Transportation for America joins the American Public Health Association, PolicyLink & other advocates to highlight health and transportation connection
October 15, 2009By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dozens of doctors and health professionals from around the country flooded the capital this week to educate Congress about the link between transportation policy and health. Co-hosted by the American Public Health Association, PolicyLink and others, the Transportation for America Health Summit incorporated both a policy briefing and individual meetings with lawmakers to highlight the connection between health and transportation.
The briefing, titled “Get Moving! Mobilizing for a Healthier Transportation System” showcased four high level experts on health and transportation including a youth wellness advocate and Transportation for America Director James Corless.
“America’s transportation system affects our health in profound ways, and we have a unique opportunity to forge a new direction that makes us healthier and saves us money over the long term,” Corless said.
Joining Corless as panelists were Dr. Georges Benjamin, Executive Director of the American Public Health Association; Dr. Richard Jackson, Chair and Professor of Environmental Health and Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles; Dr. Joe Thompson, Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity; Shireen Malekafzali, Senior Associate at PolicyLink and editor of “The Transportation Prescription;” and 14-year-old Julia Lopez, a youth wellness advocate.
“We are fortunate to have these innovators and forward-thinkers with us as we push for transportation policies that fit the needs of 21st Century America,” Corless added.
Briefing topics included the relationship between vehicle-generated pollution and respiratory complications; access to health care services, groceries and other essential destinations; active living and obesity prevention; the safety implications of our transportation policies; the health effects of greenhouse gas emissions; and overarching equity concerns among low-income and minority populations.
“We really are at a transportation crossroads,” said Dr. Benjamin. “Without transformational change in our priorities, we will perpetuate a transportation status quo that puts our health at risk, exacerbates health inequities and clouds our future. I am excited to be a part of this discussion and look forward to our continued participation in Transportation for America’s diverse coalition.”
A few key facts about the relationship between transportation policy and health:
- In the United States traffic fatalities kill just over 40,000 per year, costing the nation $230.6 billion, or 2.3 percent of the gross domestic product, since 2000.
- People in more compact metropolitan areas suffer from significantly fewer chronic medical conditions than their counterparts in more sprawling regions. For example people who live in neighborhoods with a mix of shops and businesses within easy walking distance have a 35 percent lower risk of obesity.
- Each year air pollution triggers over a million asthma attacks, more than 47,000 cases of chronic bronchitis in adults and 540,000 cases of acute bronchitis in children and kills 70,000 people.
- Vulnerable populations, such as seniors and minorities, who cannot or choose not to drive have a higher risk of being killed as a pedestrian. African-Americans make up approximately 12 percent of that population, but they account for 20 percent of pedestrian deaths. Native Americans are 1.5 times more likely to die from traffic crashes than anyone else.
“It is critical that our nation’s policies promote healthy living,” said 14-year-old youth wellness advocate, Julia Lopez. “Improving the access people have to goods and services will help many people maintain an active lifestyle and prevent obesity.”
New report chronicles the impact of transit cuts on American communities
August 18, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
A new report from Transportation for America and the Transportation Equity Network — following up on our United States of Transit Cutbacks from earlier this year— looks closely at the cuts that public transportation agencies across the country are facing and how they’ve have impacted the people in those communities.
Communities and their transit systems are stuck in a difficult quandary: they’re facing booming, historic ridership and levels of demand for service, while also facing the worst funding crisis in decades.
Stranded at the Station: The Impact of the Financial Crisis in Public Transportation is the first systematic analysis of the issue, and the story is not a pretty one. Nearly 90 percent of transit systems have had to raise fares or cut service in the past year and among the 25 largest transit operators, 10 agencies are raising fares more than 13 percent.
Many transit agencies across the country have cut service, raised fares or laid off workers to deal with shrinking budgets, severely affecting the people who depend on regular, reliable service in order to access jobs, social services and education everyday. Nationwide demand for public transportation is at historic levels and growing, but funding for the day-to-day operations of these transit services is built on an unstable foundation. This report shows that without federal support, many will likely will be unable to meet the demand now and in the future.
Download and read the full report at http://t4america.org/resources/stranded
Relatedly, we’ve updated the United States of Transit Cutbacks map to reflect the data in this new report, and the map now includes 21 case studies from the report, highlighting 21 of the many communities facing the most significant budget deficits and those with the highest fare increases for 2009. We’ll be continuing to track the issue and cuts across the nation with that map, so keep us posted if we don’t have your city on the map.
So we want to know: how have these drastic cuts in public transportation service affected your everyday life? Tell us your story and we’ll help share it with Congress.
Today’s Headlines — 06/05/09
June 5, 2009By Andrew Bielak
- Financial crisis and federal stimulus have slowed the push to privatize infrastructure. (New York Times)
- A new study looks how to address equity concerns in congestion pricing. (Environmental Defense Fund)
- Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm suggests that old car factories to be retooled to make trains, while the state cuts 137 transportation projects because of lack of funds. (Infrastcturist)
The importance of a complete transportation system
May 6, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
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| Glennis and the 20 Bus Originally uploaded by Transportation for America |
This story is told by Transportation for America organizer Will Handsfield, from a recent trip to California for a town hall meeting.
After leaving the 21st Century Transportation for Los Angeles conference, I headed over to the Normandie Metro Rapid stop to pick up the 720 bus.
This is where I met Glennis.
Glennis was expected at work at 7:00. It was 6:25, and she had been waiting at the stop for 30 minutes when I showed up. Glennis told me that once she got off at Santa Monica Blvd, she would still have about one mile to walk to get to her job. Her chances of getting there on time were looking pretty slim at that moment, and I could see the worry mounting on her face.
Not everyone has a car to drive, and plenty of people choose not to drive for many different reasons. Millions of Americans just like Glennis rely on public transportation every day to get to their jobs, and thus to support themselves. If the buses are late (in this case, the rapid is supposed to show up every 3-8 minutes during rush hour), it threatens the job security of hard working people like Glennis.
One of the people I spoke to at Google two weeks ago put it succinctly, “you should have to know the transit routes, but never their schedules” — essentially saying that infrequent transit represents a poor system. The Rapid bus is supposed to solve this by coming frequently, but for whatever reason, today it didn’t.
I waited for another 16 minutes with Glennis, and waffled with her on deciding whether or not to settle for the slower number 20 bus (pictured), despite the fact it makes many more stops. We stuck it out and a bus headed to Westwood finally arrived, and I said farewell.
When she left, she had another 19 minutes to get to work, with at least 10 minutes more of bus riding. I hope Glennis was able to walk that mile in the 9 minutes left.
For Glennis’ sake — and for everyone else waiting for the bus or stuck in endless traffic — we need to do better on providing a safe, efficient, complete transportation system with options for everyone.
Wrapping up the first Webinar: Transportation and Social Equity
March 26, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
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| Download the first in a series of policy briefs from T4: Transportation and Social Equity: Opportunity Follows Mobility (pdf) |
Our first webinar in a series of them was held earlier this week, and it was a great success. Nearly 100 advocates and supporters signed up for a session on Transportation and Social Equity.
Our transportation system should provide everyone — regardless of age, income, race or disability — with viable transportation options. So there are significant issues with a system that doesn’t extend opportunity to everyone in the same manner.
Judith Bell, president of PolicyLink, led an informative discussion about ways in which transportation policies and programs affect low income, minority, and other often marginalized populations.
Nathaniel Smith, Director of Partnerships for Equitable Development at Emory University and Ron Achelpohl, Assistant Director of Transportation for the Mid-America Regional Council, spoke about local actions in Atlanta and Kansas City respectively to make equity considerations a fundamental part of the transportation planning process. Laura Barrett, National Policy Director for theTransportation Equity Network, discussed advocacy efforts at the national level — particularly around equitable stimulus spending.
For those of you who attended the session, we wanted to make sure that you don’t miss the first in a series of policy briefs from Transportation for America. This first brief (available for download now), Transportation and Social Equity: Opportunity Follows Mobility, covers three basic ideas:
- The current system is failing low income communities
- Transportation is at the center of opportunity.
- The nation’s transportation investments can be a powerful force for social and economic equity.
Download it now and feel free to pass it along to friends and colleagues. And be sure to join Transportation for America to help us tell Congress that our transportation investments should extend opportunity to all Americans — regardless of race, class, or gender.
Webinar resources:
- Audio and video recording of the entire webinar (click to launch in a new window)
- A summary of the questions asked and responses (Coming soon)
- T4 Policy Brief on Transportation and Social Equity (pdf)
- Register for more upcoming webinars
School Buses: Still Vehicles for Change
October 9, 2008By Andrew Bielak
Decades after school buses became a symbol for educational integration, high fuel costs and shrinking budgets are causing school districts to make cutbacks in bus service — and pushing children to attend school closer to home. (Wall Street Journal — Robert Tomsho)
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- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
March 8, 2010 - Transit riders in Atlanta face massive cuts, “wholesale restructuring” of service
March 5, 2010 - Opposition to Senate extension results in looming shutdown of federal transportation programs
February 26, 2010 - T4 jobs proposal would create nearly half a million jobs, according to Economic Policy Institute
February 17, 2010 - Obama’s 2011 budget gives a lift to livability and transportation
February 2, 2010
- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
The United States of Transit Cutbacks
Driving is down and transit ridership is at record highs. Yet transit agencies across the country are considering layoffs, service cuts and fare hikes. Find out more and learn what you can do to help at t4america.org/transitcuts
Transportation: In your eyes
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