Transit Tuesday: Calli Voss
Minneapolis, MN – Living in downtown Minneapolis, I do a lot of walking and use public transit frequently. I walk to my job at a hotel just two blocks from my apartment. I prefer transit for most of my other trips, though getting out to the suburbs to visit my grandma is more difficult, so sometimes calling an Uber is my best bet, even though it’s much more expensive. For other trips within the city—like visiting friends or shopping at the more affordable grocery stores—I rely on public transit and it is pretty easy to get around.
Public Transit Briefing for State and Local Candidates
Every year since 2018, over three-quarters of ballot measures to fund public transportation have passed. And state and local elected officials have a wide range of opportunities to harness this popularity. Governors make appointments to state departments of transportation (DOTs), and those appointees can significantly affect state DOT priorities: Do they prioritize fixing existing roads, […]
Transit Tuesday: Harvey Harold
Asheville, NC – The VA is where my transit journey started in Asheville. When I first got to Asheville, I would take the bus to the VA hospital, to my classes, back to my housing. But the bus didn’t come all the way to the VA hospital. Instead, it would stop about a quarter-mile walk away from the VA hospital, and one day I even waited over two hours for the bus. One of my instructors helped me find out who was responsible for the bus out to the VA, and I started advocating for my fellow veterans who used walkers and found it difficult to get all the way to the bus stop. It turned out that there was a fault in the system, and they suggested I apply to join the transit committee. So for the last eight years, I’ve been a member of the Asheville Transit Committee.
Public Transit Briefing for Federal Candidates
Transportation funding levels and policies directly impact the issues that voters care about most. A good-paying job, affordable groceries, and quality health care are a lot less meaningful if you’re in traffic for hours each day, spend over a thousand dollars every month on car expenses, and risk financial ruin from a pothole each time […]
Transit Tuesday: Vinh Nhu Pham
Providence, RI – I’m Vinh, a student at Brown University studying Urban Studies. I grew up in Gwinnett County, Georgia, a suburban area where getting around without a car was almost impossible. My interest in public transportation started in high school when I realized how few options there were for students who couldn’t drive. I remember walking home along a two-lane road with no sidewalks because there was no bus service to my neighborhood. That experience made me want to learn more about making transit more equitable and accessible.
Toolkit: Raising transit issues with decision makers and in elections.
Introduction Transit issues are very popular with the voters: In 2024, APTA reported 51 wins out of 61 measures for public transit 2024, an 86.7% win rate. Link to summary “The public’s enthusiasm for investing in transit reflects a clear desire for cleaner, more accessible transportation options in their neighborhoods. The 2024 election has marked […]
Transit Tuesday: Jesse Cook
St. Paul, MN – I’ve lived in the Twin Cities for about four years while attending college, where I’m studying aerospace engineering. Originally from Colorado, I’ve experienced transit in rural, suburban, and urban settings. However, it wasn’t until I moved here that I started using transit regularly. Between buses, light rail, and biking, I can get just about anywhere I need to go without a car.
Transit Tuesday: Judy Jones
My name is Judy Jones, and I live in Sedro-Woolley in Skagit County. I am blind, due to retinopathy of prematurity. I am currently a white cane user, but I have also been a guide dog user. As blind people, my husband and I have been very independent.
I’ve been riding transit since 1979. Transit has allowed me to have a working career, to raise my kids, and to get where I need to and want to go.
Toolkit: Transit Equity Day 2026
2026 Transit Equity Day: Transit Moves Democracy On Rosa Parks’s Birthday, A Bench to Sit On Goals Mobilize volunteers to highlight the lack of seating/facilities for transit users Connect bench building volunteers to your organization’s campaigns, priorities, and larger movement work Leverage this opportunity to build business relationships (sponsor a bench) Background Public transit is […]
Letter to Rep. Graves: Thank you for standing up for transit
The National Campaign for Transit Justice and partner organizations sent the following letter to Chairman Sam Graves of the House T&I Committee: ––––––– Dear Chairman Graves, We saw your recent comments in Politico pushing back against the ill-advised plan to remove transit from the Highway Trust Fund in next year’s reauthorization bill and wanted to […]
