Through The Transportation Justice Workgroup (TJWG)

Public transportation in the Bay Area is separate and unequal. A  disproportionate amount of public transit dollars are used to maintain and expand the BART system. By contrast, far fewer dollars per rider are invested in our public bus system.

Riders in low income communities:

• Have fewer transportation opportunities
• Receive inferior service
• Are denied a voice in transportation policy making
• Are forced to spend more time in transit
• Pay a higher percentage of their incomes on travel
• Bear the burden of environmental pollution

Whether intentional or not, transportation policy makers discriminate against the people who use and public transit the most.

The Transportation Justice Working Group (TJWG) is a network of nonprofit organizations, researchers, and advocates who are working together to make equity a top community priority in transportation planning and funding. TJWG educates policy makers and the larger community to raise awareness of the consequences of our current transportation policies, including documentation of inequity and defending the transit rights of low-income families and communities of color.

Transportation Justice Working Group (TJWG) Principles

Accessibility
Transit systems must support the critical, day-to-day travel needs of the "transit dependent" people without reliable access to a car. Transit routes must be reliable, accessible, and well-coordinated to allow for trips to school, work, shopping, recreation and hospitals/clinics.

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.

Health and Quality of Life
Vehicles must be clean running to prevent toxins from polluting our environment and poisoning our bodies. The space around our transit hubs and bus stops should be designed to protect riders against the risk of robbery, sexual harassment, and injury caused by passing traffic.

Public Participation
Community members must have a meaningful voice in decision-making about how services can be improved and how dollars are spent.

Accounting
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.

Fairness

Low-income riders must benefit from public transit dollars in equal measure to higher-income riders. Subsidies should be targeted to those who are least able to pay.

TJWG members include:
Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS) - http://www.self-sufficiency.org
Lifetime - http://www.geds-to-phds.org

Transportation and Land Use Coalition (TALC) - http://www.transcoalition.org
Urban Habitot - http://www.urbanhabitat.org/

Kids First - http://www.kidsfirstoakland.org/

Communities for a Better Environment - http://www.cbecal.org/

TJWG Updates

• July 2005 - City of Berkeley Adopts Transit Equity Resolution

Click Here to get involved in Transportation Justice

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