Why Build Affordable TOD? A Toolkit for Educating Residents about TODs and Housing in the Bay Area

The Bay Area is struggling with how to accommodate future growth--and looking to transit-oriented development (TOD) as a potential solution. Yet, existing research fails to address one of TOD's greatest barriers: the unwillingness of residents to support either transit investment or affordable housing construction in their communities. We will hold focus groups with residents in four communities with planned or proposed TODs to (a) learn about the arguments used against affordable housing around TOD and (b) figure out which approaches elicit the most positive resident responses. The project will culminate with a symposium on affordable housing and TOD for a more general audience of transportation practitioners to be held as a follow-on effort.