Video Transit Training for Older Travelers: Case Study of the Rossmoor Senior Adult Community, Walnut Creek, California

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2007

Subject Area

planning - education, ridership - old people, mode - mass transit

Keywords

Walnut Creek (California), Videotapes, Transit riders, Transit, Study and teaching, Senior citizens, Public transit, Older people, Old people, Mass transit, Local transit, Elderly persons, Education and training, Before and after studies, Aged

Abstract

This study applied principles of social learning and marketing to develop a transit training video for residents of the Rossmoor Senior Adult Community in California. The video features familiar community members successfully navigating specific concerns and problems related to transit use in accessing key community destinations (shopping, health care, and the nearest San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District station). Residents were recruited to complete questionnaires before and after viewing the video to evaluate its effectiveness. Video messages that were aimed at educating viewers on how to obtain transit, cost, and payment information generated a significant and positive attitudinal change. However, respondents reported that the video did not adequately address the difficulties associated with reading schedules and climbing stairs at transit stations. Survey results also indicate a significant and positive change in respondents’ future use of a broader range of Internet-related information sources. The results also reveal a significant and positive change among respondents in using transit services to the specific destinations presented in the video. However, results are mixed on whether participants might take transit to general destinations not explicitly represented in the video.

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