The BQX Streetcar is estimated to cost $2.7 billion for a length of 11 miles. Its 27 stops will serve an estimated 50,000 daily passengers. For further information on the BQX see: bqx.nyc The Triboro RX is estimated to cost $1-2 billion for a length of 24 miles. Its 24 stops will serve an estimated 100,000 daily passengers. For further information on the Triboro RX see: rpa.org
The CDC’s SVI uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every census tract. Census tracts are subdivisions of counties for which the Census collects statistical data. The SVI ranks each tract on 15 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes. Each tract receives an overall vulnerability ranking, which this map uses as the basis for analysis. For further information on the CDC's SVI see: svi.cdc.gov
This analysis of the proposed routes of the BQX and Triboro RX finds that the social vulnerability index (weighted by population) is higher for the Triboro RX (0.747) than the BQX (0.487). This indicates that the likely beneficiaries of the proposed BQX are 53.4% less vulnerable than the likely beneficiaries of the proposed Triboro RX (as defined by the Centers for Disease Control). Note: In each case the beneficiary is assumed to be all residents in census tracts within 2,000 feet of a stop along each route). Urban planners should consider the relative social vulnerability profiles of each proposed project in making funding decisions.
Both the BQX and the Triboro RX represent expensive, multiyear planning decisions for NYC. Both appear to serve somewhat similar purposes - including providing greater connectivity between NYC's outer boroughs. Yet discussions of each alternative seem to be happening in a vacuum and there is a paucity of interactive maps comparing the projects. From a public policy decision-making perspective, this project was interested in exploring non-traditional criteria for assessing the value of the projects, ultimately settling upon the CDC's SVI. My process involved 4 broad steps: 1) Obtain data in usable format for mass transit (actual and planned) 2) Obtain relevant socio-economic data layers for NYC 3) Build map which assess BQX and Triboro RX against SVI layer 4) Style map to ensure ease of use and clarity of interpretation. Note 1: American urban planners conventionally assume that people will walk about a half-mile to a train station (i.e. 2640 feet). To account for the variability in size of the census tracks within a buffer of the proposed transit option, 2,000 feet was used as the buffer for the intersect with the SVI layer. Note 2: Finding the vulnerability of each transit option used a SQL to extract from the SVI layer those census tracts within 2000 feet of a station, remove bad data and calculate the weighted average.
So, which transit option do you think is best?
Map and page prepared by Nathaniel Jones - May 2020. For questions orfeedback contact: jonen862@newschool.edu.