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Conditions and Performance Report. Chapter 1

Conditions and Performance Report
Chapter 1—Personal Mobility

Conditions and Performance Chapter Listing

Conditions and Performance Home Page


Introduction

Summary


Measuring Mobility

The Role of Income

Role of Age

Role of Gender

Role of Race and Hispanic Status

 

The Role of Income

Household income is the most important influence on mobility. African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, newly arrived immigrants, the elderly, and people with disabilities all travel fewer miles and take fewer trips than the U.S. average. Part of the explanation for these differences in travel is related to income class. Residential location and auto ownership influence travel patterns, but household income heavily influences housing choices and auto purchases. Similarly, the logistical hardships on a single parent are severe, but these hardships are ameliorated with disposable income.

According to 1995 data, individuals in low-income households, earning less than $15,000 per year, make 19 percent fewer trips annually and travel nearly 40 percent fewer miles annually (9,060 compared to 14,924) than the average American household (see Exhibit 1-4). Income differences are even more dramatic on the household level. VMT per household in low-income households is approximately half that in other households (11,594 miles compared to 23,427).

Exhibit 1-4
Per Capita Trips and Miles by Income (Percent Above or Below U.S. Average)
Fig01_04

When compared with the highest earning households (those making $80,000 a year), households with less than $15,000 income make 1.2 fewer trips per day. The difference in person miles traveled is even more striking—low-income households travel 15.9 fewer miles (almost 50 percent less) than high-income households. One reason for these differences, especially the disparity of person miles traveled, is the lower vehicle ownership rates in low-income households.

A personal vehicle enables a driver to choose departure time and route. However, the high cost of acquiring, registering, insuring and maintaining a vehicle places vehicle ownership out of range for many low-income households. Twenty-six percent of low-income households do not have a car, compared to 4 percent of other households.

Without a vehicle many low-income households obtain a level of mobility through trips in vehicles owned by others, walking and mass transit. Approximately 8 percent of trips in low-income households are made in vehicles owned by others compared to 1 percent in other income groups. People in low-income households are more than twice as likely to make a walk trip as those in other income groups. Regarding transit use, households with income less than $15,000 represent 11.7 percent of the population, yet make 27 percent of all transit trips. The 8 percent of households without a vehicle account for 47 percent of all transit trips.

Exhibit 1-5 helps illustrate the link between income and travel-mode choice. The difference in the use of walk and transit is especially clear between single parent/low-income households compared to middle and high-income households.

Exhibit 1-5
Annual Person Miles of Travel per Person by Public Transit and Walking
Fig01_05

In addition to the significant effects of racial and ethnic preferences in housing and jobs, the concentration of many low-income households is also influenced by the opportunity to pay lower housing costs. Due to the fact that a larger share of trips made in cars owned by others, walking, and public transit, the area in which low-income people travel is geographically confined. For all other households, about 50 percent of their trips are within three miles of home. For low-income, this rises to 60 percent, and for low-income single-parent households, it reaches 66 percent.

The difference in the travel radius, or area that one can access, expands geometrically. A 3-mile radius gives you access to 28 square miles, while a 10-mile radius allows access to 300 square miles. Traveling over a larger radius opens opportunities for employment, shopping, and services. For example, when a supermarket closes in a lower-income neighborhood, residents are left with fewer options for basic needs.

Transportation limitations are especially critical for work trips. The growth in employment opportunities in the past two decades has largely been in the suburbs of major metropolitan areas. This points to the "spatial mismatch" of having large groups of low-skilled workers in the inner city or close-in suburbs, while the growth in jobs is occurring in the suburbs or exurbs.

With high residential density and low auto ownership, areas with low housing costs create natural markets for public transit, taxi and jitney services, and neighborhood retail and commercial services. If these services are effective, the concentration of the poor and their relative "immobility" need not worsen their condition or constrain their life activities. The public sector can play a key role in enhancing these opportunities by providing resources for transportation investments and encouraging private sector involvement in these areas.

 

 
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Page last modified on November 7, 2014
Federal Highway Administration | 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE | Washington, DC 20590 | 202-366-4000