Birmingham, AL

Transportation | 2025

Expanding transit access to support healthy and independent aging.

Access to transportation is pivotal to the health and well-being of older adults, helping them maintain social connections and access essential services. In Birmingham, Alabama, the transportation sector is striving to enhance access and convenience through thoughtful improvements. ConnectionHealth, an organization that trains community health workers from underresourced communities, appreciates the relationship between transportation and health and the need to understand how conditions vary across neighborhoods. To contribute to efforts to improve the transit system, ConnectionHealth will analyze the effectiveness of transportation services for older adults in three Birmingham neighborhoods: Pratt City, Ensley, and West End.

ConnectionHealth will first inventory published transportation services in these neighborhoods. In close collaboration with community health workers, ConnectionHealth will also survey older adult residents of each neighborhood to learn about transportation barriers, gaps, and unmet needs. The community health workers will supplement the findings from the survey with interviews or focus groups with older residents, local policymakers, and neighborhood leaders. To gather feedback and foster collaboration among residents, service providers, and policymakers, the community health workers will share findings and recommendations at a community forum.

The City of Birmingham has plans to enhance its transportation infrastructure to improve traffic distribution and stimulate economic growth. This project will contribute insights into the transportation needs of older residents to this process, along with community recommendations for transportation improvements in the focus neighborhoods. Neighborhood associations will use the findings to advocate for senior-friendly infrastructure and enhanced services, and nonprofits can refine their services to address barriers to using transit. Together, the project will help people across sectors advance access to dependable, affordable, and dignified transportation options for older adults.