A safer crosswalk for an age-friendly Austin

Virginia Alves and Mark Hollis
AARP Texas

Across the country, and right here in Texas, cities are striving to become great places for people of all ages.

Leaders of several cities have signed on as members of the AARP Network of Age-Friendly communities, and those communities are already starting to act.

Austin is one such city, and according to a newly released report by the Milken Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, Austin ranks as one of the best cities in America for successful aging.

AARP is devoted to helping make local places more livable. That’s why we’re proud that Austin is in the spotlight for having achieved a crosswalk project that came together with the help of AARP volunteers in South Austin through their work with the South Austin AARP chapter #2426.

Their aim was to establish a Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon, which is a fancy name for a pedestrian stoplight. It got underway in late 2011 when AARP volunteers conducted a safety audit of the street crossing, which was near a bus stop and a senior center. Realizing that the area was unsafe, they take the matter to an Austin City Council member who helped them get the ball rolling on the project.

Read all about the South Austin crosswalk project in this report for the AARP Livable Communities page.