Urban and Regional Planning
Research and Creative Work
Student Capstone Projects
Assessing The First and Last Mile Gap for Elderly and Disabled Populations on Federal Boulevard
Principal Researchers: Nicholas Dam
For my project I assessed the first and last mile gap for two bus stops along Federal
Boulevard. The first and last mile refers to the portions of a public transit trip where you travel from your starting point to a transit stop, and the portion where you disembark from public transit and travel to your destination. The first and last mile gap refers to the barriers in accessibility to public transit, which may discourage a person from using the service. In my assessment I looked at what amenities were present or absent at both stops, with a focus on features that would benefit the elderly and people with disabilities. I also created several maps showing the disabled and elderly populations by census tract around each stop, as well as maps with radiuses representing both the average distance people are comfortable walking to a bus
stop, and the distance older adults are comfortable walking to reach a bus stop. I ultimately find that the bus stops, while decent in some respects, still fall short of properly accommodating the target demographics of this study, and that the built environment surrounding the stops also exacerbates the problem.
Graduate Research Assistant Work to Support Faculty Research
Assessing The First and Last Mile Gap for Elderly and Disabled Populations on Federal Boulevard
Principal Researchers: Nicholas Dam
For my project I assessed the first and last mile gap for two bus stops along Federal
Boulevard. The first and last mile refers to the portions of a public transit trip where you travel from your starting point to a transit stop, and the portion where you disembark from public transit and travel to your destination. The first and last mile gap refers to the barriers in accessibility to public transit, which may discourage a person from using the service. In my assessment I looked at what amenities were present or absent at both stops, with a focus on features that would benefit the elderly and people with disabilities. I also created several maps showing the disabled and elderly populations by census tract around each stop, as well as maps with radiuses representing both the average distance people are comfortable walking to a bus
stop, and the distance older adults are comfortable walking to reach a bus stop. I ultimately find that the bus stops, while decent in some respects, still fall short of properly accommodating the target demographics of this study, and that the built environment surrounding the stops also exacerbates the problem.