessibility to bus stops. As a result, transportation-related social exclusion can be measured more precisely, and spatial inequalities are likely to be better understood.