ANNUAL CONGRESS 2025

Rethinking ageing in transit: Integrating older adults into the design of Sydney’s transit-oriented urban environments

Not scheduled

20m

Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul

Oral Track 17 | PUBLIC SPACE

Speaker

Ms Jialing Xie (Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning, University of Sydney, Australia)

Description

As Australia’s population ages, aligning with global demographic shifts, the proportion of older adults is projected to rise significantly, increasing from 15% in 2017 to 21–23% by 2066 (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018). There is increasing recognition of the needs in understanding how the built environment (including transport) can support healthy ageing and address the needs of an older population within the rapidly evolving framework of transit-based urbanism. Sydney's expansive (and expanding) network of Train, Metro and Light Rail stations plays a key role in the city’s transit-focused planning strategies (Committee for Sydney 2022; Transport for NSW 2023), enhancing productivity and liveability across diverse demographic groups, particularly benefiting older residents through improved accessibility. Recent research by Xie et al. (2025) demonstrated that well-designed public open spaces near railway stations in Greater Metropolitan Sydney can enable older adults to engage in physical activities and social interactions beyond their immediate residential neighbourhoods, potentially enhancing the physical, emotional and mental health. However, a detailed, nuanced understanding of how professionals approach the design of these environments and the relationship between policy frameworks, design practices, and their real-world application remains largely underexplored.

This study aims to address this gap by presenting preliminary findings from broader research involving open-ended, semi-structured interviews with 8 - 10 professionals, including urban designers, architects, landscape architects, and policymakers associated with transit-oriented projects in four selected sites across Sydney. These interviews will examine the extents and ways that older adults have been considered in the planning and design processes of transit-oriented urban environments and explore how broader policy frameworks impact architectural design and procurement of architectural projects, with a particular focus on transit-oriented suburban public spaces in Sydney, Australia.

Previous stages of this research employed ethnographic observations and semi-structured interviews conducted across seven public spaces near suburban railway stations in Sydney. These investigations mapped the scale of older adults’ activity spaces associated with multiple public transport modes and provided insights into how different transport options influence their use of these spaces. The findings revealed valuable insights into older adults’ actual uses of, and desires for, transit-oriented public spaces of varying scales and types. Building on these insights, this phase of research will further examine the professional practices and policy dynamics that shape the design of these environments. The findings are expected to ensure greater validity of the broader research outcomes, which may inform urban planning and design, public health strategies, and social policies aimed at improving the quality of life for older adults. Ultimately, this research seeks to adapt to an ageing population by promoting built environments that effectively support healthy ageing in place. It also calls for a rethinking of older adults’ needs and desires in urban design and transport, while acknowledging the significant cultural biases that must be overcome to create truly inclusive, multi-generational urbanism.

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). (2018) ‘Population Projections, Australia’.
Committee for Sydney. (2022) ‘Rethinking Station Precincts: How to create great precincts around rail stations, and why this matters for Sydney’.
Transport for NSW. (2023) ‘Sydney Trains Annual Report 2021’, 2022 Volume 1.
Xie, J., McLaughlan, R. and Woodcock, I. (2025) ‘Loneliness – what’s urban design got to do with it? Older people in transit-oriented suburban public spaces in Sydney, Australia’, Cities & Health, pp. 1–18. doi: 10.1080/23748834.2024.2444135.