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Localworks (2017) Print
2017 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Transportation
└ Engaging people in transportation options/safety
└ Engaging people in transportation options/safety
Localworks has been working for years to improve Wheat Ridge's 38th Avenue corridor and create a main street destination for the city. Its Activate 38 program aims to promote safe walking, biking and wheelchair rolling along 38th Avenue west of Kipling Street. To support this goal, Localworks staged the Roll, Stroll and Strut Fest at a local park. Local partners included the city parks and recreation department and Bicycle Colorado. As part of the event, Localworks obtained a permit to take over a street near the park to showcase planters, bollards and other devices that can calm traffic, making streets safer for pedestrians, cyclists and wheelchair users. Localworks continues to promote healthy mobility along 38th Avenue and hosted an all-abilities bike cruising event in the neighborhood in 2021.
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Austin, TX
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Engaging people in transportation options/safety
Description: Older adults in Austin faced mobility challenges and rising isolation, often relying on costly ride-hailing or limiting outings. Movability hosted Mobility Camps and Lunch & Learns where participants practiced using buses, learned trip-planning apps and enrolled in reduced-fare programs. Participants received toolkits and hands-on experience with transit and carpooling. One camp took participants to the historic Driskill Hotel, where they shared holiday photos and made new friends. Participants report feeling more confident using transit for errands and appointments.
Washington, DC
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2018
Project Category: Engaging people in transportation options/safety
Description: To increase older adults' mobility, the Capitol Hill Village worked to raise residents' awareness of the local transportation offerings. The nonprofit offered social events and educational programming to teach more than 100 residents how to get around without driving. The trainings covered pedestrian safety and provided older adults with in-depth information on transportation services, including the Metrorail system, Capital Bikeshare and local paratransit service. Project organizers say participants increased their knowledge of and confidence using local transportation options.
Batavia, IL
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Engaging people in transportation options/safety
Description: Local officials and community organizations hoped to increase pedestrian and bicycle traffic in downtown Batavia. To do this, the Batavia Environmental Commission, Batavia Bicycle Commission, the WellBatavia Initiative and Batavia Maitreet undertook a research and promotional campaign. They hosted a walk and bike audit that taught residents urban biking skills, such as how to load a bike onto a public bus. The initiative then paired participants with residents of a local retirement community, as well as with families with small children, to help them learn about biking. The group produced a 15-minute video documentary presenting the town's history, showcasing its pedestrian and bike infrastructure and highlighting the need for future improvements. In 2022, Batavia announced it would create a bicycle and walking plan to improve city trails and make intersections safer.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Wheat Ridge, CO
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Micromobility enhancements/management
Description: Older adults in Wheat Ridge needed outdoor recreation and social connection, especially those with mobility challenges. To address this, the organization renovated a former firehouse into a community space and staging area for its Trishaw Cycling Program. The retrofit created a welcoming hub for rides led by volunteer pilots, giving participants a chance to explore the outdoors and reconnect. One rider said they love "having the wind in their hair and being reminded of riding bikes when they were younger."
Lakewood, CO
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Public art installations
Description: Older adults who walk the Alameda Corridor to reach shops and health care often lacked safe places to pause, making trips exhausting and limiting independence. Alameda Connects installed a concrete pad with a bench and trash bin at a key resting point. It also added colorful ground murals at three sites, including a transit stop and Easterseals Colorado, to make the spaces feel safer and more welcoming. The project united older adults and students in painting days that sparked friendships and inspired neighborhood cleanups and business interest in murals. One teen said, "Thank you for letting me volunteer. This project gave me purpose."
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