The impact of driving status on out-of-home and social activity engagement among older Canadians

The loss of a driver's license can significantly limit a person's ability to engage in desired activities outside their home, which may, in turn, jeopardize their independence, well-being, and quality of life. This research seeks to quantify the impacts of driving status on out-of-home and social activity engagement among non-working older (≥ 65 years) Canadians, and the distribution of these impacts across socio-demographic and self-reported health domains. Nationally representative cross-sectional time diary data were used to measure the participation rates and daily durations of out-of-home and social activity engagement among non-working older Canadians who have a driver's license (i.e., drivers) and those who did not (i.e., non-drivers). Results indicate drivers were, on average, more than twice as likely to participate in out-of-home and social activities compared to non-drivers. However, the mean durations of activity engagement, among the participant sub-sample, appear largely invariant to driving status. Among the socio-demographic and self-reported health factors affecting out-of-home and social activity engagement, geography appears the most influential for participation rates and durations, particularly for non-drivers who live in small towns and rural areas. Due to demographic trends that suggest an increasing number of older Canadians will be unable to drive, communities should expect a commensurate increase in demand for alternate mobility options, which will inevitably require a variety of context-specific accessibility strategies.