Transportation & Mobility
This vertical watches how people and goods move through, and are blocked from moving through, Western New York. Covers the NFTA and transit equity, the region’s deep car dependency, the Peace Bridge corridor, freight and logistics, bike and pedestrian infrastructure, EV adoption, and how national infrastructure investment is or isn’t reshaping mobility options for a region where getting around without a car remains a significant barrier to opportunity.
Why We Track This
How a city moves is a measure of who it includes. In Buffalo, car dependency remains a defining feature of daily life, and a significant barrier for residents who can’t afford a vehicle or can’t drive. The NFTA serves hundreds of thousands of riders, but transit coverage and frequency leave much of the region underserved. Meanwhile, billions in federal infrastructure dollars are flowing, freight patterns are shifting, and the rise of electric vehicles is changing the economics of getting around. Transportation shapes where people can work, where businesses can locate, and how equitably opportunity is distributed. We watch mobility because movement and the lack of it determines who gets to participate in Buffalo’s future.
