Detroit Today: How regional public transit could help solve Michigan’s population decline
Transportation Riders United’s Megan Owens joined “Detroit Today” to discuss how improving regional transit can benefit Michigan’s future.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently created the Growing Michigan Together Council — a group hoping to counter Michigan’s stagnating population.
As the population declines in Michigan, economic activity also drops. One study showed career-related reasons as the most common cause for residents leaving the state. Detroiters listed a lack of access to cars as their top employment barrier in a survey conducted this year.
Considering these obstacles, could public transit help retain residents and grow the population in Southeast Michigan?
Transportation Riders United executive director Megan Owens joined Detroit Today to discuss this topic.
Listen: How expanding public transportation could solve Southeast Michigan’s population decline
Guest
Megan Owens is the executive director of Transportation Riders United, a nonprofit that works in Detroit and the Metro region to improve public transit through education, engagement and advocacy.
Owens believes that as the cost of living rises in our auto-centric region, public transportation is a necessity.
“There’s no recognition that as a part of equitable climate solutions, access to education, and supporting not just young people but our aging people as well, transit needs to be treated as a critical part of Michigan’s economic solutions,” says Owens.
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