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Physical space and the built environment is gendered. This chapter draws on recent UK research on how older men’s connections are enabled or restricted by different aspects of the built environment. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 48 participants (24 male; 24 female) aged over 65 years to explore their mobility needs. The findings are framed around mobility capital theory (Musselwhite and Scott, 2019) of infrastructure capital (physical properties of space, pavements, roads, bridges), individual capital (people’s skills, abilities, aptitudes, resilience), social capital (friends, family, other significant people) and cultural capital (societal norms, rules, laws). Key to successful connectivity in later life is good quality infrastructure, but men are much more likely to rely on this alone to connect to the things they want to do and people they want to. They are less likely to use social connections than women and have less cultural and individual capital to draw upon which have been richly formed during the life course for women. Recommendations are formed around improving men’s social capital and creating more opportunity for older men to socialise is important.
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