Disparity by Design:
Less-than progressive public transportation systems around the world promote inequality. And Houston, we have a problem.
Wrapping Our Heads around It:
How do bad buses promote segregation and gentrifying neighborhoods?
Buses, trains, and trams are more than a means for physical transportation. They are an instrument of financial and social mobility, and with the right implementation, a promoter of equality. Improvement of public transportation might seem like a win for any city. Though seemingly helpful, “improvements” to bus lines and shiny- new pseudo-trains have the potential to decimate vulnerable communities in our nation's city centers. This can all be attributed to generations of bad design rooted in systems and ideas that promote disparity.
On a Global Scale
There is no doubt that equality is extended to accessibility to transportation in the modern age. But, a paradox has developed in the so-called developed world. Mobility seems to worsen as a country develops when equal opportunity is not assessed in city planning. Enrique Panalosa former pro- mass transit Mayor of Bogota, Colombia would agree, that an advanced city is one wherein the extremely wealthy use public transport alongside the middle and lower classes. Some countries move towards this Utopian ideal while others seem to value other aspects. War torn countries like Baghdad, and overpopulated/ severely impoverished countries like Mumbai, India...
American East-Side Disparity
The United States is a microcosm for global disparity caused by public transportation. Inequality is just as ingrained in the nations history as in any other, and it shows in its city's. In America, there is a trend of East side disparity: impoverished communities tend to be clustered on the East side. Economist and 20 year Silicon Valley veteran Stephen very elegantly unravels the connection of accessibility to transportation and equality with the "wrong side of the tracks" analogy.
Whether it be East Houston or East Vancouver, he concludes that this phenomenon does not apply to all cities but the trend is traceable through Industrial Era smoke stack dispersion. Wind pollution over centuries drove the working class to the east, and creating geographical distance between the haves and the have-nots. The wrong side of the tracks idea is spawned form this phrase. Modern day Houston is still fairly segregated and the policies that continue to shape it this way are based in antiquated ideologies. Though this isn't true for all communities disparity by design is a reality fro the United states. Wind does not make policy; people do.
Confining to specific locations and depriving them of the opportunity to move up the social/ economic ladder has led to a vicious cycle. Red lining, maps created by bankers to determine who to loan to. Communities that are typically red lined have little to no property tax base which translates to less money for publicly funded school. Generations of schools without proper funding produce an ill prepared work force that will not earn enough to take out those loans that allow them to grow or buy out of their neighborhoods. Cities built this way reflect poorly executed principals of design built on ideas that are not made to bring people together.
Transit Trouble in Space City
Houston is undoubtedly one of the most diverse cities in the nation, but Houston is not immune to bad design. The city has reached an impasse and our elected officials must choose smarter more intuitive city designs. Metro next and Houston’s future infrastructure changes could be the cornerstone for positive change for all communities or a contention point for future conflict. Houston seems to be as diverse as it is separate when in terms of race and income. And these conditions are exacerbated by city planning that is not conscious of*
Income and Transit
In a 2018 study conducted by the Rice Kinder Institute of Urban Research, Houston's low income households are disproportionately affected by the faults in the city's public transportation system in comparison the middle and high wage earners. Low-wage earners travel farther, have longer commute times, and spend more annually on transportation than any other wage class.
Gentrification and Job Accessibility
Recent gentrification of working class communities only adds fuel to the flames as it pushes low income workers farther from their jobs. Zip codes typically gentrified are majority-minority communities. These communities are also economically disadvantaged and vulnerable to a specific kind of gentrification called Transit Adjacent development or TAD. These areas are defined as all land The Kinder institute published research in 2019 that tracked the impact and reported the implications of TAD on Houstonians. It was found that 2/3 of all TAD areas were previously occupied low income neighborhoods that are likely to gentrify. The reclaimed and redeveloped land would attract high income white residents.
"We don't live in the era of legal segragation. So the punchline is, there is no wrong side of the tracks". - Stephen DeBerry
An example of this phenomenon in Houston can be seen in three key communities: Alief, Pasadena and Kingswood. Both Alief and Pasadena are majority-minority communities with a fairly considerable work force that rely on public transportation to commute to Harris County. This include the aforementioned job-centers Downtown, Uptown, and the Texas Medical Center (TMC).
Both Alief and Pasadena are highly diverse communities in terms of race/ ethnicity, and are the most economically disparaged. These communities have the most workers that rely on public transportation, but have the longest commute times, spend the most of their income on transportation. Kingswood, a much more affluent community, boasts its own Park& Ride system. Breaswood and Astrodome are also relatively wealthy communities who's residents have more modes of transportation available to them While communities like the Five Corners, Pasadena and Alief have fewer options to commute. It seems as though more resources should be allocated to the communities that need them, but this is not happening.
What do We Do?
The solution will be different for every country and community, but it will be rooted in Democratic equality. Enrique Panalosa found that cities more often that not prioritize cars before its citizens. All of a nations people should be equal before the law and a bus qith 80 passengers should have enough lane space for said passengers. He says that "cities are human habitats. Just as fish need to swim, we need to walk".
Many governments boast of the individual's right to self actualization and happiness. In order to pursue happiness people deserve proper sidewalks and bus stops that aren't in ditches. Our conditions should change and improve over time, whether that be in the form of progressive city planning or policy making for people, instead of constituents.