Public Transportation: Rural areas suffer from limited access
“Access to public transportation is a major problem in rural communities, especially here in East Mississippi.
The lack of adequate public transportation impacts millions of Americans. The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) reports 45% of Americans don’t have access to transportation. Families in rural communities are impacted the most.
The federal government only allocates 11% of funding to rural areas.
‘I just get to A and B the best way I can sometimes,’ Meridian resident Gloria Cole said.
Cole doesn’t have a car. She relies on family, friends, and non-profit organizations to take her to the doctor. Cole says her community desperately needs access to public transportation.
‘I feel like we need to have more transportation to get, especially these people over here who are the ones that don’t have a car,’ Cole said.
Walter Wayne Gibson is a retired Vietnam veteran. Gibson also lives in the Queen City. He relies on loved ones to drive him to the doctor. Gibson said, ‘It makes it hard on people who don’t have a vehicle.'”