 |
COMMENTARY |
|
|
| CLASSIFIEDS |
| » The Corpus Christi Regional Transportation Authority seeks a chief executive officer. [More] |
| » The College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, University of Illinois at Chicago, is looking for an executive director for its Urban Transportation Center. [More] |
| » The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority requests proposals for bus lease financing. [More] |
| View more Classified Ads » |
| TO PLACE AN AD: E-mail the requested date(s) of publication to: ptads@apta.com. Mailing address is: Passenger Transport, 1666 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006.
Ad copy is not accepted by phone. DEADLINE: 3 p.m. EST, Friday, one week prior to publication date. INFORMATION: Phone (202) 496-4877. |
Five Steps for Growing Inclusive Transportation Systems
BY SUSAN SHAHEEN and MATT CHRISTENSEN
Approximately four billion people currently live in urban environments around the world—a figure that is only expected to increase in the coming decades. While cities develop new transportation systems to support their current population and anticipated growth, many gaps exist in the transportation ecosystem. In the past few years, the sharing economy, or shared mobility, has grown to address these gaps, including the rise of bike sharing, car sharing and on-demand ride services.
Today, these “shared mobility” services connect many people to their destinations, while others—namely, low-income communities of color—have often been left behind. And there is growing public recognition that we cannot be satisfied with the status quo. As a result, many planners and transportation professionals are attempting to understand what it takes to create more accessible transportation systems in an era of diminishing public resources and expanding private transportation services. And like many complex urban issues, no one system or policy will be the silver bullet. Rather, cities need to provide a range of progressive policies and transportation choices, both public and private, to limit barriers and provide an array of opportunities for safe, efficient and inclusive transportation. …
A critical first step is understanding the travel patterns and demand of the general population and low-income communities. This is important because data can help us to understand where gaps exist and how better connectivity can be provided. The team at the Institute for Sustainable Economic, Educational and Environmental Design (I-SEEED), recognizing the value of generating this understanding, developed a data collection platform called Streetwize, which allows for real-time surveying of low-income communities. …
Moving forward, it is critical to collect data from community members to gather new insights into their needs, culture and desires for expanding mobility options and overall connectivity. I-SEEED is just one example of an organization striving to make these connections through innovative platforms, like Streetwize, and facilitated workshops aimed at engaging community members and thought leaders. This data-driven approach can help us to harness new methods to address complex systems. … First, new systems should be accessible not only by bank card but by cash as well, an option recently made available by Capital Bikeshare in Washington, DC, and Indego Bike Share in Philadelphia. More shared mobility and other transportation systems should provide subsidized rates for those who qualify, which could be required through policy, as private transportation providers use public rights-of-way to generate profit and often do not pay toward the “public good” beyond standard taxes.
Second, physical access to services throughout a community is integral to transportation’s social equity as well; public and private transportation services should be geographically available in all communities. A report recently published by the National Association of City Transportation Officials found that “… in many cities, there is an insufficient number and density of [bike sharing] stations in neighborhoods where low-income people live, making bike-share an inconvenient choice for most trips.” Densifying existing stations, pods, stops and routes for various transportation systems within low-income communities is integral to creating reliable transportation systems that can meet the diverse trip needs of different city residents. …
Finally, to meet this diverse range of trip types, it takes an assortment of policies and mobility options. Public policy has a role to play in bringing innovation to low-income populations. In addition, public funding can be applied to address the gaps in mobility services in low-income communities and to advance the public good.
Collecting data, engaging community members and assessing mobility options is critical to creating more sustainable and accessible mobility systems. Increasingly, more organizations, like I-SEEED, are focused on addressing the needs of low-income populations and engaging them in growing solutions to complex problems, and many others are joining the effort. …
[W]e developed a list of five steps that city leaders should consider when designing accessible and inclusive transportation systems in their cities:
1) Increase the usefulness of public transportation and shared modes—that is, make sure that people have good access to public transportation … as well as first and last mile solutions, such as car sharing, bikes/bike sharing, and shared ride services, for people who live or are traveling farther away from existing public transit stops; 2) Lower barriers to innovative mobility options—ensure that new sharing options, such as car sharing, bike sharing and on-demand ride services, are also available to individuals with limited access to the Internet, mobile phones and credit lines … ;
3) Conduct education and outreach to understand the needs of specific communities—work with community groups and leaders to better understand their needs and how best to communicate about the range of transportation options available in ways that are meaningful to each target audience … ;
4) Appropriately subsidize memberships and fares—ensure that everyone can participate in public transportation services, including shared mobility, through reduced fares and subsidized membership packages to encourage use; and 5) Measure and monitor the impacts of these changes on accessibility and quality of life—understand how efforts to provide more accessible transportation services are working and can be improved through ongoing evaluation and clear communication … .
We believe that by applying these five steps, the outcomes of transportation systems will be more reflective of the context-specific needs of specific groups, more responsive to different lifestyle needs.
Shaheen and Christensen are with the Transportation Sustainability Research Center of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Excerpted and reprinted with permission from Living Cities.
This “Commentary” section features different points of view from various sources to enhance readers’ broad awareness of themes and views that affect public transportation.
|
