As the nation suffers from inflation of gas prices, housing and food more folks are turning to public transportation to get around. The concern is that Nevada's public transportation system isn't equipped to withstand the need. Make It Work Nevada hit the streets and surveyed 124 people to learn about how they use public transportation, what their main concerns are surrounding public transportation, and how they can make their voice heard being that it is an election season.
Just this month, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced a $20 billion investment towards public transportation. In fact, Nevada is set to receive $89 million this year for transit upgrades and improvements that were included in the bipartisan infrastructure law. As stated by Gary Martin, in an article from the Las Vegas Review Journal, Nevada will receive more than $4 billion of the total package for roads, bridges, water and sewerage systems, expansion of broadband and other transportation and infrastructure projects.
Our survey discovered that 20% of people have used public transportation to take their kids to daycare and 41% use the bus to do basic errands like going to the grocery store. 45% of people stated that the bus has made them late and on average, 58% reported needing at least 2 buses to get to their destination. Here’s what we’ve learned, transportation is the connection between people and resources, but it is often a second thought. Many times, people find themselves in need of transportation services but are not aware of existing resources or there simply are no existing, affordable transportation options.
We’ll stay tuned on the transportation funding to the state and keep a close eye on which neighborhoods get the upgrades and which ones are left without.