Proximity is not access
Living near a bus stop does not guarantee quick access to jobs, hospitals or schools. The line may be rare, require transfers, or only operate part of the day. Likewise, a distant neighborhood can have good accessibility if it is connected by frequent and reliable services.
The analysis must start from the door-to-door movement and the time when the opportunity is available.
How to build the indicator
The most transparent method calculates how many destinations can be reached within limits such as 30, 60 or 90 minutes. The result is repeated for different times and modes, with data from jobs, health facilities and education.
- Define origin in a territorial mesh or representative points of the neighborhood.
- Include walking, waiting, travel and transfers.
- Separate weekdays, nights and weekends.
- Apply real integration and cost rules.
- Post sensitivity to the chosen time limit.
Why compare groups
Transport systems distribute advantages and disadvantages. Ipea studies on Rio show that works can produce accessibility gains and, even so, increase inequalities if they benefit proportionally more groups already favored or if they are accompanied by a reduction in services.
The Bairro em Movimento series should compare not only the average result, but the difference between territories, income and travel profiles. The objective is to identify accessibility poverty: situations in which the network does not allow everyday needs to be met.