Rural Older Adult Driver Tailored Research Integrated Plan (ROAD TRIP)

Abstract

Older adults in rural areas face increased isolation, which may negatively impact health outcomes and overall quality of life. The ROAD TRIP Program employs research-based community outreach to promote safety and extend mobility for this vulnerable population. Researchers will assess participants across several dimensions including physical capability, health, driving behavior and knowledge, driving environment, and access to essential goods and services. Additionally, researchers will collect one month of naturalistic driving data from each participant by deploying VTTI’s proprietary data acquisition system (DAS) in their vehicles. The DAS operates automatically and collects video streams (e.g., driver face and forward roadway), kinematics, as well as a GPS trace of the vehicle’s location, all synched to a universal clock. Then, a mobility plan comprised of intervention tools and strategies tailored to meet the singular needs of the individual will be crafted and implemented. The selection of interventions included in this plan will be aided by an algorithm that integrates assessment results and driving performance data. Post-implementation, participants' driving will be observed for an additional two months via the naturalistic methods described above to determine the success of the program outcomes.

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