Bay Area Transportation Justice Working Group

Adequate transportation options are necessary for the well-being of families and communities. The Transportation Justice Working Group is a collaboration of community-based organizations, transit riders, and advocates working to define a regional transportation agenda and to advocate for improved social and economic equity in transportation planning, funding, and policy-making.

The goal of the Transportation Justice Working Group is to increase awareness of the relationship between transportation and health.

Beginning in fall 2003, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission developed a process to assess how much funding should be designated for the Bay Area "Lifeline Transportation Network," a set of transit policies that were designed to increase transit access and improve transit service for low-income and minority communities. The TJWG played an active role in advocating for increased funding through a series of actions - press conferences, speaking publicly and turning out advocates at MTC hearings, writing letters and opinion-editorials, and targeting specific MTC board members with education materials. In the end, the TJWG successfully compelled the MTC to increase the amount of funding it would put towards its Lifeline program. The TJWG also actively worked in support of CA Regional Measure 2, a $1 bridge toll increase for transit which was approved by voters in March 2004. Revenue from Measure 2 will go to funding transit programs that ease commuting experiences for Bay Area residents.