Just 42 percent of the nation’s Head Start early education centers are within walkable distance for parents with toddlers.
A story by Jodi Fortino for KCUR highlights the link between public transit and access to early childhood education in Missouri, where less than 25 percent of Head Start centers are within easy reach of transit.
This finding is meaningful because, “According to a national survey of Head Start centers, lack of transportation is one of the top barriers preventing families from enrolling and keeping their kids in the early childhood program.”
Nationwide, 42 percent of Head Start centers are within a quarter mile of a transit stop. Other challenges include unreliable bus service and unsafe routes or stops. “When families talk about not wanting to take the bus or considering themselves as not having access to buses, it's because of the time that it takes to either get through all the stops, or to change buses,” said Michelle Pendzimas, Head Start director for Kansas City Public Schools.
FULL STORY: Most Missouri families can't rely on public transit to get their kids to Head Start
Report: Reduced Fare Transit Programs Reach Less Than Half of Eligible Riders
Discount programs designed to help low-income transit riders have participation rates that rarely hit 50%, signaling a lack of effective outreach to eligible households.
Philadelphia Councilmember Proposes Transit Access Fund
The plan would allocate 0.5 percent of the general fund toward mobility subsidies for low-income households.
Limited Transit Access Stifling Memphis Economy
The city ranks low for transit access to jobs, limiting opportunities for local workers and businesses.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association