ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to investigate the current situation and needs of elderly people using smartphones as a transportation aid, and then to propose improvements. A total of 36 questionnaires were collected. Most of the elderly participants are 70–79 years old (50%). The majority use a smartphone every day for about one hour (44.4%), followed by 30 minutes (30.6%). The results of this study can be summarized as follows: 1) the most common way to travel is walking (100%), followed by bus (83.3%) and bicycle (44.4%). Elderly people find it difficult to walk (66.7%), and 44.5% find cycling difficult. 2) The main problem affecting the elderly is that public transport necessitates waiting for a long time (36.1%), followed by traffic chaos (33.3%) and unfamiliarity with the roads (22.2%). 3) The problems that elderly people expect to solve with smartphones are to contact family members to pick him/her up (50%), to check bus information and to call taxis (22.2%). 4) The majority (58.3%) of elderly people want to solve travel problems through their smartphones. This study proposes four major recommendations as follows: (1) arrange more vehicles for the elderly during peak hours of travel. (2) Install bus-to-station information systems or current bus load status information at the bus stop, or provide a car-calling system to allow the elderly to use different modes of transport. (3) Provide different interactive services at the bus station to reduce the frustration of waiting. (4) Ensure that travel apps are designed to be easy to operate for older people.
