NBC 5 Money Connection examines link between transportation, opportunity in DFW

NBC 5 is launching a new series called Money Connection, focused on connecting the dots between policy decisions and your paycheck, showing how economic realities shape everyday life. The first report looks at something many take for granted: having a car or access to a reliable ride.

Research from the University of Texas at Arlington and other studies has identified a major disconnect between where people live and access to reliable transportation and job opportunities in Dallas. As North Texas experiences a population boom, many residents are moving farther out to find affordable housing, only to hit another critical roadblock: transportation.

Going to work takes a lot of work for single mom Tonya Akers.

“It’s two buses and two trains for me to get to work,” Akers said. “Buses don't always run on time.”

For the past year, Akers says the commute from her home to her job has taken three hours each way.

“It’s been a lot of stressful nights,” she said.

Community advocates say transportation is the missing piece that prevents families from getting ahead.

“People who are just working hard to make ends meet but just can’t get past the transportation barrier,” said David Russell, president of OnRamp DFW.

“I would help the client to get the daycare and the job, and everything would be perfect. And then the bus wouldn’t show up on time a couple of times, and our client would lose the job. They’d lose the daycare because they couldn’t pay for it, and even get evicted," said Jacquelyn Scott, VP of Client Care for OnRamp DFW.

It's a growing concern for advocates in Collin County.“We are seeing an increasing, escalating number of homeless right here in Collin County,” said Janet Collingsworth, founder of the Agape Resource and Assistance Center.

Collinsworth shared an example of the type of hurdles women in her program are working to overcome.

“She was a single mom with a special needs daughter and another son. And her landlord wanted to increase her rent from $1,200 a month to $2,000 a month with no notice. And that’s what we’re seeing," she said.

Many of Agape’s clients are survivors of domestic abuse, working hard to stay ahead of rising rents and child care costs.

“They need to get to work and home and all those family things,” said Collingsworth. “And there is no public transportation to speak of in Collin County.”

Agape raises money to help women buy cars through a rent-to-own model once they graduate from their programs.

“They can be independent, and they can take care of their kids and themselves,” Collingsworth said.

Meanwhile, Family Promise of Collin County covers housing, food, and job training, but all those resources are miles apart.

“It is so difficult that it almost makes you sick,” said LaVeeta Hamilton, executive director of Family Promise of Collin County.

“We had 23 applications for one month. And half of those individuals coming through looking for assistance did not have a vehicle, so we weren’t able to serve them," she said.

To help, Hamilton says they provide some support for transportation costs, including Uber gift cards and help with car repairs, which Amanda Turlington was thankful to receive when her engine failed.

“Because if I didn’t have my car working to go to work, that was our only income,” she said. “And we were at rock bottom. And now we’re moving up. We’re saving and working on getting housing now.”

Turlington's story is another piece of proof that reliable transportation is key to keeping a job, accessing health care, and connecting to a support system, critical needs for anyone working toward self-sufficiency.

Faith-based nonprofit OnRamp DFW repairs and gifts donated cars to people in need, including those rebuilding after incarceration, like Sean Bailey.

“Thank you. You changed my life. All the way around, you changed my kids’ lives," Bailey said after receiving the keys and title to his car from OnRamp DFW. The nonprofit also helps single mothers like Akers.

“Four years ago, me and my son were homeless,” she said, outside of the Garland tax office.

Now, they have housing, and thanks to OnRamp donors, a car. NBC 5 was there when Akers received her keys and sat in her new vehicle for the first time.

“It means a lot because I’ll be there for my son,” Akers said.

That donated car will cut her three-hour commute to just 30 minutes, helping relieve quite a bit of stress and allowing her more time with her son.

Akers' vehicle was OnRamp DFW’s 41st car donation. Recipients must work with community advocates for at least six months to be eligible.

Akers was nominated by her son’s mentor at Life-Skool. She said that having a reliable ride now means her son can also participate in after-school activities and that she can get to him faster in case of a health emergency.

To help more families get ahead, the organizations welcome donations of cars, gas, or Uber gift cards, and volunteers. You can learn more about OnRamp DFW, Agape Resource and Assistance Center, and Family Promise of Collin County on their websites.

You can read research on the relationship between access to transportation, jobs, and housing in North Texas here: UT Arlington Center for Transportation Equity.

In the AllTransit Job Access Rankings, Dallas ranks 32nd, Irving ranks 48th, Plano ranks 81st, and Arlington comes in last at 87th. The performance score is an overall transit score that looks at connectivity, access to jobs, and frequency of service.