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Transit Equity in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of Six Ontario Transit Authorities

Transit Equity in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of Six Ontario Transit Authorities The COVID-19 pandemic has created severe challenges for public transit systems. This article examines its impact on six Ontario transit systems. Using qualitative data from fourteen interviews with public transit officials and data from municipal documents and public announcements, the article examines whether measures introduced by the transit authorities addressed the issue of transit equity in the pandemic’s first year. The findings show that transit officials were aware of transit inequity—transit service cuts disproportionately affected the most vulnerable. Transit officials also raised issues relating to transit equity in their appeals to senior governments for more funding. It is, however, important not to overstate the prevalence of transit equity at this time. Transit officials and transit documents rarely used the term transit equity and there is limited evidence that considerations of procedural equity influenced decision-making in the period studied. Transit systems were forced to prioritize the maintenance of some level of reduced service during the pandemic with almost no capacity to introduce measures to advance transit equity. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png The American Review of Canadian Studies Taylor & Francis

Transit Equity in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of Six Ontario Transit Authorities

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Transit Equity in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of Six Ontario Transit Authorities

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has created severe challenges for public transit systems. This article examines its impact on six Ontario transit systems. Using qualitative data from fourteen interviews with public transit officials and data from municipal documents and public announcements, the article examines whether measures introduced by the transit authorities addressed the issue of transit equity in the pandemic’s first year. The findings show that transit officials were aware of transit...
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Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2023 ACSUS
ISSN
1943-9954
eISSN
0272-2011
DOI
10.1080/02722011.2023.2171303
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has created severe challenges for public transit systems. This article examines its impact on six Ontario transit systems. Using qualitative data from fourteen interviews with public transit officials and data from municipal documents and public announcements, the article examines whether measures introduced by the transit authorities addressed the issue of transit equity in the pandemic’s first year. The findings show that transit officials were aware of transit inequity—transit service cuts disproportionately affected the most vulnerable. Transit officials also raised issues relating to transit equity in their appeals to senior governments for more funding. It is, however, important not to overstate the prevalence of transit equity at this time. Transit officials and transit documents rarely used the term transit equity and there is limited evidence that considerations of procedural equity influenced decision-making in the period studied. Transit systems were forced to prioritize the maintenance of some level of reduced service during the pandemic with almost no capacity to introduce measures to advance transit equity.

Journal

The American Review of Canadian Studies – Taylor & Francis

Published: Jan 2, 2023

Keywords: Public transit; transit equity; pandemic; Ontario; transport poverty

References

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