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Mobility in the Outdoor Environment
The outdoor environment plays an enormous role in our quality of life. But, the relative obscurity presented in the outdoors is a problem affecting our aging generations. Everything from building access to sidewalks to road crossings to a lack of park benches can be barriers to enjoyment of the outdoors.
Prolonging independence is what enables our aging generations to live in their own homes for as long as possible. And, familiarity with the home and neighborhood is an underestimated benefit to aging in place. But, even the slightest mobility challenges are preventing people from getting outdoors to enjoy walks. Sometimes that challenge stems from pain or fatigue and sometimes that challenge is directly related to the sidewalks or pedestrian pathways that are difficult to navigate.
So, what are examples of outdoor environmental barriers that are particularly affecting mobility?
● Poorly maintained pavement, sidewalks and walking paths. Uneven ground creates spectacularly increased chances for trips or falls caused by instability, even when mobility aides are being used.
● Sparse availability or lack of park benches. It’s important for the outdoor environment to have areas to rest, or simply sit and enjoy, but these areas are either inadequately designed or aren’t well maintained.
● Lack of accessible public restrooms. Often, in the outdoors, toilets are not easy to find. This presents obvious discouragement to spending time outside.
With the Motivo Tour, we took the time to understand the potential barriers and designed critical pieces to overcome as much as possible. From a stow-away padded seat to large wheels that make it easier to roll over uneven surfaces, the Tour enables and supports an aging generation to lead a more active and more independent life.
In the end, it’s always about the quality of life over the quantity of years.