Boomers on board: nearly 80 million new seniors soon will be heading for the bus stop at the same time.

• Author: Reed, James B.

Watch out, here come the baby boomers--again.

The 76 million members of the post-World War II generation that caused a run on coonskin caps in the 1950s and fostered the counterculture of the 1960s and '70s are about to create a bulge in the over-65 population.

As 2011 dawns, the first wave of baby boomers will turn 65, and policymakers at all levels of government face challenges to meet their needs. The proportion of U.S. residents over 65 is projected to grow from one in eight to one in five. The effect on public services of all kinds will be substantial.

A key issue will be transportation. As people age, they gradually shift from reliance on their own cars to other ways of getting around, including public transportation, rides from friends and relatives, taxis, and special services for trips to the doctor and other appointments. A recent survey in Palo Alto, Calif., found boomers hope to live independently as they age in an environment that makes it easy for them to get around.

Matching these needs with the most appropriate transportation will tax the current systems and drive up costs. A looming challenge is the new health care reform law that will add millions to the rolls of Medicaid and raise the number seeking nonemergency medical transportation. A particularly vexing test will be meeting the transportation needs of retirees in rural and suburban areas that lack good public transportation.

Policymakers at the state and local levels will need to examine everything from driver's licensing to zoning to coordinating public transportation to meet the challenge.

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ALL TOGETHER NOW

A mind-boggling number of government agencies, nonprofits and other groups provide transportation discounts and special assistance to those who need them. More than 60 such programs at the federal level alone support such services in rural areas and big cities for the poor, veterans, the disabled, the elderly and Medicaid recipients, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. They help people get to their jobs, medical appointments, child care, recreation, education and other activities.

All levels of government pay for these programs, although the federal government covers most of the costs. Public transportation systems that operate buses, light rail and on-demand services carry most of the people who need specialized transportation. Hundreds of human service agencies run buses and vans for their clients, creating a confusing...