Public Transportation’s Impact on the Environment and Communities of Color in the City of Boston
When thinking of racial justice, environmentalism and transit equity might not be the first thought that appears in one mind. Typically, thoughts of protests ranging anywhere from the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s to the Black Lives Matter movement from 2015-2020 are common when speaking about racial justice, but while these may be as important, environmentalism and public transit are the true key hidden cornerstones in America in order to achieve equality. In a world governed by a supposedly clear morality of right and wrong, a faded section of hidden evil takes its hold.
One city in America where correlated inequities exist through the environment and public transportation is Boston, Massachusetts. Whilst being the first city in America to exhibit public transportation, the question of whether transportation is fair and equal for all demographics that use it still prevails. This inquisition leads to the thought of: to what extent would free public transportation impact the environment and communities of color in Boston? Free public transport would positively impact the environment by reducing automobile emissions through no fare collection and decreasing traffic in the street through increased ridership on transit, therefore having a significant improvement to the air pollution that disproportionately affects communities of color in Boston.
This phenomenon is explored through four different assets
