Browsing by Subject "Low income groups"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
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    Impact of Twin Cities Transitways on Regional Labor Market Accessibility: A Transportation Equity Perspective
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2010-06) Fan, Yingling; Guthrie, Andrew; Teng, Rose
    This study evaluates the impact of the Hiawatha light rail line on job accessibility for the economically disadvantaged, seeking to further understanding of transit’s role in promoting social equity, and to identify commute flow changes among low-wage workers. The results will inform more equitable transit polices and improvements in the future. Numerous studies find spatial mismatch is an impediment to employment for low-wage workers. While transit is recognized as a tool for improving outcomes, results of empirical research are mixed. Several studies find positive relationships; others find none. The study examines changes in jobs accessible by transit throughout the service day. We utilize Geographic Information Systems (GIS) map analysis, summary statistics and regression analysis. Regression models estimate before- and after-LRT accessibility as a function of distance to the nearest transit stop, location within the immediate area of a light rail station or other transit premium stop, and of various demographic variables. We examine shifts in actual home-to-work commute flows using the Longitudinal Employment and Housing Database (LEHD) Origin-Destination Matrix. We employ GIS map analysis, summary statistics and regression analysis. Regression models estimate shifts in where individuals commute from and to as a function of distance to the nearest transit stop at both ends of a commute, location within the immediate area of a light rail station or other premium transit stop at both ends of a commute, and of various demographic variables. The report makes recommendations for applying our method to future transitways. Policy implications are discussed.
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    Those Who Need It Most: Maximizing Transit Accessibility and Removing Barriers to Employment in Areas of Concentrated Poverty
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2019-03) Guthrie, Andrew; Fan, Yingling; Crabtree, Shannon; Burga, Fernando
    This research assesses the transportation assets and challenges faced by residents of Areas of Concentrated Poverty (ACPs), paying special attention to ACP50s—ACPs in which people of color comprise more than 50% of the population. The authors develop a graphically-facilitated survey blending multiple choice, free response, cognitive mapping and discussion questions to capture unmet transportation needs and user experience information difficult to gather in traditional travel behavior surveys. They find that participants’ activity spaces vary significantly based on car availability and local built form and that pedestrian environments around stops affect the experience of using transit in ACPs more strongly than transit service itself, leading to the conclusion that transit- and pedestrian-oriented community design is a significant equity issue.