Image Description: PPT Members post at the photo booth. Everyone is smiling and wearing wonderful outfits, bright colors and fun, shiny clothing. The photo booth backdrop is silver streamers, silver ballons and a handmade sign that reads: “THIS BUS IS FOR ALL OF US”.
This Bus Is For All of Us! PPT Members celebrated our year in style.
After a long year of successful organizing and after 3 years of virtual gatherings, PPT Members were ready to have a good time at our Victory Party & Year-End Celebration last Friday!
We had a lot to celebrate! We won a major milestone during the fall when it was announced that Allegheny County would launch a Discount Transit Fares Pilot Program – and that 14,000 SNAP-EBT households in Allegheny County would be able to participate. It was such a big win, in fact, that it was awarded “Best Advocacy Campaign of the Year” by TransitCenter! (TransitCenter gave PPT a big red sash as an award, which brought on the party’s theme: pageant. So members wore fabulous outfits to celebrate). This summer we celebrated the adoption of our 100-Days Transit Platform into Mayor Gainey’s transition plan. And in the spring, had a massive victory on a years-long campaign to stop the Mon Oakland Connector and re-direct that funding towards affordable housing and traffic calming.
We also celebrated the launch of a new-and-improved PPT Membership Program – and we’re up to 250 active members who are participating in our organizing.
These victories are only won when we have folks invested in this movement. Become a PPT member today and join our fight for transportation that all can access.
“I am fighting for my friends, my children, my neighbors, I am fighting for all of y’all!” – Ms. Teaira Collins, PPT Member
We really are fighting for every community to have better access to the things we need to thrive.
We want to send some big love and thanks to all of the PPT Members who joined and made our celebration so beautiful. Special shoutout to everyone who gave speeches at the party: Ricardo and Lorena for their bi-lingual opening remarks about the importance of transit to Allegheny County’s immigrant communities, to Barb for talking about how the Mon Oakland Connector’s community organizing led to her winning a PGH City Council seat, to Teaira for sharing about what fueled her fight to win the Discount Transit Fare Pilot Program, and to Dean for putting together an INCREDIBLE video on some of PPT’s history.
Thanks to all the members who took on different jobs to pull off the evening: Mona, Andrew, Verna, Cheyenne, Tracy, Bonnie, Jess, Mayor Nesby, and others.
image description: below are 50 photos from PPT’s Victory Party & Year-End Celebration. There are lots of people in these shots. Photos of colorful food. Colorful outfits. Many smiles. Dancing. Wonderful transit-themed artwork. Feather boas, and crowns. A sash that says “Frequency Award”, delicious food, balloons, shiny tinsel wall decorations, and all-round fun times with loving community.
This Bus is for All of Us! Join as a PPT Member to make it real:
Image Description: PPT members Linda Warman, Debra Green, Randy Francisco and Krystle Knight hold the PPT banner and chant at a Fair Fares rally, with text overlaid on the photo reading “We Won! Best Advocacy Campaign!”
PPT wins “Best Advocacy Campaign of the Year” in TransitCenter’s 2022 Frequency Awards
TransitCenter is a national foundation that works to improve public transit. Its annual “Frequencies” Awards recognize outstanding work by transit agencies, workers, and organizers to improve transit service. This year, Pittsburghers for Public Transit was awarded with the Frequency Award for “Best Advocacy Campaign,” around the low-income transit fare pilot program win. In today’s announcement of the award, TransitCenter said,
“this pilot program is a visionary way to reduce bureaucratic obstacles for accessing transit benefits, one which could become a model for the rest of the country.”
– TransitCenter
Celebrate this win with us on Friday 12/16 at our Year-End Victory Party!
Since 2018, transit riders have called for free and reduced fares in Allegheny County, and have led a countywide “Fair Fares” coalition alongside the food justice organizations Just Harvest and the Pittsburgh Food Policy Council to elevate this demand. The campaign for affordable fares included years of public testimony by riders around the need, rallies, research, petitions and more. This year, riders won a huge victory with the announcement of a year-long transit fare pilot, funded and evaluated by the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS), which is providing free and half fares to 14,000 households who are eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Access Program (SNAP). The pilot will assess the viability of a permanent zero fare program for low-income transit riders, and the impact of providing the freedom to move on health outcomes, employment, food access, childcare access and other critical needs.
“We are honored by TransitCenter’s recognition of years of transit rider organizing to achieve transit justice, by lowering the cost barriers to access,”
– Laura Chu Wiens, Executive Director of Pittsburghers for Public Transit.
This low-income fare pilot in Allegheny County has national implications.
The Low Income Fare Pilot is a study with an eye toward policy and long-term implementation, not just research outcomes. Affordable public transit improves public health, and this pilot evaluates the ways in which transportation cost barriers are a root cause around issues of housing insecurity, underemployment and unemployment, food insecurity and health care underutilization. Using SNAP eligibility to qualify people for this program does away with onerous means-testing that has plagued the rollout of low-income fare programs across the country. And the piloting of zero fares– not merely reduced fares– keeps riders from having to ration their trips to fulfill basic needs.
PPT is optimistic that the outcomes of this pilot will demonstrate the value of a zero fare system for all SNAP households in Allegheny County, and provide an effective human services-based model for public transit funding for other cities to emulate.
image description: a gif that includes a screenshot from KTNV Las Vegas Chanel 13’s website, has the headline “Cities test out free and low cost public transportation”. PPT Member Teaira Collins is smiling in the news story. A headline is added overtop that reads “PPT MADE NATIONAL NEWS!” and logos from 8 news networks are displayed including from ABC affiliates in San Diego, Denver, Las Vegas, Cleveland, North Carolina, Montana, and Texas.
PPT campaign and members are profiled in Scripps news network story sent to news stations in 60 cities across the US.
The new report centers around Allegheny County’s new Discount Transit Fares Pilot Program that launched this fall. It includes PPT Member, Teaira Collins, and PPT Director, Laura Wiens, who speak about the campaign for more affordable fares that riders have been organizing for years. People can learn about the program and apply to be a part of it here.
It is exciting that reporter Jessie Cohen learned about the program by reading PPT’s website. She recognized that it is a story with national significance as cities such as Washington DC, Boston, LA and Kansas City move to provide free public transportation to its citizens. We hope that sharing our story with millions of viewers in cities across the country builds the momentum to make transportation more affordable and accessible for all people.
Cities test out free and low cost public transportation
by Jessie Cohen
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania — From point A to point B, public transit connects people to their communities. Some people, like Teaira Collins, know what it feels like for those rides to be a lifeline.
“Currently I am right above low income but not too long ago I was low income,” Collins said. “2015 I had back surgery, 2016 I had double back surgery, so I went from making $40,000 a year to making zero.”
Regardless of her own needs, she finds herself out in the community advocating for others. Collins shares a story about a mother whose life just drastically changed.
“She’s able to take her kids to the doctors, she’s able to take her kids to a basketball game or to the park to play, and now have to worry about how to get there,” Collins said.
That’s because Allegheny County, where Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is located, just embarked on a new pilot program that is providing low or no cost public transportation to low income families who are currently SNAP recipients. Those who get accepted into the pilot, will be divided into three different groups; free fares, half-price and full price. After about three months, information from the pilot will be sent to researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Harvard University to analyze data. They will look at where and how people traveled.
Image description: Flyer with an invitation to PPT’s Victory Party & Year-End Celebration. Left side of the image has a yellow background, with PPT’s logo at the top and text that reads “Victory Party & Year-End Celebration Irma Freemand Center Middle of the image has text that reads “Your Invited!” with illustrations of people dancing. Right side of the image has a selfie of PPT members smiling at a bus stop, a disco ball and a ribbon that says “Advocacy Campaign of the Year”.
RSVP below and reach out to PPT if you have any questions or accessibility needs, 551-206-3320 or info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org.
The theme for our party is “pagent” so where whatever makes you feel fabulous!
Image Description: PPT members Linda Warman, Debra Green, Randy Francisco and Krystle Knight hold the PPT banner and chant at a Fair Fares rally, with text overlaid on the photo reading “We Won! Best Advocacy Campaign!”
Celebrate the major win on our campaign for more affordable transit fares and a year of successful organizing.
Join PPT to celebrate all that we can make possible when we organize together as transit riders, transit workers, and neighbors. Our Victory Party will uplift the major milestone that we achieved this Fall on our campaign for more affordable fares at PRT. The campaign even won Best Advocacy Campaign of the Year in TransitCenter’s Frequency Awards! After years of organizing by hundreds of transit riders, Allegheny County announced in September that it would begin a Discount Transit Fare Pilot Program open to all EBT/SNAP recipients in the county. We’ll recap the highlights of this campaign and hear from members that were involved throughout the years.
PPT also has a lot more to celebrate from 2022! For starters, it was the first year that the organization stood on its own two feet as an independent 501c3 organization – that’s a big step! Last spring we won another years-long campaign when the newly-elected Mayor Gainey made good on his campaign promise and canceled the Mon Oakland Connector Shuttle Road through Schenley park – and we successfully redirected this money to traffic-calming projects and affordable housing. In the summer, we kicked off a new membership program and we now have 250 people involved as active dues-paying members in the organization! We also spent the year working with a Disability Justice cohort to improve our accessibility practices and involve more people in our organizing across abilities and languages.
PPT Campaign Victory Party & Year-End Celebration December 16th, 7pm-11pm Irma Freeman Center for the Imagination 5006 Penn Ave
What to expect:The celebration will be one to remember! The theme is “pagent” so think streamers, tinsel, and balloons, and wear whatever makes you feel fabulous! We’ll be inside at the Irma Freeman Center for the Imagination (5006 Penn Ave) from 7pm-11pm. There will be a full dinner served free to all people who RSVP. Music will be provided by our friend DJ Frank and dancing will certainly happen. PPT members will host transit-themed games. And PPT members from different campaigns will talk about what it takes to win and what it means for their families and our communities. Attendees do not feel obligated to attend the entire event, so feel free to arrive and leave at whatever times work best for you.
Accessibility: The Irma Freeman Center for the Imagination is an accessible space. There is a ramp into the building from the sidewalk and there is an accessible bathroom. The space has an upper and a lower area that are very close together and connected by a ramp. You enter the space into the upper area where attendees can mingle and play games. The lighting will be good and consistent in this room throughout the night. The lower area will have music, dancing, speeches, and food. Lighting may be turned down for dancing and speeches. There will be interpretation in both ASL and Spanish.
Getting there:The Irma Freeman is a storefront at 5006 Penn Ave. There is a ramp into the space. The closest bus stop is at Winebiddle and Penn Ave, a 1-minute walk away, and is serviced by the 88. The 87 and 64 both stop on Friendship Ave, a 5-6 minute walk away. The 86 and 64 both have stops on Liberty Ave, which is a 10-minute walk to the venue. There is bike parking and car parking on Penn Ave. If any of these transportation modes are cost-prohibitive for you, contact PPT to discuss options, 551-206-3320 or info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org.
COVID procedures: Masks are encouraged indoors. We also encourage everyone to take an at-home COVID rapid test before arriving. Please stay home if you are feeling sick or have come into contact with someone who has COVID-19. There is outdoor space available on the sidewalk in front of the building and through an exit at the rear of the building.
image description: a white dog holds cocks its head sideways and holds a corded telephone in its mouth. To the right is an illustrated bus stop sign that says “This Bus is For All of Us!”. Behind it is an animation of people smiling, talking, and laughing as they get on a bus.
Its the most wonderful time of the year! Volunteer for one of PPT’s year-end phone banks to help us connect with members.
Every year PPT volunteers make hundreds of phone calls to connect to members. We talk about people’s experiences on transit throughout the year; we invite them to our year-end celebration; and we ask them for their continued support of our work. This year, we’re also going to talk to members about our new strategic plan, get their feedback, and invite them to vote to approve it. These conversations with members are important to our organizing, and you can help PPT strengthen our work by volunteering below.
Our phonebanks are virtual events. When people sign up below you’ll receive a confirmation email with a link to a zoom meeting room. Join us in that room at the event time or call in on the phone number and we can orient the groups on how we make calls using the callhub.io platform. Having a phone and another device that can connect to the internet makes these calls fastest, but if you just have a phone connection you can still help make calls!
Reach out to PPT Communications Director, Dan, with questions or accommodation needs: 551-206-3320, or dan@pittsburghforpublictransit.org
The schedule for our phone banks is below. Use the form at the bottom of the blog to sign up!
Descripción de la imagen: Delmis Cabrera, miembro del PPT, sonríe y mira a la cámara. Su cita está superpuesta al lado derecho de la imagen “¡Logros como este solo suceden cuando alzamos la voz juntos!” [¡Victorias como esta solo suceden cuando alzamos nuestras voces juntos!]. Detrás de ella hay una foto de los miembros del PPT con carteles en un mitin. Image description: PPT Member Delmis Cabrera smiles and looks into the camera. Her quote is superimposed on the right aide of the image “¡Logros como este solo suceden cuando alzamos la voz juntos!” [Victories like this only happen when we raise our voices together!]. Behind her is a photo of PPT members holding signs at a rally.
“¡Logros como este solo suceden cuando alzamos la voz juntos!” [Victories like this only happen when we raise our voices together!] – Delmis Cabrera, PPT Member
Su membresía o donación de PPT ayudará a nuestra defensa con vecinos como Delmis para construir un sistema equitativo para todos.
Your PPT membership or donation will help our advocacy with neighbors like Delmis to build an equitable transit system for all.
Descripción de la imagen: una ilustración de Marcel Walker tiene a 5 adultos y un niño sosteniendo un globo hablando alegremente mientras esperan en la fila para abordar un autobús. Un conductor de autobús está sonriendo y saludando mientras se detiene junto a la acera. Un letrero a la izquierda de la imagen dice: “Este autobús es para todos nosotros”. Y un segundo letrero en la caja de tarifas dentro del autobús dice “Pasaje libre”. El globo de la niña dice: “Pasea con nosotros”. image description: an illustration by Marcel Walker has 5 adults and one child holding a balloon cheerfully talking as they wait in line to board a bus. A bus driver is smiling and waving as he pulls up to the curb. A sign at the left of the image reads, “This Bus is for All of Us”. And a second sign on the farebox inside the bus reads “Fare-Free”. The little girl’s balloon reads, “Ride With Us”.
Querido amigo de PPT,
Mi vida sería imposible sin el transporte público.
Mi nombre es Delmis Cabrera y no les mentiré: mudarme a Pittsburgh desde Honduras no ha sido fácil. Mi familia y yo debemos desplazarnos para llegar al trabajo, la escuela, las visitas al médico, las citas de inmigración y las compras de comestibles – todo sin un automóvil y con recursos limitados.
El precio de todo ha subido, pero nuestros salarios no. Mis amigos de Casa San José me presentaron al PPT y a la campaña para obtener tarifas con descuento para familias que reciben beneficios de SNAP/EBT. Inmediatamente me involucré porque un programa como este le permitiría a mi familia traer más comida a nuestro hogar. Sería transformador para nuestras comunidades.
Después de años de organización, el Condado de Allegheny finalmente está lanzando un programa piloto para tarifas con descuento, y debido a que inmigrantes como yo participamos en la campaña, este beneficio también estará disponible para familias como la mía en todo el condado.
¡Ahora necesitamos hacer que este piloto sea permanente y disponible a todos – pero logros como este solo suceden cuando alzamos la voz juntos! Así que únete a nosotros en la construcción de nuestro movimiento aliándote al PPT como miembro hoy.
My life would be impossible without public transit.
My name is Delmis Cabrera and I won’t lie to you: it hasn’t been easy moving to Pittsburgh from Honduras. My family and I need to navigate getting to work, school, visits to the doctor, immigration appointments and grocery shopping – all without a car, and with limited resources.
The price for everything is gone up, but our wages haven’t. My friends at Casa San José introduced me to PPT and the campaign to win discounted fares for families that receive SNAP/EBT benefits. I immediately got involved because a program like this would let my family bring more food to our home. It would be transformational for our communities.
After years of organizing, Allegheny County is finally launching a pilot program for discounted fares – and because immigrants like me were involved in the advocacy, this fare relief will also be available for families like mine across the county.
Now we need to make this pilot permanent and available to all – but victories like this only happen when we raise our voices together! Join us in building our movement by becoming a PPT as a member today.
Con Poder,
Descripción de la imagen: firma de la miembro del PPT Delmis Cabrera Image description: signature of PPT Member Delmis Cabrera
Delmis Y. Cabrera
¡Únase como miembro de PPT hoy y ayude a apoyar a Delmis y PPT mientras nos organizamos para lograr un sistema de tránsito más equitativo y ampliado para todos! Join as a PPT Member today help support Delmis and PPT as we organize for a more equitable and expanded transit system for all!
Descripción de la imagen: parte de la misma ilustración de Marcel Walker que se muestra arriba. Un operador de autobús viste una camisa gris y azul con una insignia dorada en el brazo. Está saludando y mirando por la puerta mientras se detiene. Image description: portion of the same illustration by Marcel Walker shown above. A bus operator wears a gray shirt and blue had with a gold badge on his arm. He is waiving and looking out the door as he pulls up to a stop.
image description: a person wearing yellow gloves and a yellow scarf is holding a flyer that reads “New Discounted Transit Fare Program”. An illustrated crowd of people dancing is overlaid on a yellow background on the left side of the image.
Very big, very good news! The application is live for the Allegheny Department of Human Services’ new Discount Fare Program.
On November 17, the Allegheny County Department of Human Services launched the application for the new Discount Fares Pilot Program. Now, any person receiving EBT/SNAP benefits in September 2022 (or are the parent of a child who was) can apply to participate in the pilot program before the end of the year. The pilot program has space for 14,000 people to participate, but spots are going to go quickly so folks should apply ASAP.
Who qualifies for the Allegheny County Discounted Fares Pilot Program?
Eligible participants:
Currently reside in Allegheny County Were receiving SNAP benefits in September 2022 or are the parent of a child who was
Are between the ages of 18 and 64 or are 65+ and have household members below age 65
Do not have another household member ages 18 through 64 who is already participating in this pilot
Why is it a pilot rather than a permanent program?
A pilot program is a trial run. Participant experience in this pilot will influence the design of the permanent program. The Allegheny County Dept. of Human Services will use this pilot to understand how local residents may benefit from making public transit more affordable. It will measure the impact on ridership and whether lower fares increase access to jobs, services, and other things residents need.
How does the pilot work?
Participation in the pilot is voluntary but includes agreeing to share info about your household and transit use. All participants will have the opportunity to receive additional compensation for participating in occasional surveys. Eligible participants will be randomly put in one of 3 groups:
Free fares: This group will receive unlimited free fares on all PRT trips for 12 months.
50% discount: This group will receive a ConnectCard that reduces the cost of all PRT trips by half for 12 months, and is pre-loaded with $10.
No discount: This group will receive a ConnectCard pre-loaded with $10 but will not receive a fare discount.
There are lots of ways that you can help ensure this pilot is a success
1. Help spread the word about the program!
You spread the word by sharing this blog and this poster with friends, family, and social media. You can also share the poster and website with any organizations you work with or belong to.
2. Let PPT know if you applied to the program and share any feedback you have about the website, application, or process.
There are still some bugs with the website and the application, so please if you apply or if you know anyone else who is applying please fill out this form to let us know if you’re participating and what issues you’re finding (or contact a PPT staffer directly). We’ll communicate them to DHS, but you should also reach out to Allegheny-Discounted-Fares@alleghenycounty.us
3. Sign your organization up as an enrollment support site with the Department of Human Services.
It cannot be overstated: this pilot is only happening because we all spoke up. All people deserve the freedom to move. This is an amazing milestone that we need to celebrate. But the work is not done. We need to continue getting organized and advocate for an expanded free fare program for all in Allegheny County.
Image Description: PPT Members hold up their flyers and give a thumbs up before a downtown canvass of bus riders.
Transit riders spent years advocating for more affordable fares in Allegheny County and we won. On November 17th, our County’s first discount fares program will go live, but community organizing is needed now more than ever.
For more than two and a half years, Pittsburghers for Public Transit has been advocating with transit riders and our partners for a discount fare program in Allegheny County. After dozens of rallies, public testimonies, media stories, reports and public meetings, the Allegheny County Department of Human Services announced in late September that a first-of-its-kind Discount Fares pilot program would launch for EBT/SNAP recipients on November 17th.
Now is the moment. This program will not be a success if we don’t connect with riders to get them onboarded into the program and into our organizing.
You can help ensure this program is a success by canvassing riders on November 17th and 18th. Volutneer below!
We will be canvassing downtown to talk to transit riders at bus stops on November 17th and 18th during the mid-day rush. Our goal is to directly sign them up for the County’s new Discounted Fares program as well as spread the word about the program. Volunteers should be ready to use their smartphones to sign people up directly, but if you don’t have a smartphone or data we could still use your help! Sign up below and if you have any questions about the canvass or if you have any accessibility needs, reach out to Dan at 551-206-3320.
PPT Hosts Fair Fares Workshops with 120+ Low-Income Riders, Develops Recommendations for the Department of Human Services Low-Income Fare Pilot
Transit riders have been organizing for years for a fare-free transit program for households that receive SNAP/EBT in Allegheny County. In September, we took one big step towards that goal: the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) announced a one-year low income fare pilot, to assess the impact and possibility of a long term, low-income transit fare program!
Image description: participants in PPT’s #FairFare workshops raise their hands to answer straw poll questions about fare affordability.
SIGN UP HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR CAMPAIGN AND HOW TO GET INVOLVED WITH ALLEGHENY COUNTY’S 2022-2023 DISCOUNTED TRANSIT FARE PILOT PROGRAM
The DHS announcement is exciting, but we need to ensure that the low-income fare pilot is an overwhelming success– both in recruiting those who most need access to affordable fares, and in assessing the vast impact of an affordable fare program. Transit riders are experts in their experiences and needs. So in late September and October 2022, more than 120 transit riders whose households receive food stamps joined PPT workshops to discuss accessibility and the impact that a low-income transit fare program would have on their lives.
Image description: Participant shares experience about fare affordability during PPT’s #FairFare workshops
Our community of low income riders shared a lot of wisdom on how transit fares affect their lives, and on what DHS needs to do to ensure that this fare pilot is a success. We’ve broken them out into several categories, below:
Recruitment to the Fare Pilot:
“My English is not very good, and I would like you to help in everything with Spanish and with internet programs”
3 of the 5 people in one breakout group did not have access to reliable internet service.
Low-income riders explained the difficulty they’ve had in accessing needed resources of all sorts. Major concerns lay around inadequate communications about available services because of lack of translation/interpretation, disability-centered accommodations, or internet or smartphone access.
It’s our belief that without a concerted effort and resources put towards recruitment, it is likely that the low-income fare program pilot will be under-enrolled, or will have a participant pool that underrepresents those with the highest low-income fare needs and who experience these intersecting barriers to access. To ensure that this fare pilot will reach those most in need, (and for whom the fare relief will provide the greatest benefit), there should be particular recruitment targets around geographical distribution, household composition, race and ethnicity, and household income.
Recruitment efforts should include in-person outreach, coordination with existing service providers and with multiple language access points.
Eligibility for the fare pilot (including people with existing fare discounts):
Image description: Participants and their kids at the Spanish interpretation table at PPT’s #FairFares campaign workshop
Many transit agencies around the country offer half fares to low-income riders, and there is discussion within Allegheny County about whether half fares would be sufficient to address low-income family needs. If it were, it would not be necessary to include people in the fare pilot who already receive fare discounts. To answer this question, it was important for us to include the voices of those who currently have access to half fares in our workshop – namely, people with disabilities, and families whose children receive the 6-12 year old half fare.
Riders with disabilities on SNAP were very clear in communicating that the current half fare discounts are not affordable enough, forcing them to ration their trips that serve basic needs like food and healthcare.
“I remember when I was riding the bus, free fares would have helped me with my medication costs, allow me get to the doctor, and allow me to choose between a greater range of service providers, not just the closest in my neighborhood. I could choose providers more appropriate for my chronic conditions located two or three neighborhoods away, ie, such as at Allegheny General or Oakland, where specialists are available for my rare and chronic conditions.”
As a result, we believe that the fare pilot must also evaluate the benefit of a steeper fare discount, or a zero fare program for those who are in this demographic.
At our workshops, low-income riders with dependents spoke about the gaps in accessing free or reduced fares for their children ages 6-18. They shared that the cost of taking transit to get to food, healthcare and employment was very high because children often had to accompany them and required additional fares. We believe that families should be treated as a unit for the purposes of this low-income fare pilot, ensuring that all members of the household including dependents older than 5 years old receive the same fare discount, to truly demonstrate the benefit.
“I travel with my son, and it does cost me more money, lots of times I don’t have a babysitter and I have to take him with me, including grocery shopping and other necessary trips. And it prevents me from taking him to…trips to the zoo and other things.”
Finally, many low-income immigrants joined our workshops, and spoke of their distinct reliance on transit because undocumented people are not allowed to get a driver’s license in Pennsylvania. For many immigrants, the parents are ineligible for benefits, but the households can receive SNAP through their children. It is important to allow immigrant households to qualify to participate in this fare pilot even if only the dependents have a social security number and receive SNAP benefits.
Program Design:
“It’s like if you have cancer patients and you put one group with the treatment and one in the placebo? That is not fair if you know what my needs are. Sometimes I have to choose between eating lunch or dinner because of the money I spend on bus fares.”
Image Desctiption: Participants gather at the table for people who “Take Transit More Than 3x a Week”
We heard a lot of urgency around riders’ need for fare relief now, and the sense that the distribution of benefit– even through the pilot phase– should be equitable. There was concern about the fairness of having some participants receiving free fares and others half fares, and particularly the idea of a control group that would receive no benefit at all.
There was also confusion about the idea of a lottery, that a participant’s assignment of a fare discount is not randomized, and actually is a reflection of eligibility or merit. We recommend looking at study designs that have all participants all receive free fares, half fares, and full fares, over a rotating period of time, so that all would receive the fare discount benefits and would be controlled against their own experience of paying full fare.
“Also I heard for this free bus pass program, there will be a lottery, how will this affect people who need it? If I don’t get selected, I am going to keep asking, “when is it my turn”?”
Program Evaluation:
The workshops made it clear that the cost of transportation disproportionately impacts those with the greatest systemic barriers to access. There is a spectrum of poverty, even among those eligible for SNAP, and having a disability, being an undocumented immigrant or being unable to afford to live in a richly resourced neighborhood makes transit affordability much more imperative.
“I live in Uptown, which, with the Bus Rapid Transit system that’s coming in and like certain bus routes that are being canceled that normally go out to groceries stores. It’s becoming a bit of a food desert here which almost feels like they’re trying to push people out who can’t afford to pay for those bus fares like for people like me living in this neighborhood.
I’m on SSDI. You know it’s vitally important that we low income people are able to get to grocery stores, and not have to pay however much in each direction to… get back and forth.
And also…I have a medication that I’m supposed to be taking, and it’s $30 a month because it has to go through a compounding pharmacy. I’m not taking it because I can afford
it, and that $30 a month if I wasn’t paying it on transportation. 100% I could be on this medication which would vastly improve my quality of life.
So it’s just you know it would be an absolute lifesaver to have access to that.”
It is our recommendation that the evaluation of what makes this fare pilot a success includes the effect of transit fare costs on riders’ mental health, quality of life, and even low-income people’s sense of being seen and prioritized for public investment and resources.
There is also a need for the study team to acknowledge that the barriers to transportation access have worsened at the same time that transit costs have risen. This includes the drop in transit service frequency and reliability, and the rise in housing costs that has led to the displacement of many riders to communities with limited access to transit and CONNECT card refilling mechanisms.
It is important for the study team to control for the availability of transit where study participants are living. Moreover, the study must assess people’s ability to refill CONNECT cards, because if participants are unbanked or underbanked and live far away from a CONNECT card refilling point, then they may underutilize their half or full fare CONNECT card.
“I live in Clairton, and my only bus runs only once an hour, and oftentimes it runs late or doesn’t show up at all and then I’m stranded. Free transit would be great, but it won’t change my ability to get around much.”
Image Description: Participants engage about fare affordability at PPT’s #FairFares workshop
The Need for Long-Term Program
We’ve learned that the need for free fares coincides with the need to address our region’s history of systemic inequities, with folks with the most difficulty in accessing resources requiring a recruitment, program design, and evaluation that prioritizes their needs.
The need for free fares now is urgent and should extend beyond a research pilot!
Please feel free to contact us if you have questions or are interested in taking a deeper dive into the qualitative data gathered at the PPT fares workshops at laura@pittsburghforpublictransit.org.
Image description: Young person holds a sign that says “Transit for People Not for Profit” at February 2020 rally to launch PPT”s #FairFares platform to lay the groundwork for the victory of this discount fare pilot program.
image description: text reads “Riders win more affordable fares! Learn more at fairfaresnow.org” overtop an image of PPT member Josh Malloy leading a rally to launch the fair fares platform in February 2020
More affordable fares are coming to our transit system because transit riders took action – but we need to continue organizing to make sure these discounted fares are made permanent and available to all.
Take part in the pilot program and help make affordable fares permanent for all SNAP households in Allegheny County.
Now, we are organizing a group of advocates who want to learn more about getting involved in this discounted fare program and who will help us make it permanent. If you receive SNAP/EBT benefits, and if you want to get involved in the campaign, sign up above and our organizers will contact you about how to get involved.
On Tuesday, September 27th, 2022, the Allegheny County Department of Human Services announced a new pilot program to test more affordable fares for low-income transit riders.
This announcement is a huge win for transit riders and it is only possible because together we all have been advocating and organizing for years. We’ve always known that cheaper transit fares would make it easier to move through our city. We’ve known that cheaper fares would put money back in our pockets for our families. Now cheaper fares are happening because of our advocacy.
But our work is not done. We need to make sure that more affordable fares become a permanent part of our transit system in Allegheny County – and we need your help.
Check out this video that recaps the years of organizing that have contributed to this win:
See this news coverage of the Discount Fares Pilot:
