Using Older Adult Walking Speeds from Controlled Trials as Inputs for Occupants in Simulations

There is a need to revisit movement dataset(s) currently used as egress determinants to assess whether they are truly representative of the current diverse occupant base. This is particularly important with our aging population as these sets contain very limited amounts of recent, age-specific data for older adults. This study provides data on walking speeds of older adults, obtained during standardized tests of walking, and compares those to default walking speeds used in current egress models. From experimental, short-distance walking trials (n = 451), it was seen that sex, increasing age, use of walking aids, those who have previously experienced a stroke (n = 116) and walking under cognitive load all resulted in decreases in walking speed. First iteration Pathfinder simulations showed that more realistic inputs for population walking speed resulted in simulated egress times that were on average 8 s slower compared to use of the current default range of walking speeds. Results suggest that the assumption of a uniform population in egress modelling, and consequently the standard practice of using a default walking speed for older adult occupants, should be reconsidered since, in reality the older adult population is extremely heterogeneous with regards to mobility, as reflected in the variability in walking speeds in this study.