Metro Lines and Median Income

April 26, 2013

by Shilpi Paul

Inspired by a recent New Yorker interactive infographic that charted median income along subway lines, Chris Dickersin-Prokopp recently created a similar chart for the DC area for the City Paper.

Because Manhattan’s wealthiest are in a different stratosphere than ours, the differences in wealth distribution from stop to stop are more dramatic than those in the DC area. But with the idea that the metro is a great commuting equalizer, it is still interesting to see how income levels vary from one end of a line to the other.

In order to create the DC chart, Dickersin-Prokopp laid median income data from the American Community Suvery on top of Metro lines to see how income disparity varies. Some lines span more of a range than others; the Orange line is the “most volatile,” said Dickersin-Prokopp, reaching a median income of $142,000 at East Falls Church and $34,000 at Minnesota Avenue. (If we were being nitpicky, it would’ve been nice for the chart to include specific Metro stop names.)

For the full post, click here.