HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT MEASUREMENT TOOL

Indicator ST.2.e Low-income transit pass access

Descriptive Title: Proportion of Residents within ½ mile of a Muni Lifeline Fast Pass retail location

Geographic Unit of Analysis: Census tract and point

Download PDF map.

Why Is This An Indicator Of Health and Sustainability?

San Francisco’s Municipal Transportation Agency (Muni) offers a discounted monthly transit pass for low-income San Francisco residents called the Lifeline Fast Pass, which is administered by the San Francisco Human Services Agency.  Muni Lifeline fast Passes cost $31 for unlimited monthly use of any Muni bus, train, or trolley (not valid on BART or cable cars).  To qualify, applicants must prove they live in San Francisco and have an income at or below 200% of the Federal poverty level.  Qualified residents can buy one Lifeline Fast Pass each month for their personal use.  Detailed information regarding eligibility and how to apply is available online at: munilifeline.org.

Public transportation, such as Muni buses and rail, can be an equitable transportation option that allows users equal opportunity in mobility, independent of age, ability, income or race.^a  Lower income communities are more likely to rely on public transportation to access essential health-promoting resources including education, jobs, goods and services including healthcare.  The affordability of public transit - and whether people can readily access discounted transit fares - is one important factor in whether people are able to meet these daily needs.^b

Interpretation and Geographic Equity Analysis

The Muni Lifeline Pass Retail Locations map (above) displays the five locations where Muni Lifeline Fast Passes can be purchased.  The census tracts (green) represent the percentage of people who qualify for the Muni Lifeline Pass.  To qualify for the pass, an individual must be at or below 200% of the federal poverty line.  Notable neighborhoods that have a higher proportion of eligible residents are Chinatown, Downtown/Civic Center, South of Market, the Excelsior, Visitacion Valley, Treasure Island, and Bayview.  Some neighborhoods located predominantly in southeastern San Francisco including Lakeshore, the Excelsior, Visitacion Valley, and Bayview, as well as Treasure Island have high rates of qualified people but do not have retail locations nearby (see map above).

Methods

To determine a person's poverty status, one compares the person's total family income in the last 12 months with the poverty threshold appropriate for that person's family size and composition. If the total income of that person's family is less than the threshold appropriate for that family, then the person is considered "below the poverty level," together with every member of his or her family. If a person is not living with anyone related by birth, marriage, or adoption, then the person's own income is compared with his or her poverty threshold.

Since the American Community Survey (ACS) is a continuous survey, people respond throughout the year. Because the income questions specify a period covering the last 12 months, the appropriate poverty thresholds are determined by multiplying the base-year poverty thresholds (1982) by the average of the monthly inflation factors for the 12 months preceding the data collection. In 2009 the poverty threshold for two adults and a child under 18 was $17,268 (http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/data/threshld/thresh09.html). We used 200% of the Federal poverty level for this indicator as that is part of the eligibility criteria for the Muni Lifeline Pass

The equation used to determine percent below the poverty level is: Percent in poverty = Total persons at or below 200% of the poverty level / Total population with poverty status determined.

Using ESRI ArcGIS 10.0, the locations of Muni Lifeline Pass retail locations were geocoded and buffered ½ mile.  A residential lot point shapefile was used to spatially join the number of residents to both census tracts and neighborhoods.  To calculate the proportion of residents within ½ mile, the number of residents within ½ mile (per neighborhood or census tract) was divided by the total number of residents in the tract or neighborhood (see table).   

As of March 2012, the locations and hours were as follows: 

• Human Services Agency Office located at 170 Otis (8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.)
• San Francisco One Stop located at 3120 Mission (8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.,)
• MTA Customer Service Center located at 11 South Van Ness (8 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.)
• MUNI location located at Kearny and Clay
• MUNI location located at Presidio Ave and Geary Ave.

The table reflects the proportion of the total neighborhood population that lives within ½ mile of a Muni Lifeline Fast Pass Location.

Limitations

The days that eligible people can purchase Lifeline passes are limited depending on the retail location. For instance, the Human Services Agency Office retail location only allows purchasing on the first and last three business days of the month. For more detailed information on times, locations, and days available for purchase see: http://www.munilifeline.org/index.cfm.

In addition to affordability, factors that determine whether public transit improves access to key resources for low income populations including: stop location, transit service frequency, hours of service, transfers required, comfort and safety of transit for people based on age and ability.

Data Source

American Community Survey (ACS), 5-year Estimates, 2005-2009. 

Muni Lifeline Pass Retail Locations. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (2011) Accessed March 19, 2012 at http://www.munilifeline.org/index.cfm.

Map, table, and graphic created by San Francisco Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Section using ArcGIS software.

Map data is presented at the level of the census tract. The map also includes planning neighborhood names, in the vicinity of their corresponding census tracts.

Table data is presented by planning neighborhood. Planning neighborhoods are larger geographic areas than census tracts. SFDPH chose to use the San Francisco Planning Department's census tract neighborhood assignments to calculate neighborhood values. This assignment method relies on a 'centroids within' methodology to convert census tracts to geographic mean center points. Census tracts are assigned to planning neighborhoods based on the spatial location of those geographic mean center points and neighborhood totals are calculated for the table. In a few case, certain census tracts were redesignated to different neighborhoods based on knowledge of the population dispersion in the tract.

Detailed information regarding census data, geographic units of analysis, their definitions, and their boundaries can be found in the HDMT at the following links:

http://www.thehdmt.org/etc/Geographic_Units_of_Analysis.pdf

http://www.thehdmt.org/data_map_methods.php