Citation

Hu L. Transp. Res. D Trans. Environ. 2019; 76: 56-71.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.trd.2019.09.007

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The lack of spatial access to job opportunities is considered one major barrier that explains low employment rates and long commutes of racial/ethnic minorities, particularly in the U.S. But it is unclear whether the job accessibility effects vary by race/ethnicity. This research fills this gap.

RESULTS based on the Los Angeles region reveal complicated relationships: job accessibility has similarly insignificant effects on the employment probability of white and black job seekers, while the effects on Hispanics and Asians are plausible and significant in low- and medium-education groups. High job accessibility by transit mode reduces commute distance for all racial/ethnic groups, but job accessibility by automobile does not. Therefore, policies that aim to improve economic prospects or to reduce commutes and related externalities need to be both place-sensitive, e.g., improving transit services to employment clusters, and race/ethnicity-sensitive, e.g., considering transportation needs of low- and medium-education Hispanic and Asian workers.

Language: en

Keywords

Education; Gravity-based model; Multi-level analysis; Race/ethnicity; Skill mismatch; Spatial mismatch