NEW YORK CITY — Some neighborhoods have all the jobs — or at least access to them — a study from NYU has found.
The Rudin Center, which studies transportation, ranked 177 New York neighborhoods by the number of jobs accessible by transit within 60 minutes during rush hour in a December study. Mitchell L. Moss, director of the Rudin Center at NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service, who co-authored the study, found great variability in job accessibility and said it was a key factor in economic inequality in the city.
"The city can probably do more to reduce inequality by improving transportation than by improving education,” he told DNAinfo.
Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen are the best neighborhoods for job access, according to the study. North Chelsea had 4.8 million jobs accessible, as compared to lowest-ranking South Staten Island, which had only 42,275. Neighborhoods in the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island are the least accessible. Flatlands had the worst access in Brooklyn, coming in at number 171.
Limited transit access is linked to higher unemployment, the study found, with the highest incomes found in areas with the most access. The places with least access tended to be places where commuters drive, and have middle-range incomes, while those with fewer transit options and less driving had the lowest incomes.
In his State of the City Speech Tuesday, De Blasio announced a new ferry service that — for the price of a subway ride — will pick up commuters in Astoria, the Rockaways, South Brooklyn, Soundview and the Lower East Side starting in 2017.
De Blasio also promised an expansion of Bus Rapid Transit on 20 new routes including Utica Avenue in Brooklyn and Woodhaven Boulevard.
“BRT will cut transit time on existing routes by 15 to 25 percent,” De Blasio said. “That means New Yorkers spending less time in transit and more time living their lives."
The NYU study compared East New York, with an unemployment rate of 14 percent, with TriBeCa, where unemployment is 6 percent.
"The neighborhood’s major housing complex, Spring Creek Towers, sits 15 minutes by bus from the nearest subway station,” the report said. "It is likely that the residents of East New York are missing out on job opportunities for economic improvement due to their extensive commutes."
Moss said improving access would require incorporating new modes of transportation into public transit, including walking, biking and ferries.
“If you want to reduce inequality, making it possible to get to work has got to be considered,” he said.
