The impacts of limited transportation access on persons with disabilities' social participation

Model System:

Reference Type:

Accession No.:

Journal:

Year, Volume, Issue, Page(s):

Publication Website:

Abstract:

Study examined individuals with disabilities’ social and community participation in relation to their access to transportation. A self-administered online questionnaire was disseminated to individuals with disabilities throughout the United States. Although 693 individuals responded, only 420 respondents were both 18 years of age or older and reported having a disability. Respondents were found to use private vehicles less often and public transportation more often than previous studies have shown. Individuals with increasingly significant disabilities were more likely to face transportation-related exclusion. Almost half of the participants had to cancel an appointment because of a transportation-related conflict. The majority of participants felt that the level of access to transportation hindered their social life. In general, the results suggest that family help meet transportation needs for socializing, while friends and close friends do not.

Author(s):

Participating Centers: