A spatially-explicit method for analyzing the equity of transit commuters\u27 accessibility

Equity is a critical dimension of accessibility assessment related to changes in transportation investments. We estimate equity based on a spatially-explicit computation of door to door travel times, in the metropolitan area, by car and by public transit at a resolution of individual buildings as origin and destination pairs. The Gini index and two new developed indices – the absolute and normalized accessibility loss are applied to evaluate the equity effects related to changes in the transit service. The method is tested in a case study of a recent bus line reform in the Metropolitan area of Tel Aviv highlighting areas where job accessibility by transit improved or declined. The implications of equity assessments for transportation planning and the assessment of infrastructure investments are further discussed