 |
 Mapping Out a Rote to Transportation Justice - TALC Comes to BOSSBy Janny Castillo
(TALC is a partnership of over 90 groups working for a sustainable and socially just Bay Area. They envision a region with healthy, walkable communities that provide all residents with transportation choices and affordable housing. The coalition analyzes county and regional policies, works with community groups to develop alternatives, and coordinates grassroots campaigns.)
There are more than two dozen transit agencies in the Bay Area which run buses, trains and ferries. They carry 98% of transit riders and serve 92% of the population s in low-income communities. County Congestion Management (CMA s) agencies are responsible for transportation policy and planning. They decide where the money will be spent at the county level. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) plans the transportation network for nine Bay Area Counties. Each year, MTC votes to allocate nearly $1 billion to mass transit, local streets and roads, highways, freight facilities, and bicycle and pedestrian routes in the region.
Federal Funding accounts for a small portion (about 12%) of the Bay Area s transportation funding. Most federal spending programs delegate, to the state or to MTC, the authority to decide which projects get funded. (This information was taken largely in part from the TALC publication entitled ACCESS NOW! A Guide to winning the transportation your community needs Available for free at 405 14th Street, Suite 605 or by calling 510 740-3150 or visit their website at http://www.transcoalition.org)
They could get a petition signed by all residents across the agency identifying dangerous bus shelters, shelters in need of repair and what locations should they be installed at. They could write a letter to the AC Transit staff member in charge of handling complaints and also write the appropriate city council representative. Other issues that were brought up during the training were:
The pictures associated with this article shows the discrepancy between bus stops as you ride down International Blvd from Hayward into East Oakland. In Hayward the photographer found a lonely pole imitating a bus stop with no near place to sit or get out of the weather. San Leandro has the artsy granite seat that one or maybe two people can sit, (the garbage can next to is larger than the seat) and still no bus shelter. What was perhaps the most blatant show of inequality was in East Oakland. On the corner of 73rd Avenue and International Bd. stands a pristine example of what a bus shelter should be like, including a telephone close by and a map outlining bus routes while on the opposite corner on International Bd. stands what might be the worst looking bus stop in all of Oakland. How long has this bus stop looked the way it does, who knows? How long will it take AC Transit to fix it? They never will if we never tell them. To learn more about TALC, please visit their website at http://www.transcoalition.org. For next steps or to become more involved in Transportation Justice contact the BOSS COT by any of the following methods:
You may also comment directly to AC Transit to suggest a shelter location or discuss other issues in the following ways:
|
|
|
2065 Kittredge Street, Suite E Berkeley, CA 94704 | phone: (510) 649-1930 | fax: (510) 649-0627 | staff@createpeaceathome.org |
In February, TALC (Transportation and Land Use Coalition)
representatives Jeff Hobson and Emily Rodgers facilitated two trainings
on transportation justice at the Oakland Homeless Project and the South
County Homeless Project. Both trainings were received well by the
residents who engaged in interactive activities and were given basic
information of how transportation policy plays out in the Bay Area. 
The brainstorm sessions came identified issues that are typically faced
by transit dependent riders. Residents spoke on their experiences and
shared their opinions on riding AC Transit buses in Oakland and Hayward.
One of the main issues discussed were bus shelters and these are some of
the points covered:
Jeff and Emily used the bus shelter conditions as an example of what the
average citizen can do to ask that improvements be made. The discussion
began with identifying the decision makers. 
Local Governments are primarily responsible for maintaining local
streets, roads, sidewalks, bike lanes, and multiple-use paths. 
Jeff explained to BOSS residents that AC Transit makes the decisions on
where to place the bus shelters. AC Transit has contracted with a
private company to install and maintain the shelters, in return for the
right to sell advertising on them. The group brainstormed ways to get
their attention:
back
top