Power Grid Blog
On This Day in History
January 5, 2012 | AAPD Power Grid Blog Team
On January 5, 1933, workers began excavating the site for the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a massive project that facilitated car travel and allowed the metro area to grow outward. Eight decades later, the bridge is possibly the most recognizable in our country, and our transportation investments continue to focus almost entirely on automobile travel and highways that expand metropolitan areas.
Our choices about how to invest in transportation affect accessibility, and access to affordable, accessible transportation is critical to equal opportunity for people with disabilities. Americans with disabilities are significantly more likely to lack access to affordable, reliable transportation than our counterparts who don’t have disabilities. AAPD’s work on transportation equity promotes accessible, affordable options.
A recent study of metropolitan areas transit investments shows that metropolitan areas with more poor residents and lower median incomes are spending less on public transit investments than similar cities with higher incomes. This is important—and problematic—for people with disabilities. First, people with disabilities are less likely to have access to cars than people without disabilities—which means that access to public transportation is important. Second, people with disabilities are earning less than those without disabilities, with higher rates of unemployment and poverty. Although people with disabilities live everywhere, those who are living in poverty, unemployed, or underpaid are likely to live in areas with lower incomes, and be disproportionately affected by lack of accessible transportation options.
We need to do better. The bridge whose construction began on this day in history is an example of what we can build together. It’s important that we invest in infrastructure that is useful to all regardless of income or disability. If you have a transportation access story to share, please send it to communications@aapd.com or share it on our Facebook page.
