Views from the Front Lines: The Alaska Mobility Coalition
April 08, 2010
The Alaska Mobility Coalition (AMC) is a private, non-profit membership organization that represents and advocates for public and community transportation in Alaska. With seventy-eight members in Alaska, Canada, and the lower 48 states, they provide over seven million rides annually for Alaskans to get to work, school and medical appointments. The below opinion-editorial was submitted by the AMC Executive Director David M. Levy and was written as part of their statewide transportation public awareness campaign in Alaska. Each state has its own unique transportation needs and goals, but perhaps we can all glean from each other’s perspectives.
For more on the AMC, visit Alaska Mobility Coalition
As Alaska strives to strengthen our communities and economy, public transportation is a factor that needs to be brought to the forefront of discussion. Currently, twelve public transportation systems provide about seven million trips per year statewide. How important is public transit to Alaskans? And how should we expand community transportation systems in the state?
A study for the Alaska Mobility Coalition was conducted by Dittman Research in late 2009, to ascertain perceptions about public transit in communities throughout Alaska that have public transportation systems. Of those surveyed, 94% believed that having public transportation in their communities was very important (76%) or was somewhat important (18%). The same study showed that current regular use of public transportation, however, hovers around 10%.
What explains this dichotomy? When asked why they do not utilize public transit, the top three reasons were: routes and travel time; distance to bus stop; and schedule/hours of operation. Thus, one can conclude that if public transit were more available, more people would take advantage of it. As fuel costs remain a top transportation issue facing Alaska’s workforce, public transportation offers a cost-efficient alternative for commuting to work, and provides a singular means of transportation for a significant number of potential employees.
In addition to the obvious advantages of increased use of public transit, such as reducing road congestion and lowering emissions, the need for public transportation is even more crucial for underserved populations in Alaska. A January, 2010 position paper from the Governor’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education points out that:
The lack of accessible, affordable transportation is a major barrier to the employment and community participation of Alaskans with disabilities, seniors, Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority beneficiaries, youth, low-income Alaskans and the general public. Even with an adequate infrastructure of roads and bridges, many of these individuals still won’t have affordable, accessible community transportation.
Public transportation is also an important economic driver in our cities. In Anchorage, for example, a major retail destination such as the Dimond Center credits public transportation for a significant part of their success, citing that nearly a quarter of their 4,000 employees rely on public transportation to get to work, and that a large number of their 11 million annual visitors utilize public transportation as their only option for travel to the shopping center.
All well and good, you might say, but how will we pay for it? Again, according to the Dittman study, 88% of respondents support state and local government supplementing federal funds by providing local matching funds (80% federal/20% state). Currently, Alaska is one of only three states that do not provide money to operate community transportation systems, although the state does provide matching funds for other types of transportation such as highways, harbors and aviation. Additionally, we are leaving some federal money on the table by not providing the matching funds for community transportation systems.
So what is being done to advance and expand interest and support of community transportation systems? The Alaska Mobility Coalition (AMC) is a private, non-profit organization comprised of public, private, tribal and human services transportation providers and transit advocates. AMC provides technical assistance to new and emerging transit providers in the state; advocates in Juneau and Washington, D.C., for capital and operating funding for Alaska transit providers; promotes safe and cost-effective transportation that meets local, regional and statewide needs; and promotes sustainable, coordinated transportation in Alaska.
To increase awareness and involvement in public transportation, AMC recently launched a promotional campaign, “The Going Is Good” which presents real-life stories about the positive impact public transportation has on Alaskans in all walks of life. In addition to radio and newspaper ads, a dedicated website www.goodgoingalaska.com provides extensive information about public transportation, including a link to the complete results of the Dittman survey.
It makes sense, from the perspective of economic practicality as well as for the betterment of our communities and citizens, to support expansion of community transportation systems. We encourage everyone to find out more about public transportation in Alaska by visiting www.goodgoingalaska.com.
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