Four million Australians are retirees and it can only be expected that number will grow with our aging population.

Some choose to stay in the family home, but many decide to downsize and settle in a retirement village.

With high-rises dominating our capital cities, there’s a new push to build more vertical retirement villages to cater to the growing number of retirees.

Dr David Tuffley from Griffith University tells Deborah Knight the high-rises would be built to accommodate older people, such as wide hallways for wheelchairs.

“They’re set up to be community focussed so there’s communal areas in several locations around the building.”

The conversation prompted listener Jim, who lives in a retirement home, to call in.

He says they pose a dangerous risk if there was a need to evacuate the building.

Jim makes the point that if there’s a fire, occupants wouldn’t be able to use the lift.

“There is no way the authority, the government, would allow a death trap to be erected, so whatever measures they have in mind with this, are going to be sufficient and workable from that safety point of view,” says Dr Tuffley.

Click PLAY below to hear the full interview