Access Tourism NZ TOURISM FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, SENIORS, AND AGEING BOOMERS IN NEW ZEALAND AND WORLDWIDE

Builder eZine reports that Universal Design is a sleeping giant awaiting the alarm of demand from aging baby boomers and up-and-coming echo boomers. Designing for an average-size, able-bodied adult male is “no longer realistic given our changing culture and demographics,” says John Salmen, president of Universal Designers & Consultants (USA). “Accommodating disabilities is only the tip of the iceberg of universal design’s value.”

According to Scott Rains of the Rolling Rains Report, the goal of Universal Design (UD) is to create all products and environments to be as usable as possible by as many people as possible regardless of age, ability or situation.  UD may not be universal now, but it could be by mid-century. A recent report published in the Journal of the American Planning Association forecasts that 28 percent of USA households will have at least one disabled resident by 2050.   And then there’s the friends and family factor.  The report – on ageing and disability – estimates that 91% percent of Americans buying newly constructed single family homes by 2050 will need to accommodate residents or visitors with physical disabilities.  By extrapolation, these factors will affect the tourism industry as well.  Why? Because in 2000, 35 million Americans were 65 or older (12% of the population), but this number is expected to climb to 86 million by 2050 (21%).  And disability increases with age.

However, as Nigel Maynard has pointed out, UD is not just for the elderly.  Instead, it “is a broader, more comprehensive ‘design-for-all’ approach to the development of products, architecture, and environments around human diversity.”

Research by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) suggests that boomers may soon start looking to home builders to provide a broader range of housing alternatives for independent living, including homes outfitted with wider entrances and turning radiuses, comfort height toilets, lever door handles, safety grab bars, and better lighting.  Demand could also rise for high-tech homes equipped with sensors to detect falls, emergency response security systems, and automated controls to regulate temperature, lighting, and appliances.  Such demand must surely spill over in demand for accessibility in tourism.