Well Anne, this year, my 85 yr. old father gave up his driver's license: his cancer and spinal neck degeneration which is causing him to stoop (unrelated to cancer), made him decide. We are relieved.

Which means one of my siblings has to drive them/mother (who can't drive) to buy groceries. She's not that great anymore in terms of walking far but still can without a walker/cane. (She doesn't use one/need one.) She is 80 yrs. with high blood pressure and gout....controlled by medication for past decade.

They do live in 2 blocks of major grocery store. So my mother could walk there if none of us were available at the hour/at work.

I understand, yonuh about the food desert or missing grocery store in a neighbourhood. We do have such areas in our city of 1.2 million people. And citizens do have to speak up and lobby municipality to get a store. It can happen after a few years.. if there is a plot of land/building that can be converted to one.

I'm not oblivious to suburban living: my parents moved and lived in a nice suburban home for 15 yrs. after we all grew up and left home. It was somewhat inconvenient, though nice when I would visit them after getting off the interurban bus...because thereafter, I was dependent on their car rides during my visit. There was transit..which was only a 10 min. walk from their home. I used it as well as my siblings who buzzed into town and for those who didn't have a car at that time.

Then they relocated from a city of 100,000 to Toronto to be closer to us (100 km. east)...while they were still in excellent health. That was 10 yrs. ago.

I don't drive because I was not comfortable driving on expressways and highways. But I know enough people at my age, who should not drive, but they drive because they feel their lifestyle forces them to.... These are friends who got their license in their early 30's.