The Right to the Bike: Examining the Role of Bicycle Planning in Transportation Justice

This research in Transportation Geography focuses on barriers to cycling for low-income and immigrant populations in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, North Carolina, exploring concepts surrounding mobility and marginality through the lens of bike access. Research methodology includes an analysis of the Chapel Hill and Carrboro Bike Plans to analyze gaps in inclusion. Research methods also utilize GIS to map refugee public housing developments and access to bike lanes, exploring the role of housing location in determining transportation access. Through the analysis of this data, a critical geography approach highlights exclusion in urban sustainability, and the contrast between the environmental branding of Chapel Hill as a ‘bronze’ bicycle friendly community and Carrboro a ‘silver’ bicycle friendly community by the League of American Bicyclists and financial, informational, and spatial barriers. Mobility for low-income, immigrant, and refugee populations reflects a significant determinant of quality of life, affecting access to jobs, healthcare, and educational opportunities.This project serves to add a new perspective in an era of transportation planning focused on alternative mode share, leading to policy implications for increasing mobility for marginalized communities.Bachelor of Art