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Transport divide (also known as transport exclusion, transport disadvantage, transport deprivation, transportation divide, and mobility divide) refers to unequal access to transportation. It can result in the social exclusion of disadvantaged groups.
The concept covers issues ranging from unequal access to to the unequal opportunities in global migration due to different Travel visa policies as part of the global North–South divide.
There are a number of aspects of the transport divide. People may have difficulty in using transport system because of physical barriers, such as a lack of accessibility for the disabled (lack of wheelchair access also impacts people with Baby transport or bicycles). Insufficient labeling can also cause problems for people who do not speak the local language. Financial barriers in the form of cost of services can prevent the poor from using the transport services. Distance barriers (in the form of distance from people's homes) can make some areas mostly inaccessible to people without access to a car, particularly when local public transportation is not well developed. Time barriers include problems caused by rush hour, but also time constraints caused by the need to arrange for care for members of the family (most often childcare), which when coupled with poor transport infrastructure can be a factor in reducing women's participation in the workforce. There are also fear barriers such as fear of being groped, leading to the creation of women-only passenger cars. Attempts to fix the fear barriers through increased surveillance and policing have however been linked to the lowering of the usage of such services by other groups, such as youth.
Scholars and urban planners have proposed solutions ranging from improving public transportation and increasing accessibility, subsidizing private transportation, and changing the ways in which cities are designed to improve mobility.
Housing policies have had a significant impact on the transport divide and mobility. The subsidization of larger housing estates in suburban areas has created a concentration of poverty in urban areas. Subsidizing low-income housing in low-density areas creates isolated communities with limited access to transportation. It is very difficult to connect distant suburban areas through public transportation, yet low-income households struggle to have equitable access to private transportation.
In 1956, the US government passed the Interstate Highway Act, which provided funding to build thousands of miles of highways across the country. This act, along with the GI bill which provided support for veterans to become homeowners, facilitated suburbanization and urban sprawl. This made the US more car-oriented as cities became spread out and people commuted from suburbs into cities for work. This made owning a car critical for access to suburban housing and schools. This suburbanization was not limited to the US; many cities in Europe developed the same way in the 20th century.
Inadequate public transportation is central to the transport divide. Public transportation provides access to employment, education, social activities, health services, food, among other necessities. Those without private transportation such as cars often rely on public transport. Yet, public transportation is often underfunded. Additionally, it may not serve all populations equitably. Those on the periphery of urban centers may struggle to find efficient public transportation if they do not live close to their places of employment.
There are many external costs to widespread car usage and automobile dependency. These costs to society include noise pollution, air pollution, climate change, congestion, and automobile accidents.
Black and Latino individuals in the US have lower rates of car ownership, and car ownership is associated with increased access to employment, higher salaries, and decreased ethnic disparities in unemployment rates. One study in LA found that car ownership increased employment by 9%. It is difficult to commute on public transportation from urban centers to suburban job opportunities, which reduces employment opportunities for those in urban areas without cars.
Access to vehicles and public transportation is linked to neighborhood satisfaction. When an individual can navigate the place they get around on their own, they are more likely to enjoy living there. For example, cars make it easier for people to spend time with their friends and families. Rural and suburban areas make it hard for people without a car to get around. A Boston mother involved in a 2010 study on transportation access was quoted saying, “How am I going to get from here to the doctor's today? I don't have money for a bus, which is an hour-and-a-half walk. And if it's pouring rain and cold, with two babies, you can't walk an hour to the bus stop anyway.” Stress involving transportation is higher for people in rural communities. People with vehicles are 1.6 times more satisfied with their neighborhoods than those without cars.
In rural communities, people who lack access to a vehicle are more likely to skip doctor’s appointments. Transportation is a social determinant of health, meaning that the inability to afford transportation correlates to negative health outcomes. While programs like Medicaid and others have attempted to combat this issue, there are millions of uninsured Americans who can not access these services as a result. Some rural communities have instituted transportation services that combine ride-share and shuttle practices to serve older adults and disadvantaged persons. Project TRIP (Transporting Residents with Innovative Practices) began in 2015 in a rural area of North Carolina. It is privately funded and “provides free individualized transportation to health care appointments, pharmacies, grocery stores/food banks, and other places that support health and well-being.” The program lifted some of the financial burdens off of these people’s shoulders as well as allowed them to attend important medical appointments without stress. Programs like TRIP have seen positive outcomes for rural residents, however, funding remains a concern for many.
Transport disadvantage affects populations disparately. The quality of life of elderly populations is very dependent on access to transportation as transportation allows for social interaction and hobbies.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, another dimension of the transport divide is health risk. Those who can travel in private cars are at less risk for contracting COVID-19, compared to those who only have access to public transportation. Additionally, those with disabilities may have increased vulnerability to COVID-19 in addition to experiencing more barriers to accessing transportation. This pandemic made using transportation more difficult for those with disabilities by disruption to safe and stable transport, lack of communication about updates to public transport, and lack of assistance.
Some countries have public aid programs that subsidize cars for poor households. However, there is criticism over these programs because of environmental concerns as well concerns about defunding public transportation. Other scholars proposed technological solutions, such as a demand responsive virtual transport market in rural communities. Some urban planners advocate for denser, mixed-use city neighborhoods that are more people friendly with more public transportation and less traffic.
One solution to car-related transport disadvantage is providing and encouraging use of alternative forms of transportation. Biking and walking can be encouraged through campaigns or bike sharing initiatives, but these campaigns are fairly limited to more compact cities. The car-free movement aims to reduce the centrality of car usage in society through urban planning and public transportation. New Urbanism, smart growth, and transit-oriented development are three approaches that aim to make cities more walkable, increase urban density, reduce suburban sprawl, and decrease the transport divide. These sustainability-focused movements hope to improve options for housing, employment, and transportation for more equitable societies.
Ride-hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft are on the rise, especially in urban and suburban areas. In recent years these companies have attempted to expand in rural areas but are dealing with the reality that these areas have lower population densities and longer travel distances. Startups and other tech companies have begun to emerge to combat this issue. May Mobility, an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based autonomous vehicle company is striving toward a greener, innovative future. May Mobility’s goal of providing free, shared rides to people is an active solution for people facing the plight of transportation access.
Public transportation in transport-deprived areas can improve mobility, economic opportunity, reduce household costs, and generally improve communities. Some scholars argue that investing more in public transportation only helps those who are transport disadvantaged if public transportation is targeted at specific groups and provides flexible services. Transportation is essential to the livelihood of all people; everyone needs transportation. It is a universal issue that policymakers may be able to find common ground on should it become a larger issue.
Additionally New Space entrepreneurs have argued in favour of companies to establish humanity as multiplanetary species, which has been criticized for being an escapist mission, limited to few, based on unknown criteria and offering escape as a solution to the problems on Earth instead of working on the problems.
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