Who are “seniors”?
Boarding the train at Union Station, the Amtrak gatekeeper called for seniors to pre-board as is their usual policy. Approximately half the waiting crowd got on, mostly very able-bodied far-from-elderly people who looked to be in their mid-50s and early 60s. One very non-old woman even said to her companion, “I love being a senior!”
As baby boomers get older, more and more of the population is going to consist of “seniors” even though most of them won’t be any less able than a 45-year-old. And on Amtrak at least, there’s no check for who is a senior, nor even a sign or announcement about what age is eligible.
I’m all for having aging people of declining mobility pre-board, but do we really mean to give all the baby boomers preference over everyone else? What’s the fair thing to do?