Posted by While I enjoy dense community living today, I grew up in the third-ring suburb. Victor, New York was admittedly a decent place to be a kid, but looking back, there are so many things I know now that I wish I knew then.
I’ve stated a number of times that I was the child of a single mom, and we had a very difficult time making ends meet. Couple that with my ALL leukemia diagnosis at age 8 and I assure you, life was not easy. I am so grateful that I no longer struggle today, but those many years as a sick kid with limited resources were extremely difficult.
I clearly remember making the trek to the Ontario County Social Services building in nearby Canandaigua, New York. Even at a young age, I thought it was strange that a place that supposedly existed to help people was literally in the middle of nowhere. I remember driving to this place in our un-inspected car, hoping a cop wasn’t going to pull us over on our way to receiving necessary relief. I also remember seeing someone walking down the long county road to the building as we passed in our tiny illegal vehicle.
Even if someone lived in nearby Canandaigua, the Social Services building is a 1 hour and 25-minute walk and a 25-minute bike ride. There is no public transit access. The county center for those who require community assistance is literally inaccessible for those who don’t have a car, as shown in Google Maps by a complete lack of public transit access.
I am writing this because we currently have a family member who requires Social Services, and yet her car is barely functional. Because she cannot be physically present, she is unable to receive the care that she needs.
When vital societal benefits are dependent on automobile ownership, something is deeply wrong in our society. When Ontario County suburbs like Victor and Farmington continue to build expensive cul-de-sacs, but expect their poorest citizens to own a car in order to access life-saving services, something is deeply astray.
Any sources of local government assistance should exist in a space where everyone can access them. The ability to benefit from these societal amenities should never be transportation dependent.