Public transportation use is heavily stigmatized in the United States. As a result, those who depend on public transportation services for mobility are marginalized and subject to unjust social assumptions about their character, work ethic, and overall place in society. Prior research documents that public transit administrators are actively working to combat transit stigma in their service area; however, questions remain regarding how public transit administrators view the role of policy elites (elected or appointed political figures) in perpetuating transit stigma. Through a series of in-depth interviews with 20 transit administrators from across the United States, this research finds that policy elites maintain transit stigma through both formal and informal roles by devaluing the role of transit in society, focusing on short-term political goals, and restricting funding opportunities for public transportation agencies.

中文翻译：

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公交污名：公交管理员对政策精英在长期污名中的作用的看法

在美国，公共交通的使用受到了严重的污名化。结果，那些依赖公共交通服务出行的人被边缘化，并受到关于他们的性格、职业道德和社会整体地位的不公正的社会假设。先前的研究文件表明，公共交通管理者正在积极努力打击其服务区域的公共交通污名；however, questions remain regarding how public transit administrators view the role of policy elites (elected or appointed political figures) in perpetuating transit stigma. 通过对来自美国各地的 20 位公共交通管理人员的一系列深入访谈，本研究发现，政策精英通过贬低公共交通在社会中的作用，通过正式和非正式的角色来维护公共交通的污名，