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Integrated Paper on Public Transportation

Ari Marshall

Long Island University Global College

Sarah Moran

March 18, 2024

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Integrated Paper on Public Transportation

For many city dwellers like New Yorkers, life without public transportation is

unfathomable, it is a necessity, and an everyday part of life. Yet, we never really take the time to

marvel at how these vast underground and above-ground systems came to be defining aspects of

cities around the world. The dawn of public transportation came in the form of horse-drawn

carriages called omnibusses. New York City debuted its omnibus system in 1827 for those who

could pay the rather expensive fare, and soon after in 1832, rails were installed in the streets to

lessen the bumpy, uneven urban streets for a quicker and more enjoyable ride for passengers

(New York Transit Museum, 2019; Schofer, 2024). In the 1860s, spurred by London opening the

world's first subway in 1863, consideration for an underground train system in New York City

began. By the late 19th century, New York City had a vast urban transport system, including

elevated railroads, horse-drawn railways, and omnibuses. In 1888, the city formed the Rapid

Transit Commission to oversee the creation of the first subway (New York Transit Museum,

2019). Construction began in 1900, and by 1904, the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT)

subway opened with immense popularity. Today, New York City is home to the largest system in

the world by the number of stations, totaling more than 420 stops across 380 km (Dugdale,

2019). The underground metro alone transports 1.72 billion passengers a year, making it the

eighth busiest subway system in the world (Dugdale, 2019). To understand the current issues

confronting New York City public transportation, this paper will dive into the history of public

transit and connect it to present-day issues facing public transportation, namely persisting forms

of inequities, particularly for racially marginalized communities, and the largely nationally

debated issue of how to ensure commuters are paying their fare (Kramer, 2023; Ley, 2023; "The

Human Cost of Subway Delays," 2017; )

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Originally, public transportation in New York City was controlled by all private

companies, but with millions of immigrants arriving in the United States in search of a better life,

the demand for transportation soared, and private companies, in competition to keep fares low,

faced bankruptcy (New York Transit Museum, 2019). By 1940, all private transit companies

went bankrupt and were bought out by New York City, which brought all subway lines under

municipal control (New York Transit Museum, 2019). The New York City Transit Authority

assumed control of all city-owned transit by 1953, raising fares and beginning vital repair work.

In 1968, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) was created to oversee transportation

operations in twelve counties, becoming New York City Transit's parent agency. Today, the MTA

controls subways, buses, bridges, tunnels, and other transportation infrastructure (New York

Transit Museum, 2019).

However, as marvelous as the emergence and evolution of public transportation is, it has

never been created without sacrificing existing infrastructure and with it, either neighborhoods

and livelihoods (Naylor, 2016). Too often, as in the case of New York’s subway, bridges, and

roads, the communities that were bulldozed and displaced were marginalized and minority

communities of predominantly African-American and Latino neighborhoods (Valentine, 2020) .

Despite the New York subway being built with primarily Irish immigrant labor and African

Americans working in perilous and extremely poor conditions, public infrastructure and

transportation in New York and the United States has nearly always been built by the poor and

marginalized immigrant communities for the benefit of the white middle and upper class (Lisi,

2004). When Congress passed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, it authorized what was

then the largest public works program in U.S. history. This legislation pledged to build 41,000

miles of an ambitious interstate highway system, crossing the nation and significantly expanding
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America's existing road network. Its purpose was to link 42 state capital cities and 90 percent of

all American cities with populations over 50,000, and replace the current unsafe and inefficient

roads (Evans, 2023).

However, this expansion of highways from the 1950s to the 1970s began to literally

cement already existing racism in the United States. The U.S. The Department of Transportation

estimated that over 475,000 households and more than a million people were displaced

nationwide due to the construction of federal roadways. Highways cut through neighborhoods

causing air pollution and lowering property values (Evans, 2023). Communities of color lost

churches, green spaces, and entire sections of homes. They also lost small businesses that

provided employment opportunities and supported local economies—a critical aspect for the

middle class in areas already grappling with discriminatory zoning policies, disinvestment, and

the phenomenon of white flight (Evans, 2023). In an article titled "White Men's Roads through

Black Men's Homes": Advancing Racial Equity through Highway Reconstruction” scholar

Deborah N. Archer (2020) writes:

In states around the country, highway construction displaced Black households and cut

the heart and soul out of thriving Black communities as homes, churches, schools, and

businesses were destroyed. In other communities, the highway system was a tool of a

segregationist agenda, erecting a wall that separated White and Black communities and

protected White people from Black migration.

An exemplification of public infrastructure and projects that furthered existing

inequalities in the United States took place in New York (Evans, 2023). Robert Moses, despite

never being democratically elected to any of the twelve offices he wielded power at throughout
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different times, was arguably the most influential person in shaping the urban landscape of New

York ("Preservation History," n.d.). Robert Moses who at the height of his unelected power post

world war II until 1968, built hundreds of playgrounds, sportsfields, urban and pools. In the age

of the automobile post WWII, Moses was seen as adamantly for the domination of vehicles over

public transit like buses and subways and he oversaw the construction of thirteen expressways

including Robert F. Kennedy Bridge's exit ramp is in Harlem, a largely black community when

scholars argue a more logical location would have been the Upper East Side, planning like this

meant wealthier neighborhoods stayed untouched by traffic, while Harlem became crowded with

automobiles (Nonko, 2017; Schulz, 2015). He also built housing developments like Stuyvesant

Town, Riverside Park, the United Nations headquarters and the Lincoln Center for the

Performing Arts and he also constructed the paths to get to these locations (Kessler, 2021).

Robert Moses, in reference to justifying the clearance of low-income neighborhoods,

famously said, “Our categorical imperative is action to clear the slums,” Moses said in a 1959

speech. “We can’t let minorities dictate that this century-old chore will be put off another

generation or finally abandoned” (Evans, 2023). ​The debate over whether Robert Moses was

racist or not is a contentious one that still is discussed today (Kessler, 2021). Critics point to

instances where Moses allegedly implemented policies that disproportionately affected

communities of color, such as deliberately constructing low bridges on parkways to restrict

access by buses to desirable areas like Jones beach, which particularly carried low income

African Americans and Latinos. However, some scholars argue that Moses's actions, such as the

construction of low bridges, were not necessarily motivated by racism but rather practical

concerns and adherence to existing engineering standards. They suggest that the low bridge

heights were consistent with those of other parkways built during the same era and were a
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cost-saving measure rather than a deliberate attempt to exclude certain groups (Kessler, 2021).

Furthermore, they point out that there were alternative transportation routes available to Black

Americans to access beaches, suggesting that Moses's actions may have been more nuanced than

simply discriminatory (Kessler, 2021).

While Robert Moses built a great deal of public works, critics argue that these favored

whites over blacks, the wealthy and middle class over the poor, and that his work from 1945 to

1968 is the reason for many existing issues confronting public transportation today (Nonlo,

2017). At the forefront of backlash against Robert Moses’ reign are the critics that blame Moses

for cementing existing inequalities in New York City through his creation of highways purposely

without bus lanes and his opposition to public transportation like the subway (Nonko, 2017).

Jim Camerom the founder of the Commuter Action Group and advocates for Connecticut rail

riders and guest lecturer about improving public transportation said about Robert Moses “ He

loved cars but didn’t really care for people who did not own them” (Cameron, 2022). The reality

that transport has been built by the marginalized for the generally speaking white middle class

residents is reflected in subway service today. According to The bureau of Policy and Research

in a 2017 report titled The Human Cost of Subway Delays: A Survey of New York City Riders,

the consequences resulting from subway delays were more felt by people who lived in lower

income zip codes.

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Additionally, people living in lower income areas were more likely to report that they received

poor subway service compared to those that lived in higher income areas as shown by the graph

below.

Racial and economic discrimination is not unique to the subway and is also prevalent for New

York City buses which are on average the slowest buses in the United States ("Better buses —

Riders alliance," n.d.). According to the NGO Riders Alliance that fights for reliable and

affordable public transportation, bus riders are primarily from working-class communities of

color ("Better buses — Riders alliance," n.d.). Amongst these communities 55% are immigrants

and have an average yearly income of less than $30,000. Bus stops with no overhead coverage or

electronic display board updating riders on the schedule is in stark contrast to the comfortable

commuter rail platforms that primarily bus higher income white people from the suburbs ("Better

buses — Riders alliance," n.d.). This loops back to Robert Moses' reign over New York and his

planning excluding bus lanes from being built on expressways and streets (Nonko, 2017).

Living in New York, specifically in Bushwick, for only a few months, which is a

predominantly Hispanic and Black neighborhood, I have already witnessed and been affected by

poor bus service ("Bushwick neighborhood profile," n.d.). On several occasions, either the bus
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just never shows up at its scheduled time or its scheduled time changes every few minutes,

further delaying it to the point where walking forty minutes is faster than waiting for the next bus

to arrive. Additionally, there have been three occasions where I have seen the same B60 bus

route have three buses stacked in a row traveling along the same street, which means three buses

come within five minutes, but then none arrive for over twenty.

During our brief field excursion with Dereck, I asked his opinion on how to ensure

efficient bus service, and he responded that bus lanes are an ideal solution. A statement that

stood out to me was when Dereck countered what I said about there only being so much street

space and how is it possible to really create effective bus service without literally changing

streets. He said that at the end of the day, it's true there is only so much street space, but what

should we prioritize? A bus carrying thousands of people daily and emergency vehicles or

personal cars. That statement stuck with me. There has always been sacrifice in the history of

public transportation, yet never for marginalized and poor communities, and it might just be time

for overhauling infrastructure and current practices to benefit these communities for once.

In a city where over half of the households lack a car, and where households with

vehicles have a median income over twice that of those without ensuring expansive and efficient

public transportation is a social justice issue that should be at the forefront of policy and

infrastructure change (Cuba, 2021). Public transportation is currently exacerbating racial and

economic inequalities, perpetuating a cycle of poverty. The graph below, based on data collected

by the Transit Center tracking transit equity across U.S. cities, demonstrates the direct link

between public transportation and job possibilities.

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One critical challenge in achieving dependable public transportation nationwide is the

revenue lost by public transportation agencies due to fare evasion, where riders find ways to

avoid paying the fare. This in turn cripples the budget of transportation agencies to make much

needed updates to aging and inefficient systems. In 2022 alone, the Metropolitan Transportation

Authority lost an estimated $690 million due to fare evasion on subways and buses (Ley, 2023).

Fare evasion poses a complex challenge, as the cost of enforcing fares through fare checkers or

police often exceeds the revenue generated from fares (Ley, 2023). Furthermore, across the

country, Democratic lawmakers and left-leaning politicians and voters have strongly opposed

using law enforcement as a means to encourage and enforce fare payment, as it

disproportionately affects Black, Latino, and lower-income individuals who are stopped and

fined (Ley, 2023). For instance, in 2022, Black and Latino New Yorkers accounted for 73 percent

of those arrested and required to appear in court for fare evasion incidents where race and

ethnicity were reported by the police (Ley, 2023).

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Another nuanced issue that exacerbated challenges facing public transportation was The

COVID-19 pandemic which drastically decreased nationwide public transportation ridership

numbers, prompting several cities to implement free fares for remaining bus riders, many of

whom were low-income individuals traveling to essential jobs (George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023).

Now, as ridership levels increase post-COVID-19, cities are grappling with how to again enforce

fare payment, particularly among communities whose economic income was severely impacted

by the pandemic and who relied on free or reduced fares but are now required to pay the full fare

(George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023).

For example, In 2023 in Chicago, the Transit Authority hired nearly 100 private security

guards equipped with canines to monitor turnstiles, while in New York, Mayor Eric Adams

launched a "Subway Safety" plan emphasizing increased police presence to address fare evasion

and disorder. Also, in Washington DC there's been a renewed focus on fare evasion enforcement,

with Metro Transit Police restarting enforcement efforts that were dormant for years due to

concerns about police tactics and racial disparities (George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023).

In Northern Virginia's Loudoun County, fare evasion is being considered as a potential

criminal offense following Metro's expansion into the county. This reflects a broader trend across

the country where transit systems are grappling with increased violence and social disorder

during the pandemic era (George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023). Most recently in New York, Governor

Kathy Hochul announced that she was deploying 1,000 armed National Guard soldiers to the

New York Subway to search backpacks and help riders feel safer (Bellafante, 2024). In part, a

political move, Hochul said she wants to demonstrate that Democrats can be tough on crime as

well However, this response has drawn criticism from her own party about disparities in who
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receives the brunt of enforcement fines which is again primarily marginalized communities

(Bellafante, 2024).

The backlash against Governor Hochul's militarization response to subway crime is not

one-sided, as many nationwide law enforcement actions have raised concerns among civil rights

activists, particularly regarding the potential for racial profiling and unnecessary escalations

(George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023). There's a recognition that a heavy police presence for minor

offenses like fare evasion can have a detrimental impact on communities of color. Nevertheless,

transit agencies are justifying the increased enforcement as necessary for restoring order and

safety to stations and trains (George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023). For example, in response to rising

crime rates, D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto has introduced legislation to require individuals

stopped for fare evasion to provide police with their name and address. While fare evasion

remains a civil offense, this proposal aims to empower police to enforce it more effectively,

particularly in light of recent incidents of violence on the transit system (George &

Pérez-Moreno, 2023).

Amidst these enforcement efforts, transit agencies, New York included are also exploring

other strategies to deter fare evasion. This includes redesigning turnstiles to be taller or more

difficult to bypass, as well as implementing low-income fare programs to make transit more

affordable for disadvantaged communities (George & Pérez-Moreno, 2023). Currently New York

has five fare free bus routes one of which the B60 services the community I live in here. The

purpose of the pilot study of free fares is to examine how fare-free service affects ridership,

access, equity, and fare evasion ("Fare-free pilot on five MTA bus routes," n.d.).
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Over all, public transportation plays a vital role in serving millions of New Yorkers every

day, yet its historical development has often favored individuals of specific races and

socioeconomic backgrounds (Nonko, 2017). This disparity in equitable transportation is evident

nationwide, particularly in New York City, home to one of the oldest subway systems in the

United States, with infrastructure designed to cater to certain groups while excluding others

(Nonko, 2017). Consequently, challenges persist in today's public transportation system,

including unequal access to the subway compared to slower and less efficient bus services, as

well as limitations in job opportunities accessible after departing public transit ("The Human

Cost of Subway Delays: A Survey of New York City Riders," 2017). Data consistently reveals

that public transit services are less reliable and less extensive in marginalized and low

socioeconomic communities ("The Human Cost of Subway Delays: A Survey of New York City

Riders," 2017).

Furthermore, public transportation faces additional hurdles in ensuring fare payment

compliance, as the deployment of law enforcement has drawn significant criticism for

exacerbating racial profiling and economic inequality (Ley, 2023). Those fined for fare evasion

are often individuals from Black or Latino communities or individuals of low socioeconomic

status Ley, 2023). To create a more just society and a transportation system that offers equal

opportunities to all, the United States must critically assess its public transportation infrastructure

and services, working to dismantle systemic racism and discrimination that disproportionately

affect those most in need.

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