Hartford 61st Among 70 Major American Cities For High-Tech Transportation Options

ConnPIRG

A new report from ConnPIRG and Frontier Group ranks American cities on how many new technology-enabled services and tools they have to meet transportation needs. It finds that Hartford ranks 61st among the nation’s 70 largest cities.

The report, “The Innovative Transportation Index: The Cities Where New Technologies and Tools Can Reduce Your Need to Own a Car,” compares cities based on the presence of these new technologies, including ride sourcing services like Uber and Lyft, car sharing services like Zipcar, bike share and ride sharing systems, apps for navigating public transit and hailing taxis, and virtual ticket purchasing, among others. It is the first study of its kind.

The research demonstrates how rapid technological advances have enabled new transportation tools that make it convenient for more Americans to live full and engaged lives without owning a car.

“None of these options even existed a few years ago, and the trend is just beginning,” said Sean Doyle, ConnPIRG organizer. “Technological advances are giving people new and convenient ways to get around more freely without having to own a car.”

“Expanding the availability of shared-use transportation modes and other technology-enabled tools can give more Americans the freedom to live “car-free” or “car-light” lifestyles,” said Jeff Inglis, a policy analyst at Frontier Group and co-author of the report. “Smartphone apps and new transportation services are making it easier for people to get where they need and want to go, while avoiding many costs associated with owning, insuring and maintaining a private vehicle.”

Leading the pack among the 70 cities are Austin, San Francisco and Washington, DC, which each have at least 10 of the 11 high-tech transportation options examined in the report. However, in 61st place, Hartford only offers 3 different services and ranks behind cities like Anchorage, AK and Birmingham, AL.

Hartford was ranked among sixteen “emerging” cities without a bike sharing system, and where spread-out development can make growth of the “sharing economy” more difficult to build. However, several technology-enabled transportation services are nonetheless offered to residents. 

Other findings from this new study:

  • Individually, these services and tools make a difference. But together, they are more than the sum of their parts. Someone considering riding public transit instead of driving, for instance, will want to know about complementary options for times when riding the bus or train wouldn’t be convenient.
  • The cities in this report all host a variety of services or tools that make it easier for Americans—and Millennials especially—to lead a car-free or car-light lifestyle. Having a suite of options allows people to spontaneously choose the most convenient option for them.
  • There is much that cities can do to encourage more and better use of innovative transportation choices. Just because these services are new shouldn’t stop officials from responsibly integrating them into their plans and policies.

Many newer transportation options involve sharing vehicles, or sharing space in a vehicle. “The shared mobility industry is growing and evolving at an incredibly rapid pace,” said Sharon Feigon, executive director of the Shared-Use Mobility Center, based in Chicago. “These innovative services not only provide riders with new transportation options but, by integrating with existing transit systems, they have the potential to offer tremendous social and economic benefits such as reducing emissions, lessening congestion and improving public access to transportation.”

Even when these services provide access to a car, they still make it easier for Americans to reduce their auto dependence because a traveler does not need to pre-commit to long-term costs of ownership, repairs, insurance and parking.

“This report highlights the opportunities that there are for increasing access to the variety of transportation technology that exists today, but in Hartford and throughout Connecticut,” said Doyle. “Rather than expanding freeways, we should focus on bringing other options to residents that will decrease dependence on cars.” 

The report calls on policy-makers and elected officials to explore ways to tap the potential of technology-enabled services to address transportation challenges and increase the number of people with the option to live car-free or car-light lifestyles

The new report can be found here.