ms. mcmillan. thank you. ank you all for being here. >> chairman nelson, ranking member collins, i'm excited to be here today. i'm ter reese mcmillan, deputy administrator for the federal transit administration. i want to thank you for highlighting the administration's efforts to address transportation and mobility needs of america's seniors. our nation is undergoing a significant demographic shift that will profoundly affect our policies and priorities for years to come. by 2050, the number of americans aged 65 and older is projected to more than double. and the number of men and women 85 years and older could increase five-fold during that period. this population, as you observe, can face significant challenges including increased poverty, isolation and the struggle to access medical services. the department of transportation is committed to helping older americans to age in place and live with dignity in urban and rural communities alike. a key point of collaboration is the federal interagency coordinating

ms. mcmillan, ms. freund said something i thought was very profound when she said the answer is in our driveways across america and that there's a lack of public awareness that we each could be really helpful by volunteering to drive an elderly person to an appointment or to see a friend or to the grocery store. you mentioned in your opening statement that there are some 400 mobility managers. what do these people do, and where are they? >> well, they're all across the country. what mobility managers do is, again, they're sort of the master ride match service you might say in terms of being able to identify first of all what is the customer constituency you're trying to serve? where do they need to go, and what is the combination of different services that might get them there? whether that be a ride sharing, volunteer or otherwise service provided by a nonprofit, public transit service, paratransit service. again, an accessible taxicab service. within that community, what are all the various options t