Why public transit is a
key economic issue for
growing cities
W
e’d love to take our daily The study was conducted by the
commute for granted. Except, Economic Development Research
we can’t. It is essential that we continue Group Inc. for APTA.
to make public transportation as
efficient as possible for commuters.
“Our failure as a nation to
address America’s public transit
modernization needs has wide-
Over the decades, as a nation we have
ranging negative effects,” says
put investing in our transportation
infrastructure, particularly our APTA president and CEO Paul P.
Skoutelas, “because lost time in
bus and rail systems, on the back
burner. The result: Today’s public travel makes a region’s economy less
productive.”
transit backlog sits at $90 billion,
according to the U.S. Department
of Transportation. This is a missed
Failing to meet growing
opportunity to make our public
public transit needs
transportation systems more efficient
and our cities more productive, and As the number of U.S. workers
it has serious economic implications. continues to rise, so do the pressures
on all areas of our infrastructure.
For instance, a lack of investment
in our public transportation Since 1995, the U.S. has seen a 42
infrastructure costs the U.S. economy percent rise in public transit miles
$340 billion in revenue over a six- traveled. Despite that, needed
year period, according to the study, improvements to our bus and rail
“The Economic Cost of Failing to assets have not kept pace with growth,
Modernize Public Transportation.” the study concludes. Furthermore, the
44
|
WINTER GARDEN MAGAZINE
|
NOVEMBER 2018
BPT
study shows how, as the U.S. fails to
invest in the upkeep and maintenance
in the nation’s public transit assets,
it leads to service interruptions and
lost time, which leads to lost wages.
Dorval R. Carter Jr., president of
the Chicago Transit Authority,
oversees a legacy rail system that’s
more than 100 years old, and faces
the challenge of fixing or replacing
aging infrastructure.
“Parts of our rail system date back
to the late 1800s,” Carter says, “we
are facing an unmet - and growing
- capital need of nearly $13 billion
and meeting it has become even more
challenging given funding constraints
not only at the federal level, but
especially at the state and local levels.”
The impact of public transit
on local economies
Service interruptions and delays