New urban mobility options must serve everyone. This approach would transform how people travel and enable them to reap the benefits of saved time and fuel. Car-, bike-, and ride-sharing programs could remove the dependence on single-occupancy vehicle trips in urban communities while reducing overall energy consumption. Safe and appealing environments for walking and biking could help, too.
A variety of pilot projects and programs peppered around the country are aiming to make transportation services that have typically targeted more affluent neighborhoods available to low-income communities. Most of these pilot efforts are focused on car sharing and bike sharing, but all have the same goals of changing mobility patterns, connecting underserved households to difficult-to-access job centers, and minimizing expensive commutes.