B.R. at bottom of national rankings for transit access

With just 45.7% of its jobs located in neighborhoods with public transit service, Baton Rouge is ranked 97th out of the nation’s 100 largest metro areas for transit coverage. That’s according to a new Brookings Institution analysis of data from 371 transit providers. The report also indicates just 19.3% of Baton Rouge residents can reach their job within 90 minutes via public transit, which places it 73rd in the nation. “The suburbanization of jobs obstructs transit’s ability to connect workers to opportunity and jobs to local labor pools,” the analysis says. “As metro leaders continue to grapple with limited financial resources, it is critical for transit investment decisions to simultaneously address suburban coverage gaps as well as disconnected neighborhoods.” Over three-quarters of all jobs in America’s 100 largest metropolitan areas are in neighborhoods with transit service. Western metro areas including Los Angeles and Seattle have the highest coverage rates, while rates are lowest in Southern metro areas including Baton Rouge and Atlanta. The “typical job” in America is accessible to only about 27% of its metropolitan workforce by transit in 90 minutes or less, the analysis says. See the report on Baton Rouge here; and see the full report with data on the nation’s largest 100 metros here.