Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Transit fare equity research overwhelmingly measures equity based on disparity in the fare paid for travel without consideration of the costs of service delivery. Research also ignores the cost-sharing nature of transit — that as more riders consume it, the average cost per rider declines. Together, this leaves an incomplete understanding about who receives more subsidy. I measure equity by analyzing spatial and temporal cost recovery variability of two rail systems, BART in the San Francisco Bay Area and MARTA in Atlanta. I scale origin-destination trip cost recoveries to stations and operating time periods. I find that travel associated with outlying areas and off-peak times receive more subsidy. I further find that subsidy patterns are marginally progressive; they positively correlate with select disadvantaged socioeconomic groups. I offer ideas on why these findings appear divergent from past research.
Author: Zakhary Mallett
Institution: Cornell University
Language: English
Subfield: Transportation
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $750
OpenAlex ID: W4410090133