Report a Comment

This is an important issue. When I didn't have a car many jobs were out of reach for me, especially those out in Northern Virginia. The commute was either too long or complicated that involved taking the Metro and buses, some of which ran only during rush hour. While I could manage pretty well within DD and even in some parts of Alexandria, Arlington, and Montgomery counties without a car, I couldn't farther out in the suburbs. The bottom line is that many jobs were just out of reach.

And even though she is too liberal for me, Barbara Ehrenreich addressed the subject in her book "Nickel and Dimed". She tries to manage in cities to get to jobs without a car; and, in many areas, because of the lack of decent public transportation, what would be usually a 15-20 minute drive takes much, much longer.

It also connects to the issue of welfare reform. Many jobs are out beyond the reach of public transportation, even in the DC area. Many low wage workers are cut off from jobs out in places like Herndon or Reston, where Metro has yet to reach. Or, in other far suburbs that do have bus service, the cost of commuting is so expensive that it really doesn't make sense to take a job that far away. A person making $300 per week isn't going to come out ahead taking a job out in the suburbs where the commuting cost can be $50.

by Rain17 on Jul 12, 2012 3:35 pm • link • report