August 2021 Newsletter

Buses are beautiful, aren’t they? We suspect some of you have snapped at least a few great bus pics, and we want to see them! We’re looking to jazz up our monthly newsletter with your original, transit photography, so send us your best transit photos and we’ll select a new one to be featured each month!  

Your photos should be related to transit – bus, train, bike, water taxi, streetcar, trolley, or however else you roll to get to the places you’re going. We know we’ve got transit fans far and wide, so we’ll feature photos from anywhere you take them.

Send your images (JPEG works best) to Autumn, TCC’s Communications Manager, at autumn@transportationchoices.org. Be sure to include the title of your photo and your name for full photo credit in the caption. We can’t wait to see, share, and be inspired by your transit pics.

— The Transportation Choices Coalition team

Take Action

Tell Your Legislators — It’s Time for WA to Act on Transportation

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It’s time for Washington’s legislature to take up the reins of transportation leadership again, and address our state’s unprecedented needs.

We know that transportation investments provide good jobs and spur economic recovery; increase access to opportunities like education and work; and transition us away from harmful pollutants. The time to act on delivering these benefits is now.

Take one minute to send a letter to your State representatives encouraging them to put forward a progressive proposal for transportation.

Visit the Transportation Choices blog for more on the Federal infrastructure package.

Mobility Justice 

Report: Seattle police stop Black people, Native Americans at far higher rate than white people (The Seattle Times — July 26)
“The report found that Black people, per capita, were seven times more likely to be subjected to force by Seattle police than white people, and five times more likely to be stopped and questioned.”

Why U.S. Car Crash Reporting Is Broken (STREETSBLOG — July 20)
“Last week, Citylab broke an explosive Washington, D.C., study that showed police had failed to record as much as 30 percent of 911 calls about drivers striking pedestrians, bicyclists, and other road users, with crashes going unreported most often in Black and brown neighborhoods.”

Black lawmaker hopes highway project can right an old wrong (AP — July 22)
“Amid the fight for civil rights in the South, the Interstate 40 route carved up Black neighborhoods where homes and businesses stood, dividing many from the business and music district on Jefferson Street and the city center beyond, separating one of three nearby historically Black colleges.”

Joint Board Workshop – Building a Foundation for Racial Equity (PSRC — July 22)
Presentation and Q&A with Glenn Harris, President of Race Forward and Publisher of Colorlines

For Love of Country: A Path for the Federal Government to Advance Racial Equity (PolicyLink — July)
“The nation’s first comprehensive racial equity blueprint for federal agencies, For Love of Country: A Path for the Federal Government to Advance Racial Equity provides resources, tools, and a plan for federal agency leaders to implement President Biden’s historic executive order on advancing racial equity.”

Find our complete mobility justice resource list here.

TCC Updates 

TCC is hiring a Development Manager!

Do you want to help fund the work that funds public transit? Know someone who excels at bringing potential supporters in, engaging with donors, foundations, members, and other key supporters?  We’re seeking a Development Manager to lead key aspects of the fundraising program at TCC including department administration, implementing strategy, planning for our growth, and collaborating on the budget.

Learn more and apply here.

Call For Nominations — TCC’s Transportation Hall of Fame!

Take a moment to nominate the people, projects, and agencies that inspire you to walk, bike, and take transit! TCC wants to hear who is making an impact in your community to improve access and opportunity through transportation. Take a peak at past honorees, and nominate your most impactful agency, organization, program or person to join the ranks of TCC’s Transportation Hall of Fame.

We’re accepting nominations through Aug. 20 and will announce this year’s inductees at our annual gala, Tuxes & Trains on Oct. 1.

Join the FUND PUBLIC TRANSIT Movement!

Transit fans and advocates all over the country are spreading the FUND PUBLIC TRANSIT message with their FUND PUBLIC TRANSIT shirts, and now we’ve added new gear! 

Get your new favorite FUND PUBLIC TRANSIT mug or tote today and help us get out this important message.

Recent News

Most fully-suspended routes to come back in October (Seattle Transit Blog — July 20)
“On all-day routes, Metro is restoring 100% of non-peak service, reflecting a faster increase in demand for non-peak service than peak service.”

Sound Transit launches “Trees for Rail” to re-green Lynnwood Link corridor (Lynwood Time — July 24)
“The first-of-its-kind partnership seeks to utilize King Conservation District’s county-wide Urban Tree Canopy program to establish native vegetation and tree canopy to reduce the impact on corridor-adjacent homeowners.”

Young Artists Will Design Limited-Edition Orca Cards as RapidRide Expands (South Seattle Emerald — July 12)
“Each artist’s identity, unique style, and connection to the new RapidRide lines all factor into their work.”

C-Tran ridership on the rebound in Clark County (The Columbian — July 13)
“At this point, all bus seats are open and the total occupancy limit per bus is the same as it was pre-pandemic.”

Saving Time and Making Cents: A Blueprint for Building Transit Better (Eno — July)
“This research and resulting policy recommendations aim to shift the current national conversation around transit project delivery from simply diagnosing problems to identifying and implementing opportunities to deliver better and more cost-effective projects.”

Dongho Chang leaving SDOT to be State Traffic Engineer at WSDOT (Seattle Bike Blog — July 26)
“Seattle is a better city because of Dongho Chang. There may not be another public servant working in our city in the past decade who has had a greater impact on so many people’s everyday lives.”

Cascade Names Lee Lambert as New Executive Director (Washington Bikes — July 27)
“A lifelong lover of bikes for transportation, recreation, and fitness, and a four-time finisher of Cascade’s iconic Seattle to Portland ride, Lambert officially begins on Sunday, Sept. 12.”

Get Engaged

Write your rep: Co-Sponsor the Stronger Communities through Better Transit Act! The Stronger Communities through Better Transit Act recognizes that building back better means investing in our public transit systems, particularly in transit operations. Ask your representative to co-sponsor this important bill.

PSRC Future Transportation Survey. PSRC is developing the next Regional Transportation Plan. The plan is updated every four years per federal law and will respond to the priorities and growth strategy identified in VISION 2050. Your answers to this survey will help PSRC plan for all aspects of the transportation system.

A Closer Look: Human Trafficking & the Bus System. Join Busing on the Lookout this August for a summer webinar series that will take a closer look at the issue of human trafficking. Webinars will be each Wednesday in August at 2pm ET.

Growing The Future Of Public Transportation. Conference, Vendor Expo & Maintenance Forum 2021. October 11-13, Vancouver, WA.

Convening Transportation Professionals to Learn and Connect. In May 2020, Eno launched our popular Road to Recovery webinar series. Now, through the Centennial Institute, we’re looking toward the next stop: the NEW NORMAL, and we invite you to join us to explore what it means for you and the transportation industry.

America’s Open and Transit’s Open. Join FTA all summer long in a national conversation about what’s working to help transit agencies across America renew ridership.

Support our Resilience + Recovery Fund

Transit and inclusive transportation options will be an integral part of Washington’s recovery as well as an important piece of our continued effort to correct racial and economic injustice. In the months and years ahead, our efforts to fund transit in Washington will be more necessary than ever.

Join us in donating to the Fund today:

Staff Pick

In their new report, Safety for All, TransitCenter provides an overview of public safety reform efforts at U.S. transit agencies in response to the ongoing national reckoning over police brutality. It’s a great primer on work that has been done across the nation to implement safety measures that reduce policing and are less punitive. I really appreciated the section on how agencies should treat riders experiencing homelessness (hint: like riders). Check it out!

Hester Serebrin
Policy and Programs Manager

Meme in Motion

We feel seen.

Check out @tinysnekcomics for more “comics about smolini animales and political justice.”