Households in regions that have invested in public transportation reap financial benefits fromhaving affordable transportation options, even as gasoline prices rise.
The Surface Transportation Policy Project (STPP) and the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) have released a report that examines transportation costs and the effect of gas prices on family budgets. The study ranks 28 metropolitan areas on their combined transportation and housing costs and recommends specific actions that federal, state, and local governments can take to reduce the burden of transportation costs on families.
Combined, the costs of transportation and housing account for 52 percent of the averagefamilys budget, which explains why there is growing public debate on the need for policies thataddress these issues in tandem. Health care, which has been the subject of much recent publicdebate, and food are the third and fourth highest expenses, but even when combined they arestill less than transportation.
Thanks to Ashwani Vasishth
Read the full story: Driven to Spend: Pumping Dollars out of Our Households and Communities
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Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
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