On April 14th, 2021, the students of the Politics course (Un)Healthy Cities, taught by Dr. Muñoz-Martinez at UNB campus Saint John, presented the report Moving Through the City as part of the experiential learning component of the course. The study explores the effects of recent cuts in public transit and the lack of infrastructure for active transportation on vulnerable populations, students and essential workers in precarious conditions in Saint John, New Brunswick from 2020 to 2021. The project seeks to understand how the lack of public transit and active transportation infrastructure affects people that live in poverty and inadequate housing. Also, the study addresses how gendered roles in connection with problems of local transportation in Saint John might increasingly affect immigrant women. In relation to students, the study focuses on the need for public and active transportation by international students and local students living in rural communities attending university. During the management of COVID in Canada and New Brunswick, workers deemed essential have been required to continue participating in economic activities even during periods with a high number of COVID-19 cases. This includes grocery stores’ staff and cleaning personnel in medical facilities, which often work in precarious conditions characterized by job insecurity and minimum wages. The analysis examines how the lack of transportation infrastructure in Saint John has had an impact of this sector of the labor market. The study involved 29 surveys with clients of non-profit organizations and interviews with immigrant women, university students, essential workers and five key informants from local community organizations in Saint John.
Below you can find access to the full report and presentation. For more information, listen to the CBC Information Morning Saint John podcast.