researchreview UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE
OCTOBER 2021 • VOLUME 3
From the Director While transportation inequity has been an issue for years, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted just how inequitable mobility is in the United States. Many Americans struggle to get to and from work as well as to doctors’ appointments, grocery stores and educational opportunities. or many years, the focus of transportation equity centered around finding mobility solutions for people who are unable to drive as a result of physical, perceptual or cognitive disabilities. The temporary halt to many transit operations in the spring of 2020 unfortunately showed the extent to which mobility in the U.S. is inequitable for so many low income or underserved members of many communities as well.
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The deployment of mini- and microtransit solutions will become critical if we wish to ensure that mass transit services are a viable option for those who don’t own personal vehicles. Similarly, rural areas grapple with how to help an aging population, and increased on-demand mobility solutions are needed in these communities. As many businesses search unsuccessfully to find employees to fill job vacancies, there are Americans that would work in those positions if a viable
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mobility option was available to them. But the costs of vehicle ownership, ride sharing on a regular basis, and parking, along with inefficient or unavailable mass transit options, make matters even worse in some communities. I recently spoke with the head of a nonprofit health clinic that serves teens and young adults. He relayed to me how rideshare services often will not go into the communities where the clinic’s clients live – even if requested and paid for by the clinic itself. In some instances, there are few, if any, mass transit choices available either. Rides from parents may not be an option in households where a parent works multiple jobs to make ends meet.
While we must never lose sight of safety and efficiency issues in transportation, we must do a better job ensuring that those same safe and efficient modes are made available to everyone. It is time that we looked more closely at mobility equity for all members of our communities, taking into consideration the potential benefits of reduced unemployment, improved educational opportunity, and improved health outcomes. More generally speaking, equitable mobility offers all members of society the opportunity for a better quality of life. James Sayer, UMTRI Director