[AnimalMuppet]

I am 63. As I look at my future, "freedom" and "walking" look more and more distant from each other.

My wife has a handicapped tag. Freedom for her doesn't look like walking.

My mother in law is over 80, and she had polio. One leg is not fully functional. Freedom for her doesn't look like walking.

My son-in-law has something that looks a lot like long covid (not diagnosed, so I can't say with certainty). Freedom for him doesn't look like walking.

Yeah, I know, everyone I mentioned is an exception. But the point is, there are a lot of exceptions. Not just rural people (who have too far to go), but also the old, the temporarily or permanently ill, the handicapped. If you live long enough, you will probably become one.

So, it's fine to want a car-less future, but recognize that it's just less cars, not no cars. Some of us legitimately need them for our freedom.

[mitthrowaway2]

I think transit would serve these people much better too. Driving independently is for people who are fit enough with reflexes, judgement, and eyesight. Level boarding means you can get your wheelchair into a train much more easily than having your grandchildren lift you into a car passenger seat. Having a bus driver drive for you means you can get around even when you no longer pass your eye exam. Being able to access restrooms at stations is much better for the elderly than having to hold it through a traffic jam. At some point you may not be able to safely drive yourself, and it will be much better if your other options are safe, comfortable, quick, and convenient, and don't leave you dependent on your children or spouse to drive you around.

One could certainly argue "but it's not convenient in my area; the train doesn't have level boarding, the bus comes too infrequently and gets stuck in the same traffic jams, the stations don't have bathrooms". That's a symptom of low investment, which is a symptom of low ridership, which is a symptom of car dependency, and so on.

[AnimalMuppet]

A train with level boarding is fine, but first I have to get to the train. For the average location in the city, how many blocks away is the train? That is a non-trivial problem for some people.

[mitthrowaway2]

So in places where trains are done well, like Asia, every real estate listing will describe how far it is to the nearest station, because it's taken as a given that that's how you want to get around. If you're mobility impaired you'd probably prioritize one of those locations so you don't have to go as far, but you're on luck because that's also where the most supply is available as the train operators are also developers. It's also where most of the destinations are so you might not even actually need to board a train most of the time.

But I guess to directly answer your question: ideally you get to the train by taking your electric wheelchair along a nice shady pedestrian area, amply separated from any cars so that it's quiet, and conveniently crossing at most two lanes of traffic at a time. But it depends on what your area is like.

[ivan_gammel]

Electric wheelchairs are compatible with public transport and accessible taxi. If you have disabilities that prevent you from walking, it doesn’t automatically mean that you need a car (which still won’t get you anywhere by the way).