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Low-income people have very limited job prospects because of limited education, experience, and skills. This essentially will only get worse as our economy becomes more and more reliant on highly skilled labor. So these people need to have access to as many jobs as possible, that only comes through car ownership.

Transit will always be limiting. Limiting the potential jobs of people with already limited prospects is not a recipe for success. It is a recipe for a continued permanent underclass and welfare state.

As an example, the Silver Line is one of the largest public works projects in the country. Yet if you don't own a car, you can't work on that job. That means that a job like a basic laborer, which will pay pretty well on that project (with or without a PLA) is off-limits unless you have a car. This is the reality of the economy in this country. No amount of transit will ever change this. Only car ownership will.

Do cars cost money. Yes. But programs have been set up, albeit on a limited scale, to address these costs. Requiring participants to get basic car maintenance skills before getting a grant to purchase a car, pooled basic liability and collision insurance, and some ongoing supports for gas are all options.

A streetcar for H St bar patrons is nice, cars for the poorest residents of DC are a necessity.

by dcdriver on Jun 19, 2012 5:04 pm • link • report