Quantifying Racial Inequality in Transit Access Across New York City

Urban transit networks are crucial for sustainable cities, yet their uneven distribution often results in unequal access to urban resources. Prior studies primarily focused on accessibility within transit networks while overlooking its implications for residents’ behaviors and the historical and political roots of inequality. Using door-to-door transit information and over 66 million mobility records, we examine racial disparities in New York City’s transit accessibility and their impact on mobility behaviors. We find that ethnic minorities have 4.9% lower neighborhood accessibility, 15.7% less job accessibility, and 14.9% poorer access to essential facilities compared to the white population. These disparities exacerbate residential segregation by 26.9% and confine minorities to limited mobility, higher unemployment risks, and longer travel to essential services. Importantly, inequalities persist even after accounting for socioeconomic covariates, housing values, and residential sorting, pointing to the enduring influence of wealth, political power, and discriminatory planning legacies. Simulations indicate that enhancing transit infrastructure in minority block groups could reduce these gaps by up to 49.8%. Our findings highlight the critical need to integrate equity, affordability, and inclusiveness into the design of future sustainable transit systems.