Rapid Transit Expedition: Developed at Validus Preparatory Academy

Rapid Transit: How Public Transportation is Planned, Built and Used in New York City

Through an immersion in the New York City subway system, students from Validus Preparatory Academy in the South Bronx studied algebra, statistics, and geometry. Students studied how the system was designed, how it makes money, and how it transports millions of people around the City.  They worked in groups to design a supplemental train line to the current New York City system.  Student teams needed to make decisions about length, stops, rolling stock (train car models), schedules, and the budget based on census data, demographics, measurements on the map, and other social considerations.  The final product involved creating a map showing the new train line, creating a budget in Microsoft Excel, writing an executive summary that proposes the new subway line to the MTA, and a group presentation to classmates and available transit executives who are involved in making decisions about mass transit.