Notable News in Mobility: The Right to Transportation

When the average American thinks about their own transportation experience, we usually think of how to get around traffic or how to cut a few minutes off our daily commute. We usually don’t have to consider whether or not we will have the ability to get to where we need to go; rather we just focus on how to make it a more enjoyable experience. But for many Americans, like those participating in the Mobile Voice Project, simply getting from place to place can be a daily struggle. This article by Wired asserts that transportation is should not be a privilege few enjoy, but a civil right to which all have access.  Every citizen should have the right to adequate transportation because “access to transportation is key to connecting the poor, seniors and those with disabilities to jobs, schools, health care and other resources. It is essential to widening opportunities for all.”  Without adequate transportation options opportunities that should be open to all are being withheld from those most in need. 

The women we work with everyday as a part of the Mobile Voice Project are among those with inadequate access to opportunities that could lead them to independence and an equal opportunity at financial security. I think it’s time for us as a community to come together and take the perspective of those less able to access the things in life many of us take for granted. When the federal government allocates 80 percent of its transportation funding to highways, and Americans in the lowest 20 percent income bracket spend up to 42 percent of their annual income on transportation, the way funds are allocated needs to change to assisting transportation-disadvantaged populations. As a community we can pressure our elected officials to make these changes. Let your voice be heard!

Sources: WIRED

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Author: Nicholas Flickinger