COVID-19 exacerbates unequal food access

New publication: Kar, A., Motoyama, Y., Carrel, A., Miller, H.J. and Le, H.T.K. (2021) “COVID-19 exacerbates unequal food access,” Applied Geography, 134, 102517.

Abstract. Inequality to food access has always been a serious problem, yet it became even more critical during the COVID-19 pandemic, which exacerbated social inequality and reshaped essential travel. This study provides a holistic view of spatio-temporal changes in food access based on observed travel data for all grocery shopping trips in Columbus, Ohio, during and after the state-wide stay-at-home period. We estimated the decline and recovery patterns of store visits during the pandemic to identify the key socio-economic and built environment determinants of food shopping patterns. The results show a disparity: during the lockdown, store visits to dollar stores declined the least, while visits to big-box stores declined the most and recovered the fastest. Visits to stores in low-income areas experienced smaller changes even during the lockdown period. A higher percentage of low-income customers was associated with lower store visits during the lockdown period. Furthermore, stores with a higher percentage of white customers declined the least and recovered faster during the reopening phase. Our study improves the understanding of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on food access disparities and business performance. It highlights the role of COVID-19 and similar disruptions on exposing underlying social problems in the US.

Media

Trends that will shape us: Transportation

On April 7, I participated in a panel discussion at the Columbus Metropolitan Club; topic: Trends that Will Shape Us: Transportation. Other guests include Jack Marchbanks (Director, Ohio Department of Transportation) and Kevin Chambers (Managing Director – Logistics, Distribution and Supply Chain, JobsOhio).

It was an interesting and lively conversation: spanning public transit, the impact of COVID on cities, social equity, infrastructure, freight and logistics.  Check it out!

Link to recording

 

 

Urban transit took a pandemic wallop. Can it bounce back?

I was interviewed for an article in the Christian Science Monitor about the impacts of the COVID pandemic on public transit. The reporter did a nice job of summarizing my thoughts on the role of public transit at this moment in history:

Self-driving cars offer some hope to reduce pollution in the near future. Yet progress has been slow, says Professor Miller, and autonomous vehicles aren’t likely to enter city streets within the decade. Even at their electrified best, he says, cars are still an inefficient form of transportation, and hence an imperfect solution to the climate crisis.

In his opinion, the moment demands a grand shift in thought. If viewed as a foundational piece of urban infrastructure, public transit could expand this decade and cement a larger role in the transportation ecosystem. Permitting residents a larger menu of options when traveling – say biking, walking, or riding buses or subways – would help conserve city space, lower spending, and protect the environment.

Urban transit took a pandemic wallop. Can it bounce back? Christian Science Monitor, 25 Feb 2021