STUDY 09
Access Without Arrival
"What happens when the journey is technically possible but never taken."
DRAFTData & Inequality2026
SIZE:
WIDTH:
Context
A study within the Data & Inequality area of Dr. Okafor's wider research on daily mobility and access to opportunity, conducted in Lagos over 2026 (ongoing).
The Question
QUESTION
"If a journey is theoretically accessible but residents rarely take it, does it count as access at all?"
Hypothesis
HYPOTHESIS
A measurable share of 'reachable' destinations are functionally inaccessible because the journey's cost, in time or money, discourages residents from ever attempting it.
Method
Data
Findings
A meaningful share of theoretically reachable destinations are rarely visited at all.
PRELIMINARY CONFIDENCEDataset
Sample
1,860 households
Method
Variable
reachable-but-unvisited destinations
Observation
Early results suggest a notable gap between destinations classified as reachable by travel-time thresholds and destinations households actually report visiting.
What We Know / What We Still Don't Know
WHAT WE KNOW
Reachability on a map and access in practice are not the same thing.
WHAT WE STILL DON'T KNOW
How large this gap is city-wide, and which factor — cost, time, or unfamiliarity — explains most of it.
Publication
This study has not yet produced a publication record.