Description of the video:
Welcome to the second episode of NHLN Opinion+! We are thrilled about our new weekly program dedicated to discussing the concerns and opinions of New Hampshire’s Latino community.
This week we spoke to Commissioner Victoria Sheehan of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation about COVID-19’s impacts on the department’s operations and the importance of keeping those at high-risk—including our Latino communities—safe while traveling.
Expansive research has shown that people of color have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and the Pew Research Center has found that Americans who are Black, Latino, and/or immigrants, are most likely to rely on public transit as their main method of transportation. Commissioner Sheehan affirmed that the NH Department of Transportation is focused on maintaining reliable and adequate scheduled services and demonstrating that traveling on public transportation can be done safely. The DOT continually tracks national COVID cases and observes the role transportation can play within any trends.
Resources mentioned in the video:
- The New Hampshire DOT aims to diversify its staff and audience; their goal is to accurately represent the state’s demographics, which includes their growing Latino community, within their department and within the feedback they receive during public meetings and public hearings.
- Public Meeting: DOT presents projects and ideas to the community for their feedback and input.
- Public Hearing: These are required for the DOT to host before they take any action for projects. Public notices are usually available in several languages, according to the community’s demographics.
- You can learn more about getting involved and check out their upcoming meetings and hearings at: https://www.nh.gov/dot/
(Photo credit: NH Business Review)
