Bernie Sanders likens West Baltimore poverty to 'Third World' country

[Heddi]

28. That does nothing for the poor, though

Living in the suburbs and taking a bus in the suburbs means lackluster public transportation at best, none at worst. Many poor people live on the bus lines, and most suburban areas don't have the bus/trains/subways that the inner city does. That means longer commutes to and from work, which decreases the opportunity to do things like go to school or even have a second job if necessary. It means that childcare expenses go up because suburban child care facilities are fewer and farther between than urban ones, they are more expensive, and the increase in transit times means either extra busses to get the kids to and from daycare, or extra expense at daycare because of the additional time to and from work. Add in that suburbs are often several transit "zones' outside of the center and your $3.00 bus ride each way just became $5 or $7 each way. Your $91 a month pass just shot up to $140 a month.

I live in Philadelphia -- bigger than Baltimore but similar in many ways. I live in the downtown urban core. My previous job was about 4 miles from where I lived. Living in one of the most populated areas of philly and commuting via bus to one of the most populated areas in Philly was 2 separate bus rides ($3.50 each way for a transfer) and a 45 minute ride there and over an hour coming home, longer in the snow.

Not to mention that city services such as bus passes, welfare offices, housing offices, transportation offices are often located downtown. Food marts are closer in the urban city than in the suburbs, which again is another transportation cost-- now instead of a walk or 1 bus to the grocery and back, you're taking 2 or 3 busses each way to the grocery, plus having to lug the groceries, plus the cost of the ride, plus the time it takes.

No, don't move the poor people to the suburbs. Make the inner urban/city core a better place to live.