Transportation Justice Working Group
The Transportation Justice Working Group (TJWG) is made up of individuals and organizations from throughout the Bay Area who come together once monthly to coordinate our work towards more equitable transit. The TJWG is part of the Social Equity Caucus and is facilitated by Urban Habitat. The TJWG raises awareness among community groups and decision makers of the discriminatory consequences of our current transportation policy-making. We document the unequal benefits and burdens of our transportation system and we defend the transit rights of low income families and communities of color. We are organizing to demand that transportation policy be guided by the following principles:
1. Accessibility Transit systems must support the critical, day-today travel needs of the “transit dependent” - people without reliable access to a car. Transit routes must be reliable and well coordinated to allow for trips to school, work, shopping, recreation and medical care.
2. Affordability Fares should not exceed what families can reasonably pay. Low-income people should not have to spend staggering portions of their income on transportation.
3. Health and Quality of Life Vehicles must be clean running to prevent toxics from polluting our environment and poisoning our bodies. The space around our transit hubs and stations should be designed to protect riders.
4. Public Participation Community members must have a meaningful voice in decision making about how services can be improved and how dollars are spent.
5. Accountability Transportation planning and funding should reflect community priorities. Transportation, land use and air quality agencies in the Bay Area should collaborate with one another to achieve workable solutions that advance equity.
6. Fairness Low-income riders must receive an equal benefit from public transit dollars as higher-income riders do. Subsidies should be targeted to those who are least able to pay.
For more information, or to join the TJWG, please contact Bob Allen at 510-839-9510 x 312 or Lindsay Imai at 510-839-9510 x 305. Bob or Lindsay can also be contacted by sending email in the form of firstname@urbanhabitat.org.
Related items:
