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Anatomy of a new dollar van route: Informal transport and planning in New York City

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  • Goldwyn, Eric

Abstract

Despite nearly eight million rides per day on formally planned and legally sanctioned buses and subways, dollar vans provide service that shadow some of the busiest bus lines in Brooklyn and Queens. Dollar vans are an informal transport service that occupy an awkward liminal space between legal and illegal—some are licensed and some are not, but all dollar vans operate illegally. It is this legal confusion that renders them informal. It is because of this informality that dollar van operators and drivers can also adapt their routes and service as they deem necessary. This “generative” mode of planning introduces a second dimension of informality; however, I argue that dollar van operators follow a similar logic as formal transportation operators when planning service. I demonstrate this by examining the case of a dollar van operator in Brooklyn developing a new route. I juxtapose his method with that of bus planners from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to show how both groups of planners rely on prompts they encounter, be it anecdotal stories about West Indians in Flatbush moving away or an angry letter from a state legislator, rather than a systematic approach that is taught in classrooms. By examining the planning of a new dollar van route in Brooklyn, I trace the operator's planning process and compare his data against quantitative datasets to show that his generative planning process is supported by the quantitative data and deepens its meaning when combined with his local knowledge. Seen in this light, it is clear that the distance between informal and formal transit is artificial rather than inherent.

Suggested Citation

  • Goldwyn, Eric, 2020. "Anatomy of a new dollar van route: Informal transport and planning in New York City," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jotrge:v:88:y:2020:i:c:s0966692317306282
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2018.08.019
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rakowski, Cathy A., 1994. "Convergence and divergence in the informal sector debate: A focus on Latin America, 1984-92," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 501-516, April.
    2. Yu, Shaolu, 2016. "“I am like a deaf, dumb and blind person”: Mobility and immobility of Chinese (im)migrants in Flushing, Queens, New York City," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 10-21.
    3. Asha Best, 2016. "The Way They Blow the Horn: Caribbean Dollar Cabs and Subaltern Mobilities," Annals of the American Association of Geographers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 106(2), pages 442-449, March.
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    1. Santiago Roca & Luis Simabuko, 2023. "Informality and Tax Refund in Peru’s Intercity Passenger Ground Transport Market: An Empirical Appraisal," Transportation, Springer, vol. 50(3), pages 1103-1123, June.

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