SEPTEMBER 10, 2004

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DETROIT -- A complex and sometimes controversial issue, traffic safety representatives from six countries and 17 states will gather at the Marriott Renaissance Center in Detroit September 12-15 for Michigan's first North American Conference on Elderly Mobility (NACEM), "Best Practices from Around the World."

The conference -- which will showcase global solutions for improving elderly mobility -- has attracted world-class speakers and presenters featuring best practices from the United States, Canada, Australia, Denmark, Great Britain and The Netherlands. Workshop sessions will focus on roadway design, screening and assessment, education and training, housing and land use, alternative transportation and how the automobile can protect older occupants. Approximately 300 people are expected.

NACEM is sponsored by the Governor's Traffic Safety Advisory Commission (GTSAC) which works to identify key traffic safety challenges in Michigan. The Commission is comprised of the state departments of Community Health, Education, Secretary of State, State Police, Transportation, and Office of Services to the Aging, Office of Highway Safety Planning, the Office of the Governor, and representatives of local government appointed by the Governor.

Americans are living longer and driving longer. In fact, the number of Americans 65 years of age and older is expected to double by 2030, according to a study conducted by the Center for Transportation Safety at the Texas Transportation Institute, increasing the level of risk for this age group on the highway. Preventing crashes while preserving elderly mobility presents a unique series of challenges to the global traffic safety community.

According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, a driver's sensory and motor functions decline with age, and perceptual and cognitive impairment becomes more common. Research also suggests that elderly drivers are more fragile than younger drivers and more likely to be seriously injured or killed in a crash.

An engineering highlight of the conference will be a $250,000 effort by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) to modify a stretch of the road system just outside the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center Hotel. Various traffic signs, signals and lane markings have been upgraded or redesigned to be more "elderly friendly."

Featured speakers include:

• Hon. Terri Lynn Land, Michigan Secretary of State
• Gloria Jeff, Director, Michigan Department of Transportation
• Hon. Kwame Kilpatrick, Mayor, City of Detroit
• Ed Barlow, President, Creating the Future, Inc.
• Sharon Gire, Director, Michigan Office of Services to the Aging
• Hugh Downs, Retired, Radio & TV Reporter/Newscaster/Narrator/Host

Highlights include: 10:30 a.m. Monday opening keynote address by Barlow who will identify the implications of the demographic shift, and a Wednesday morning panel that will focus on the automobile and protecting older occupants. Panel participants will include representatives of Ford Motor Co., DaimlerChrysler and OnStar. Hugh Downs will follow with a discussion about "The Myths of Aging."

Conference partners include: 3M Corporation, AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, AAA Michigan, AAA South, AARP, Carrier & Gable, City of Detroit, Federal Highway Administration, Michigan Departments of Community Health, Education, State, State Police, Transportation, Office of Highway Safety Planning, Office of Services to the Aging, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, Traffic Improvement Association, Traffic Safety Association of Michigan and the Transportation Research Board.

NOTE: A more detailed conference program and descriptions is available at http://www.tiami.org

Source: Traffic Improvement Association

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