Community empowerment and public transportation agencies: a case study analysis of transit agencies' community development initiatives

Abstract

Access to transportation is determinative of many quality of life indicators like health, employment, and education. Without the ability to travel within cities, individuals are effectively barred from resources necessary for empowerment, societal engagement, and productivity. Mass transit systems in the United States have long been underfunded compared to other industrialized democracies and frequently face severe constraints due to decreasing public investment in inner cities, lack of concern by policymakers about transportation equity, and the uniquely American emphasis on road-building and car ownership.

 This research uses qualitative research methods including interviews with transit agency administrators and content analysis of documents publicized by the agencies to form four case studies describing how public transportation agencies can be critical players in urban community development and social engagement efforts.

Keywords:

• public transportation
• urban affairs
• community development
• community engagement
• social equity
• social justice

Notes

1. From a presentation by a City Planner employed by the City of Omaha, Nebraska on 18 January 2011.

2. Litman does not address whether equity is applicable only to the citizens actually served by transportation policies, those who could be served, or the general population as a whole.

3. For more on urban spatial mismatch and its causes and effects, see Macionis & Parrillo (2010).

4. The process undertaken by this agency was subsequently referenced by other interviewees at different agencies in this research, and has become a model for transit agencies' community outreach efforts.