A record 10.7 billion rides were taken on public transit in the United States last year. And a national survey of Americans finds that the speed, reliability, and cost, more than any other factors, determine people’s willingness and frequency of use.
The survey of 11,842 adults in 46 Metropolitan Statistical Areas, 60% of whom live in “transit progressive” cities, also found that far more Americans want to live in mixed-use, walkable communities than actually do.
“That’s significant news, not just for planners, but for the real estate industry as well,” wrote David Bragdon, executive director of TransitCenter, a New York-based public policy and advocacy organization, which conducted the poll.
Bragdon asserted that, unlike other public utilities, mass transit is “personal,” and that receptivity to using mass transit is highly dependent on riders’ relationships with it in such areas as efficiency, cleanliness, proximity to stations, and how quickly they get to their destinations.
TransitCenter concluded that transit use is, ultimately, attitudinal. But this inference is a little quirky. Baby boomers who grew up in an era of mass-transit expansion are now far more resistant to using these systems than Millennials who “embrace” mass transit, said the survey.
Graphs courtesy TransitCenter
If you’re an ethnic minority, you are more likely to be a transit rider. Nearly two-fifths of African-Americans polled use mass transit at least once a week, and 22% use it three or four times a week. More than 30% of Hispanics ride buses and trains once a week, and one-fifth use these modes three or four times weekly. In contrast, only 10% of whites ride mass transit weekly, and only 5% use these modes more frequently.
The survey also found correlations between usage and income: high-income Americans are not big riders.
Some perceptions about transit use get debunked: for example, just because you’re a parent doesn’t mean you use transit systems less, although the survey found that parents aged 30 or younger are more positively inclined towards mass transit than older parents.
Students are frequent riders, but higher education is not much of a determining factor about who uses transit systems. That being said, a neighborhood’s employment rate certainly has a positive impact on rider frequency, and the survey found that employees are using transit benefits when their employers offer them.
The top predictor of use, according to the survey, is what kind of neighborhood the person lives in. While most respondents don’t seem to be clamoring to move back into their cities’ core, “many Americans are looking for something different” from their current living environments, Bragdon said. TransitCenter, in fact, sees “widespread demand” for walkable communities, even though most of the respondents aren’t living in these currently.
Related Stories
| Apr 23, 2012
Innovative engineering behind BIG’s Vancouver Tower
Buro Happold’s structural design supports the top-heavy, complex building in a high seismic zone; engineers are using BIM technology to design a concrete structure with post-tensioned walls.
| Apr 23, 2012
AAMA releases updated specification for anodized aluminum
AAMA 611-12 describes test procedures and requirements for high performance (Class I) and commercial (Class II) architectural quality aluminum oxide coatings applied to aluminum extrusions and panels for architectural products.
| Apr 23, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti project wins AISC Merit Award
Thornton Tomasetti provided structural design services through construction administration to architect HOK for the 1.6-million-sf tower and tiara structure, which comprises 15 steel tube arches spanning approximately 158 feet horizontally and 130 feet vertically from the top of the main building roof.
| Apr 23, 2012
Construction underway on City Winery Chicago
The Building Team is maintaining the old brick and timber construction, while adding 5,000-sf of new construction in the form of a two-story addition within the site’s existing courtyard.
| Apr 20, 2012
McCarthy completes Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital Replacement Facility
The new hospital’s architectural design combines traditional Santa Barbara Spanish colonial architecture with 21st century medical conveniences highlighted by a therapeutic and sustainable atmosphere.
| Apr 20, 2012
Century-old courthouse renovated for Delaware law firm offices
To account for future expansion, Francis Cauffman developed a plan to accommodate the addition of an 8-story tower to the building.
| Apr 20, 2012
RCMA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory to host International Roof Coatings Conference
The International Roof Coatings Conference will feature keynote speakers Marc LaFrance of the U.S. Department of Energy, and Art Rosenfeld of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
| Apr 20, 2012
Shawmut completes Yard House Restaurant in Boston
12,000-sf restaurant marks new addition to Boston’s Fenway neighborhood.
| Apr 20, 2012
Registration open for Solar Power International 2012 in Orlando
President Bill Clinton to deliver keynote address at ?largest solar energy event in the Americas.
| Apr 19, 2012
The 10 mistakes most likely to get you sued
The California Chamber of Commerce has produced a white paper cataloging the top 10 mistakes most likely to get a company sued. While a few of the laws cited apply specifically to California, some of them are federal and may apply in your state.