BART station in the East Bay, photo by flickr user travesty01
We definitely have work to do--that was the take home point of a recent Brookings Institute study, examining the top 100 metropolitan areas in the nation for transit access to jobs. While the study found that our area ranked fifth in the nation for access of transit to resident, only 35% of jobs are reachable within 90 minutes using public transportation. Overall though, California cities faired well nationally having four of the top 10 metro areas in the state, including Modesto, Silicon Valley and number two in the nation, Los Angeles.
The study, while recognizing the successes of many transit systems, recommends that transportation leaders and local, state and national government should make transit access to jobs their explicit priority in spending and service decisions. This includes coordinated and strategic decisions regarding land use, economic development and housing decisions, ensuring that transit connects workers from their homes to their jobs. The study concludes that the success and ultimate sustainability of metropolitan areas into the future will rest on those area's investment in robust and accessible transit systems.