People feel like their voices aren't heard and that they cannot make a difference. One major component to advocating for oneself and engaging with the community is access to transportation. When someone lacks reliable transportation, cannot drive a car, or feel like the transportation system is not safe for them, they are unlikely to be able to advocate for policies and issues that are important to them. With Local Motion's 2024 Community Survey, individuals' transportation security index can be analyzed and hypothesized about how this may affect respondents' ability to engage with local leaders and their community. These transportation security indexes can also be compared with individual and community demographics (e.g. income, race, housing status) to view a relationship between transportation security and those who are consistently underserved in the community. Because transportation is essential for inclusive and equitable community engagement, if those who face transportation barriers are also those that have been historically underrepresented, then we continue to build and plan cities for those most privileged.
Columbia, Missouri is experiencing a civic engagement emergency where its’ citizens are increasingly feeling like their voices are not being heard and needs are not being met in decision-making processes. Since Columbia’s City Manager, De’Carlon Seewood, was hired in 2022, community engagement has been a pillar of his leadership mission because citizens do not feel like they have the opportunity to authentically engage in local decision making (Dunlap 2022). There are many factors involved in supporting successful civic participation, one important component being access to transportation (Roach & Fritz 2022). A lack of diverse transportation options can also make generating community power and change prohibitive (Adorno et al. 2016). If people cannot access public meetings because of a transportation barrier (i.e. not being able to afford a car or not being able to drive a car), whether City related or community organizing, systemic issues continue to be unchanged, and people’s needs continue to be unmet. Local Motion, a nonprofit organization, advocates for biking, walking, and public transit solutions in Columbia, Missouri. Their 2023 annual transportation community survey results show that out of the respondents who do not own or operate a motor vehicle, 62% say they aren’t able to be civically engaged because of a lack of transportation (Ascani 2023).
Because people in Columbia, Missouri don’t have access to a robust transportation system (i.e. thriving public transportation system, safe and accessible biking and walking infrastructure), a social determinant of health (Ganguly et al. 2024), this hinders a holistic, community engaged approach to improve overall health equity and disrupt the cycle of poverty. Furthermore, people with transportation barriers can have unique and impactful feedback and engagement regarding transportation issues specifically, that need to be addressed by planning professionals (Lopez 2023). By addressing the systemic challenge of inequitable transportation, academic researchers, policymakers, urban planners, and community organizations can create more civically engaged spaces that then build healthier, more resilient communities, where access to resources reduce health disparities among populations.
While Local Motion's 2024 annual transportation community survey does not include questions directly related to community engagement, it does include invaluable information about respondents' transportation security, priorities for infrastructure and funding, and demographic data. All of these data can be analyzed and conclusions can be drawn as to how transportation insecure Columbia, Missouri is and how that, in turn, affects community engagement and inclusive decision making.
"Modeled after the Food Security Index, the Transportation Security Index is a 16-question survey composed of items that focus on the symptoms of transportation insecurity (for example, taking a long time to plan out everyday trips and rescheduling appointments)." (Gould-Worth et al., 2018)
-Better, wholistic transportation system to encourage engagement
-Leading to inclusive decision making
-More data on how transportation affects engagement
-Community geography and trust and relationships between local leaders and academia
-Using geography as a method of engagement and policy change
Adorno, Gail, Noelle Fields, Courtney Cronley, Rupal Parekh, and Karen Magruder. “Ageing in a Low-Density Urban City: Transportation Mobility as a Social Equity Issue.” Ageing and Society 38, no. 2 (February 2018): 296–320. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X16000994.
Ascani, Rikki. “2023 Annual Report Connecting Community.” Columbia, Missouri: Local Motion, December 1, 2023. https://lomocomo.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2023-Annual-Report_FINAL111423.pdf.
Dunlap, Charles. “New Columbia City Manager De’Carlon Seewood Focused on Engagement with ‘informed, Active’ Residents.” Columbia Daily Tribune. Accessed October 15, 2024. https://www.columbiatribune.com/story/news/local/2022/01/16/decarlon-seewood-ready-start-work-columbia-missouri-mo-city-manager/9169415002/.
Ganguly, Anisha P., Kristin S. Alvarez, Sheryl R. Mathew, Virali Soni, Suman Vadlamani, Bijal A. Balasubramanian, and Kavita P. Bhavan. “Intersecting Social Determinants of Health among Patients with Childcare Needs: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Social Vulnerability.” BMC Public Health 24, no. 1 (3/1/2024 2024): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18168-8.
Gould-Werth, Alix, Jamie Griffin, and Alexandra K. Murphy. 2018. “Defining a New Measure of Transportation Insecurity: An Exploratory Factor Analysis.” Survey Practice, 11:2, pp. 1-36.
Lopez, Ana I. “Community Engagement at the Intersection of Public Health and Transportation,” n.d.
Roach, Mary, and Jonathan Fritz. “Breaking Barriers and Building Bridges: Increasing Community Engagement in Program Evaluation.” Evaluation and Program Planning, Invigorating Program Evaluation on HIV Prevention and Care Efforts Among Racial/Ethnic, Sexual, and Gender Minority Populations: PrIDE Demonstration Project, 90 (February 1, 2022): 101997. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2021.101997.
