A Silent National Epidemic

Single motherhood has become a silent national epidemic affecting millions of American families. Today, there are 7.3 million single mothers in the United States—more than the entire population of Massachusetts. To put this in perspective, if all single mothers formed their own state, it would be the 14th largest in the nation. These 7.3 million women represent more than four out of every five single parents, shouldering the enormous responsibility of raising children alone while facing systemic barriers that make economic stability nearly impossible to achieve.

That's one single mother for every 45 Americans—someone's neighbor, coworker, or family member quietly fighting an uphill battle every single day. Behind each of these 7.3 million mothers are children depending on her for everything: food, shelter, education, healthcare, and hope for a better future.

The statistics paint a sobering picture of the challenges these families face. Nearly 40 percent of single-mother families live in poverty—a rate that is five times higher than two-parent households. In 2022, the poverty rate among single mothers reached 28 percent, meaning more than one in four single mothers and their children* struggle to meet basic needs for food, housing, and healthcare. For children* living with a single parent, the poverty rate climbs to 31.7 percent, compared to just 9.5 percent for children in two-parent homes.

This crisis disproportionately affects women who lack higher education. While only 13 percent of single mothers with a bachelor's degree live in poverty, that number skyrockets to 41 percent for those with only a high school diploma. Education becomes both a pathway out of poverty and an increasingly difficult goal to achieve when single mothers must work multiple jobs just to keep their families afloat.

What makes this epidemic particularly insidious is how it perpetuates itself across generations. Children* growing up in single-parent poverty face significant disadvantages in education, health outcomes, and future economic mobility. They are more likely to experience food insecurity, housing instability, and limited access to quality education and healthcare. The cycle continues as these children* grow up with fewer resources and opportunities to break free from poverty themselves.

Yet despite affecting millions of families, this crisis remains largely invisible in public discourse. Single mothers work tirelessly, often holding multiple jobs, yet remain trapped in a system that offers little support and numerous obstacles. The stigma surrounding single motherhood compounds these challenges, making it difficult for women to seek help or advocate for policy changes that could improve their circumstances.

For single mothers struggling to escape poverty, lack of reliable transportation represents one of the most significant and often overlooked barriers to economic stability. In a nation designed around the automobile, not having access to a dependable vehicle doesn't just limit mobility—it fundamentally restricts access to the very opportunities needed to build a better life.

The statistics reveal the scope of this crisis: nearly one in five adults in the United States lacks access to reliable transportation, making it one of the country's most common forms of material hardship. Among those living below the federal poverty level, the situation is even more dire, with 15.9 percent lacking reliable transportation for daily living. Women are disproportionately affected, with 6.1 percent lacking reliable transportation compared to 5.3 percent of men.

Without a car, the simple act of getting to work becomes an exhausting daily ordeal. Single mothers without vehicles often must take two or three buses to reach their jobs, turning what should be a 30-minute commute into a two-hour journey each way. This means less time with children, less sleep, and increased stress that takes a toll on both physical and mental health. When a child gets sick at school or daycare, a mother without a car faces an impossible choice: leave work immediately and risk losing her job, or make her sick child wait hours for public transportation to arrive.

The employment consequences are severe and well-documented. Research consistently shows that lack of access to a car is a major barrier to obtaining and maintaining employment, particularly for low-income individuals. Many jobs, especially those offering better wages, have moved to suburban areas with limited or no public transportation access. Shift work, common in retail and service industries where many single mothers find employment, often requires arriving early in the morning or leaving late at night when public transit runs infrequently or not at all.

The impact extends far beyond employment. Without reliable transportation, single mothers struggle to: access quality healthcare for themselves and their children, often missing preventive care appointments that could catch serious health issues early; attend parent-teacher conferences and school events, limiting their ability to support their children's education; reach job training programs and educational opportunities that could lead to better-paying careers; access affordable grocery stores, often forced to shop at expensive convenience stores in their immediate neighborhood; and respond to emergencies, whether a child's injury or a family crisis.

This creates a vicious cycle that is nearly impossible to break. Without a car, finding and keeping a job becomes extremely difficult. Without steady employment, saving money for a car is impossible. Without a car, accessing better job opportunities remains out of reach. The cycle perpetuates itself, trapping families in poverty for generations.

Transportation poverty is not just an inconvenience—it is a fundamental barrier to economic mobility that affects every aspect of a family's life. For single mothers already facing the challenges of raising children alone, lack of reliable transportation can be the difference between achieving stability and remaining trapped in poverty. Breaking this cycle requires recognizing transportation access as the critical necessity it truly is: not a luxury, but a lifeline to opportunity, independence, and a better future.