Richard QUODOMINE, City of Philadelphia, United States
Municipalities in the US, even growing ones, faced difficult challenges in delivering vital goods and services to their constituents during the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic impacted municipalities on several fronts: first, the increase in costs of medical care, in which localities share a part of. Secondly, the loss in income from the resulting pandemic badly impacted the Transportation sector, including loss of taxes from takeoff and landing excises, hotel taxes, and a loss of transit drivers.
The result was some of the most vulnerable populations, such as families or persons with low or fixed incomes or people of color, along with many people with disabilities or immuno-compromised persons, could not receive vital services. This includes lack of work opportunities, exclusion from public medical care, and food through city and school-based programs. More broadly, disruptions in the food and material supply chains led to restricted retail environments for some foods and basic supplies. This in turn led to broadening food deserts and further damage to the social safety net.
Reluctance from the Trump administration to acknowledge the seriousness of the virus and its resultant illnesses further exacerbated the situation.
This paper will review the distorted impacts on city finances and resulting lack of transportation services in municipalities, comparing cities with similar circumstances to the author’s home city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Keywords: Distortion, COVID-19, Equity, Infrastructure, Transportation, Revenue, Municipality, Transit
Mots clés : Municipal Services|Investment|Transportation|Infrastructure|Disruption
A102905RQ