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Go Ottawa (2024) Print
2024 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Transportation
└ Bike Audits
└ Bike Audits
Ottawa lacked safe biking routes, leaving older adults and families without secure options for active travel. Volunteers rode key corridors to flag hazards and propose quick fixes, shaping a grant application for a new bike path and plans for downtown bike racks. The effort sparked lasting engagement: a task force formed to push improvements, and residents who once had no outlet for their passion for biking are now driving change. One volunteer said that she is excited to see more bike parks in the community as well as other necessary amenities.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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See More Projects Like This One
Grantsville, UT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Bike Audits
Description: Bike audits across the county will identify bike routes suitable for older adults. The project will share findings with the community coalition to support safer riding options and future programs.
Wichita Falls, TX
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Bike Audits
Description: Bike audits will identify safety and access barriers on local streets. Recommendations will support age-friendly upgrades that make biking more comfortable for the community as a whole.
San Diego, CA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Bike Audits
Description: Fairmount Avenue is a busy corridor lined with housing for older adults and other essential services, where people using mobility devices face daily safety risks. Bike San Diego responded by leading bike and walk audits with residents who live and travel the route, capturing firsthand details about crossing times, curb access and confusing signage. Findings were translated into specific recommendations and shared with teams updating long-range city plans. One participant said that he has noticed people with manual wheelchairs often struggled to get to the other side in time. By grounding planning discussions in lived experience, the project increased the chance that future street changes better reflect how older adults actually move through the corridor.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Ottawa, OH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Transportation Other
Description: The village will install a solar-powered mid-block crosswalk on a busy street to connect older adults nearby destinations including the library. The new crossing will shorten walking distances and improve pedestrian safety.
McComb, OH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: McComb prides itself on the public park on the village's east side, which encompasses four baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts, a public pool, two reservoirs for boating, walking and fitness trails and a 36-hole disc golf course. The McComb Economic Development Organization installed drinking fountains and benches around the reservoir, plus a merry-go-round and several swings, including one designed specifically for wheelchair users. The park has remained an important community resource and serves as the location for events, such as the annual McComb Cookie Festival.
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