Accessibility of Low-Income Populations to Safe Zones during Localized Evacuations

Abstract

Access to transportation is of utmost importance for an evacuation, especially to the disadvantaged population. This study presents a simple yet revealing and practical tool for measuring the level of accessibility to so-called safe zones. Usually accessibility is reported on the basis of time, cost, or distance and does not account for the many other variables that influence travel behavior. This research bypassed those limitations by using results from the Maryland Statewide Transportation Model to take advantage of the log-sum measure. Flood and storm surge estimates, shelter and hospital locations, demographics, and other data were collected from official sources. Two locations in the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments region were analyzed: the city of Frederick, Maryland, and the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Results suggest a positive correlation between income and accessibility. However, the results also reveal that factors such as location and vehicle ownership could greatly affect accessibility.

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