Most of these high scoring neighborhoods are located east of the Willamette River and west of I-205. Two are located east of I-205 adjacent to regional job nodes -- Hazelwood/ Mill Park and Maywood Park. And two are located west of the Willamette in southwest Portland – Homestead and South Burlingame. 

Ten neighborhoods in the region earned the lowest possible index value for this indicator, signifying that they have very poor transit access to family wage jobs. All ten of the neighborhoods are located in parts of Clackamas and Clark counties farther away from the urban core:

The Transit Access to Family Wage Jobs in Relationship to Areas with Above Regional Average Percent Populations of Color map suggests a significant disconnect between the areas with the highest levels of transit access to jobs and the areas where populations of color tend to live. The census tracts with percentages of populations of color that are higher than the regional average are primarily located in parts of the region outside of the neighborhoods with the highest transit access to family wage jobs. The primary exceptions to this pattern are a number of census tracts in inner north and northeast Portland as well as outer east Portland and Gresham, where the index scores are very high and the percentages of populations of color are above the regional average.

The Transit Access to Family Wage Jobs in Relationship to Areas with Above Regional Average Percent Populations in Poverty map shows a more complex pattern. There are a significant number of census tracts across the region with populations in poverty that are above the regional average and that have relatively poor transit access to family wage jobs. But there are about an equal number of census tracts where the reverse is true.

From an equity perspective, the population overlay maps help to identify key parts of the region with higher than average populations of color and/or populations in poverty and inadequate transit access to jobs. These areas could be targeted for strategic investments in transportation, job development, or other interventions to help ensure that all residents have opportunities to reach family wage jobs.

The data for this indicator are based on modeling that focuses on multi-modal transit access to jobs and does not account for bicycle or vehicle access to family wage jobs. Additionally, there is no consideration of the walkability of the pedestrian environments near the transit stops or employment locations.

It should also be mentioned that sixty minutes is a high threshold, and is a long time for a daily commute. Consequently, even neighborhoods rated as having very high access in this map might not offer desirable levels of transit access to family wage jobs.