By Eric Murphy
Major transit investments like new light rail lines or stations can transform neighborhoods and cities — in certain respects, that’s the point. The new infrastructure can make a city more vibrant and accessible to all, while encouraging the development of more walkable neighborhoods that make it easier to get around without a car, reduce emissions, and improve safety. But planners can take steps to ensure those benefits are shared among everyone, not just younger professionals or affluent newcomers.
A recent study in Transportation Part D observed a dramatic decrease in non-white residents in low-income Charlotte neighborhoods within about a half-mile of new light rail stations as they were announced and built. Other changes included a jump in college degree-holders and professional employees, a near-doubling of median income, and an increase in property values. Medium-income areas near transit and other areas of the city saw much less change in that time.
The neighborhood changes were driven in part by at least $2 billion in private investment and development spurred by Charlotte’s Blue Line in areas near the service since opening. This investment — often touted as an advantage of new transit — can benefit neighborhoods and the city, but also exposes residents to intense competition for property, which can raise prices, property tax bills, and rents.
Some cities are working to prevent or mitigate the worst impacts of this competition. Smart Growth America’s research director Michael Rodriguez recently noted that Denver’s Regional Transit-Oriented Development Fund has financed thousands of affordable housing units near transit, while cities like Atlanta and Minneapolis have partnered with community land trusts to gain more control over how land near transit gets developed.
Inclusionary zoning practices can require large new developments near transit to offer a fraction of units at below-market rents. Land banking policies can give local governments more control over development, and property tax assistance can help seniors on fixed incomes who may be struggling with increases in property taxes stay in their homes.
For transportation agencies themselves, meaningful public engagement before making transit investments is key. Previous research in Charlotte indicates that some long-term residents felt the light rail line wasn’t being built or designed for them and instead catered to younger newcomers. Those long-term residents, especially Black residents, lost a sense of belonging in the neighborhood, and the light rail became a symbol through which they channeled feelings of exclusion from the city’s overall growth, development, and change.
Understanding these dynamics and meaningfully involving the community from the outset can ensure that everyone, including current residents, shares in the benefits of new transit projects and can broaden support from the public for new transit.
Photo credit: Frankie Lopez on Unsplash