UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies

In 2015, Los Angeles launched the citywide Vision Zero initiative to achieve a 20% reduction in traffic fatalities within two years. However, even with the lack of implementation, the “Enforcement” arm of Vision Zero has brought up concerns about racial profiling and police violence (Abonour, 2018). As an alternative, People for Mobility Justice (PMJ), an organization focused on addressing the transportation needs of communities of color, created the five D’s: Decolonize, Decongest, Decriminalize, Dignify and Dream. According to PMJ, mobility justice highlights how individuals face different challenges in transportation because each person is socially controlled in public spaces in distinct ways. This project supported PMJ in refining its concept of mobility justice for its Mobility Justice Certification Program. The researcher examined the 5 D’s as identified by PMJ and operationalized these constructs by looking at key studies, conceptual frames, and community-based work on mobility justice. Ultimately, the study sought to address the following question: How are mobility justice concerns encompassed within the 5 D’s?