Here to There Studio Americana

In our final episode of Here to There, we say goodbye to Season One by commuting with policymakers including retired Met Council Chair Adam Duininck, State Senator Scott Dibble, and MnDOT Commissioner Charlie Zelle. Each talks about his role and perspective on how we continue to move Minnesota forward to be the progressive state we aspire to be.

Transportation investments, infrastructure, and services have for many decades disproportionately benefited affluent white communities and harmed low-income communities and, relatedly, communities of colors. The results of these inequities on the health and wealth of these communities and their residents have been broad and enduring. In this episode, we ride along with Ibrahim and Zac as they commute from the Midtown Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis to the Amazon fulfillment center in Shakopee. Back in the studio, we're joined by Ravi Norman to discuss his perspective and work to revitalize North Minneapolis and far beyond.

For millions of Minnesotans with disabilities, lack of access to affordable, reliable, and convenient transportation options also means lack of access to jobs, education, healthcare, social services, recreation, friends and family, and community activities. As such, Minnesotans with disabilities face disproportionately high levels of unemployment, poverty, homelessness, institutionalization, and isolation. So, too, do we all miss out on meaningful relationships with and contributions by these members of our community. In this episode, we become the commuters and take an Accessibility Walk through Highland Park with disability advocate Kjensmo Walker. Back in the studio, we speak with Joan Willshire, Executive Director of the Minnesota Council on Disability, about the policies and technologies that can broaden opportunities for people with disabilities.

The ability and willingness of a society or a community to help one another thrive, also known as social cohesion, has an inextricable link to transportation and the ways we get from here to there. In this episode we get two unique perspectives on social cohesion, first from individuals with disabilities that use a circulator bus to get around West St. Paul and then from the manager of Homeless and Highly Mobile Student Services at Minneapolis Public Schools. Join the ride and hear how accessible, reliable, affordable transportation options make a huge difference in how we interact with the community around us.

Both transportation users and providers benefit from flexible solutions that adapt to changing needs and aren't limited to specific geographies. Car-sharing is one of the biggest examples of an industry that's booming in transportation. Whether sharing your own vehicle as an on-demand driver (think Uber, Lyft), or short-term renting one to get you from here to there, there are dramatic shifts that are bringing new flexibility to drivers, users, and communities. In this episode, we travel with a former Car2Go user and then talk to a thought leader in disruptive transportation systems and technologies.

There are over 5 million professional drivers (which include truck, taxi, school bus, and transit bus) in the United States. New services and technologies like ride-hailing services (Uber, Lyft) and ride-sharing services (Car2Go, ZipCar) are already disrupting traditional labor markets for drivers and emerging technologies like autonomous vehicles stand to further disrupt, if not eliminate, more of these jobs. In this episode, we ride along with a former radio DJ who now drives for Uber. Back in the studio, we talk with a representative from a major employer in the mass transit arena to hear about the ways disruption and adaptation are making their way into the marketplace.