By Mark Abromaitis & Julia Boyle
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

According to AAA Mid Atlantic, the average price of regular gasoline in New Jersey is sitting at over $4 a gallon. But people who live at Seabrook, an  Erickson retirement community in Tinton Falls, are taking advantage of the local transportation offered to them by the community.

The service is included in their monthly service packages, which also include one meal a day at any of the community’s three restaurants, all maintenance and repairs on their homes, employees wages, taxes, and all utilities except telephone.

“Our residents are doing their share—saving gasoline and saving money at the same time by consolidating their trips and using our campus shuttles,” says Seabrook Retirement Counselor Karen Cotenoff.

A culture shift
Ruth Phillips, Seabrook’s other retirement counselor, says the high price of gasoline has caused a culture change. “We are seeing more and more shuttle riders each day,” she says. “I really think our residents and Americans as a whole have had enough and are consciously changing how they live.”

Seabrook currently operates 14 vehicles, traveling  approximately 4,047 miles a week.

“I certainly feel that fuel costs have gotten to a point where so many people, including seniors, are significantly impacted,” says Gene Phillips, who lives at Seabrook.

“However,” he continues, “the transportation here is a service that helps those who are on a fixed income. More people here are using the shuttles, which helps save money and helps them during a time when the economy affects so many people in different ways, including rising food costs.”