Transportation can account for almost 20 percent of the cost of college for commuters, according to the College Board; 87 percent of all first-year students live off campus, the nonprofit Higher Learning Advocates estimates. Community college students will spend an average of $1,840 on transportation during the 2021-22 school year — more than their counterparts at public and private four-year colleges — the College Board reports.
There are four ways transportation poses barriers for students: because of the cost, because stops or stations aren’t close enough to where they live or work, because available routes and times don’t sync with college schedules and because it’s unreliable, one study found.
Some suggestions for public transportation & student transit:
- Reduced fare transit passes
- City sponsored free unlimited bus and train rides for community college students
- Lyft/Uber gift cards
Some suggestions for rural area student transit:
- College provides own vans
- Emergency grants for car repair, new tires, or rentals
West, Charlotte. “A Surprising Reason Keeping Students from Finishing College: A Lack of Transportation.” Divided We Learn/The Hechinger Report. 10 December 2021.
Report available for free download: https://hechingerreport.org/a-surprising-reason-keeping-students-from-finishing-college-a-lack-of-transportation/