The Right to Transportation: Moving to Equity

Abstract

Transportation and its accessibility are key to jobs, schools, shopping, medical services and social interaction and has a direct impact on land-use and development patterns. This book takes a close look at how aspects of planning are directly linked with civil rights, environmental issues and social mobility concerns. Providing a brief historic background covering Supreme Court decisions concerned with public conveyances in the 1800s to Rosa Parks refusal to give up her seat in 1955, the authors refer to transportation and the need to address the inequities of availability. Transportation inequities have a direct role in urban and social mobility. Unless a car is available, the only other option is public transportation. When public is woefully inadequate, it actually discourages business growth and opportunity. Conversely, robust business and economic opportunities encourage greater public availability in the community. Transportation equity refers to a range of public and private strategies that aim to broaden and balance the needs of a community for viable options while encouraging and benefiting from an active and economically viable community. Some steps suggested by the authors to achieve equitable systems include: communities and even neighborhoods should fully participate in and land-use planning discussions; both benefits and burdens of projects should be equally shared by all economic levels; insist on high quality service and access for transit dependent segments of the community thereby increasing economic opportunities and revitalize poorer neighborhoods by expanding infrastructure.

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