Black Households Are More Burdened by Vehicle Ownership than White Households

Abstract

Vehicle ownership is a significant cost to households, but Black households are more likely to be burdened than White households. Previous assessments of transportation spending between races did not differentiate by vehicle ownership status, depressing overall transportation spending by Black households, which are three times as likely as White households not to have access to a car and, thus, spend comparatively little on transportation. When these experiences are isolated, 76% of Black households with vehicles are burdened by transportation spending compared with 60% of White households. Black households with vehicles allocate more of their total average annual spending to transportation regardless of income, and disparities in transportation burden are present even in high-earning households. Black households that are in poverty spend on average $1,115 more per car than their White peers. Insurance, gasoline, vehicle loans, and leasing are all major drivers of transportation burden on Black households and, frequently, these are less burdensome to White households. This adds to concerns of disparate safety and environmental impacts of automobility experienced by Black households, for example, higher rates of pedestrian fatalities and risk of childhood asthma from vehicle exhaust fumes.