Photo of a PAAC bus, from Lisa Cunningham at PGH City Paper
We all rely on low-income essential workers to keep us moving. Now we have to keep them moving with an emergency low-income fare program in Allegheny County.
On Tuesday, June 23rd, Bethany Hallam, Allegheny County Council Member At-Large, released a letter signed by 19+ Local, County and State Legislators asking Port Authority leadership to implement an emergency low-income fares program to address public health needs during COVID-19.
Allowing low-income riders to show their EBT cards to board would significantly reduce the likelihood of crowding and contact at the fare-box, and would prevent the public health catastrophe that results from riders unable to afford to ride to access food, healthcare and jobs. An emergency low-income fare program would begin to address the disproportionate economic and health harm that COVID-19 has enacted on Black, Brown, Low-income, and other disenfranchised communities.
PPT is grateful for the leadership of the 19+ City, County, and State legislators who’ve signed-on to say the time is now for Port Authority to implement an emergency low-income fare program.
Jay Costa, PA Senate District 43 Wayne Fontana, PA Senate District 42 Pam Iovino, PA Senate District 37 Lindsey M. Williams, PA Senate District 38
Ed Gainey, PA House District 24 Sara Innamorato, PA House District 21 Summer Lee, PA House District 34
Olivia Bennett, Council Council District 13 Bethany Hallam, County Council At-Large Anita Prizio, County Council District 3
Deb Gross, Pittsburgh City Council District 7 R. Daniel Lavelle, Pittsburgh City Council District 6 Erica Strassburger, Pittsburgh City Council District 8
Mayor Nickole Nesby, City of Duquesne Jonathan Reyes, East Pittsburgh Borough Council Tara Yaney, Edgewood Borough Council
Jessica Benham, Democratic Candidate for PA House District 36 Lissa Geiger Shulman, Democratic Candidate for PA House District 30 Emily Kinkead, Democratic Candidate for PA House District 20
Join the core team of people who coordinate the direction of Pittsburghers for Public Transit.
Pittsburghers for Public Transit is a grassroots, democratic, member-led organization that fights for racial justice and public transit as a human right. PPT’s Coordinating Committee is the equivalent of our board of directors. We are looking for people who understand the importance of our work for transit justice in Allegheny County, and are looking to get more involved in directing the course of our campaigns, communications, and actions. See the list of current Coordinating Committee Members here. Up for nomination are seats currently filled by Lisa Gonzalez, Debra Green, Alison Keating, Jonah McAllister-Erickson, and Sue Scanlon.
Nominate yourself or someone who inspires you with their leadership, vision, and commitment to transit justice.
Black, Indigenous, People of Color, LGBTQ People, People with Disabilities, Immigrants, Womxn, and Youth nominations are STRONGLY encouraged. We’re not free until we’re all free.
Each July, PPT members vote to fill 5 seats on the 11-seat Coordinating Committee with new or returning leaders. Coordinating Committee Members serve a 2-year term.
2 seats must be filled by members of the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 85 (the union that represents all of the Port Authority’s bus operators and maintenance workers) because strong community/labor solidarity is a central belief of the organization. The other 8 seats are filled by members who have had previous experience with PPT’s work, and are looking to bring their involvement to the next level. The final seat is filled by the Director of the Thomas Merton Center, the organization that acts as PPT’s fiscal sponsor.
Quality candidates are active with PPT, or bring experience that the membership finds important for moving the organization forward.
Members of the Coordinating Committee are expected to attend quarterly Coordinating Committee meetings – on the second Saturday of January, April, July, and October – and should also stay engaged with General Membership Meetings on the second Wednesday of each month.
Additionally, Coordinating Committee members will need to maintain active lines of communication with PPT staff and other PPT members to advise and assist with the organization’s strategy, tactics, structure, and financial sustainability. CC Members should also serve on one of PPT’s three committees (Organizing Committee, Communications Committee, and Research Committee).
Nominations and Elections
Nominations are open until July 3rd. PPT staff will confirm with each nominee whether they accept the nomination to be on the ballot. Each nominee will also be invited to submit up to 500 words about their background, experience, and vision for the organization. This can be submitted through the nomination form, email, or via phone and PPT staff will transcribe. These bios will be included in the ballot that’s sent out to PPT Members on July 6th. Nominees will have 3 minutes to speak at the July PPT member meeting before votes are cast.
Elections will be held at PPT’s July monthly meeting on July 8th. At the meeting, all nominated candidates will have space to share their vision for PPT and how their skills will help build the organization. All PPT Members in attendance will be eligible to vote. PPT members are all those who support the Transit Bill of Rights, have participated in a PPT action or meeting, and have given dues of at least $2.75 cents within the last year. If PPT Members are not able to join the meeting, they can reach out to info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org to arrange for an absentee ballot.
PPT Coordinating Committee Election Schedule
July 3rd: Nomination Deadline
July 6th: Ballots sent to PPT members with nominee bios
July 8th, 7pm: PPT Monthly Meeting with Coordinating Committee Nominee introductions and Elections
July 10th, 11:59pm: Final deadline for PPT members to submit their ballots via online or phone
Submit nominations through the link below, or by calling PPT’s Director, Laura Wiens, at 703-424-0854:
Dozens of PPT members address the board on 3 priority areas of concern
On May 29, 31 speakers organized by PPT addressed the Port Authority board (testimony begins at 22:10) to raise concerns and provide actionable solutions on fares, transit funding, the use of data/public engagement in decision-making. The powerful testimony showed why the Port Authority Board of Directors needs to take more of a leadership role at the Agency. We called on the board to ensure that riders can afford to public transit during this economic depression, to prevent devastating funding cuts from Harrisburg, and to allow rider voices and data to drive decision-making during this volatile time.
On the need for instituting a low-income fare program, and to allow riders to use EBT cards to board:
“I am an essential worker, I have been working through the whole pandemic…I have to choose between 3 bills at the beginning of the month to pay and I have no money. This $97.50 a month [of transit fares], I can’t afford it.”
– Deanna Turner, PPT member from Hazelwood
Port Authority is proposing to reinstate full fare collection on June 8th. The riders taking transit now are disproportionately low-income, and all are devoid of other transportation choices. Many or most of these riders cannot pay full fares. To put it in context: a third of Americans didn’t pay rent in May. Tens of thousands of people—and those are the people with cars!—are lining up for free food at food banks. We’re living in a global pandemic, and an economic depression. Mass transit, more than ever, needs to be considered as a necessity, like housing, electric, water, and food. We need emergency interventions and fare relief just as all of those other services have taken dramatic steps to address the economic fallout of this crisis.
If Port Authority cannot afford to wait to reinstate fares, then Port Authority can also not afford to wait to implement a low-income fares program. Riders can’t wait for months for PAAC’s fare consultant to establish that they are too poor to pay to ride. Just as we cannot retroactively eat to make up for months of hunger, or remedy the effects of an eviction after months of being homeless, the impact of making transit inaccessible to low-income or no income Allegheny County residents will be irreversible.
Port Authority board is proposing a return to full fares to get money off the backs of the lowest income Allegheny County residents at the same time that the board is silent or actively moving to defund transit at a state level, and is silent about the proposed second federal transit stimulus, which leaves the Port Authority out even as smaller agencies would get a share.
On Transit Funding Concerns and the Board’s Responsibility
“I’m here today to urge the Port Authority board to be an active advocate at the state level, and to hold its members accountable for upholding their duties to the agency. We need a dedicated, expanded source of funding for transit from the state, not just for the Port Authority, but also for transit agencies for urban, suburban, and rural areas across the state.”
Toni Haraldsen, PPT member from Aspinwall
“I’m here today to ask all the Port Authority board, all of whom are political appointees, to lean heavily on the Congressional delegation, to influence the upcoming Heroes Act legislation…to not only pass the bill, but to negotiate for increased transit funding to come directly to our agency. As we slowly lift restrictions, we must be keenly aware that the economic and public health emergencies continue… Instead of piling on to struggling workers, our system should use Heroes Act emergency funding from the federal government to continue to provide much-needed service without further burdening riders.”
–Jay Ting Walker, Secretary of the Allegheny County Transit Council
The Port Authority board member and State Representative Lori Mizgurski has proposed a bill in PA’s House of Representatives that would discharge the PA Turnpike’s transit funding responsibility without a dedicated alternate funding source in place. This reckless legislation would impact residents in every county across the State. Defunding transit would bring our state economy to a grinding halt and diminish access to critical needs like food and healthcare at a moment when both are precarious. On May 14th, more than 80 organizations, labor unions, and elected officials across PA signed on to a PPT/Philly TRU joint letter to call for the Turnpike to uphold its transit funding responsibility until a progressive and sustainable replacement funding source can be established.
The Port Authority board must advocate to ensure that state transit funding remains stable. Moreover, it is critical that the upcoming federal Heroes Act legislation includes sufficient emergency transit funding to address the national transit funding crisis. The current Heroes Act legislation also leaves Port Authority out even as smaller transit agencies would get a dedicated share. Port Authority board members must speak up to ensure that the federal Heroes Act transit stimulus gives all regions their fair share.
On Public Engagement, Equity and Data-Driven Decision-Making
“With data, you get a real-time or recent look into metrics like, for instance: ridership per route over time, ridership by time of day, the types of complaints (ADA issues, buses passing riders by) that Port Authority is receiving over time, or the percentage of transit workers out on sick leave, etc. However, data is nothing without an equity lens, and without capturing it by race…And Black and Brown people must be given ownership over the data…When you say that the community runs the Port Authority, it is time we start to see that in action.”
-Fawn Walker-Montgomery, Executive Director of Take Action Mon Valley
“Signing up [to speak at the board] required me to click on two unique links, which are not readily available on the homepage…Scrolling through the past year of posts, I found that neither the Port Authority’s Twitter nor Facebook…have linked to the meeting sign-up page. In fact, as far as I could find, neither of these made reference to the existence of public board meetings.”
-Sinjon Bartel, PPT member
The bar is too high to access Port Authority board meetings, and the allowable forms of participation are too limited. The only way to give public input is by pre-registering to testify a week in advance on two separate website links for a 9:30 am Friday meeting, once a month. The lack of Port Authority board meeting accessibility has always been a concern, but it is particularly egregious at a time when decisions on funding, transit service allocation and fares are happening quickly and behind closed doors. The threats to transit are existential. Riders must have the opportunity to share their experience of using transit and the ability to guide decision-making to address the transit barriers that they are experiencing. Moreover, these board meetings and board committee meetings must be spaces for meaningful discussion among the board, staff, and the public, and not merely be a pro-forma stamp on decisions already made.
The Port Authority has created a valuable new data dashboard (starting at 1:10:01) that provides insights into ridership levels, complaints and out-of-service impacts by route and bus garage. However, it’s apparent that the decisions around allocating transit service frequency are not happening in a dynamic or nuanced way, which is what riders need to ensure that transit is effective and safe. At a time when overcrowding is a public health hazard, this data dashboard must be used to evaluate and reallocate transit service to address the communities where the ridership is still high. Port Authority should make it clear how this data is being translated into policy decisions to address issues around equity and accessibility. Moreover, this data platform should be made public to allow members of the community and the Port Authority board to offer insights into our transit system at a systemic level, and to hold our agency accountable to making progress on any barriers to access.
Join PPT’s Transit Justice Townhall – More Transit, Not Less – on June 10th to build the agenda for transit advocacy in these times.
The outrage at a white supremacist system that is fueling protests across the country must be kept at the forefront of our work for transit equity. We are in the same fight: for a world where all people have the freedom to move, to be in public space without fear or threat. Together we must shift public funds away from harmful over-policing of black and brown communities and towards social investments that build racial equity and climate resilience.
We urge folks to direct resources to front-line activists by donating to the Pittsburgh Freedom Fund (Venmo is @PGH-Freedom Fund). The money sent there will go towards medical and supply costs. People can also donate to the Bukit Bail Fund- you can donate here: https://www.bukitbailfund.org/donate.
We are calling for the Port Authority to re-evaluate its role in upholding the police state that is incarcerating and murdering our Black and Brown sisters and brothers.
The Port Authority cannot say that they are protecting workers by canceling transit service at the same time that they put their operators in harm’s way by transporting state police. Other transit agencies across the country have taken a stand in solidarity with Black and Brown communities against police brutality, and have refused to transport police and refused to transport arrested protestors.
Photo of State Troopers boarding onto Port Authority bus in East Liberty, 5/31/20
Moreover, the City needs to provide Port Authority with advance notice to be able to reroute service around any street closures or curfews. The decision on Saturday to cancel all transit service with the implementation of a curfew put riders at greater risk, not less. Workers across the County who were released prematurely from their jobs were left stranded and vulnerable to the chemical weapons and rubber bullets discharged by police. We know that those riders most reliant on transit are also of communities being disproportionately targeted by police, who are deploying excessive force on our streets and against unarmed civilians.
Finally, the work of affirming that Black Lives Matter is on-going work and must be made manifest through structural changes that uplift Black and Brown communities to both survive and thrive. If we value black lives, we must also:
Prevent the reinstatement of full fares at a time when riders are disproportionately Black and Brown and low-income. These communities are also more harmed by the economic fallout of this health crisis, and more likely to be taking transit to work to get to work and to access essential services.
Use equity metrics and analyze ridership data during COVID-19 to redistribute transit service, to prevent overcrowding or rider pass-ups on lines. Bus overcrowding is a public health hazard for riders and transit workers during a global pandemic.
Ensure that transit workers receive PPE and hazard pay, as they are disproportionately getting infected and dying from COVID-19. Transit jobs are also disproportionately held by Black workers and particularly Black women.
Ensure that we have dedicated and sustainable funding for transit at a time when cities and states are pushing a narrative of austerity; funding robust public transit is one of the most effective pathways for cities to achieve racial equity. In Pennsylvania, state police have been siphoning more than $850 million dollars a year of dedicated transportation funding from the Motor License Fund. Defund the police and ensure public investments go towards uplifting our most marginalized residents.
Weigh into #cancelrent and #cancelmortgages, and pass policies that effectively tie affordable housing and transit land use. The forthcoming wave of evictions triggered by COVID-19 will lead to a transit/mobility crisis, particularly for Black and Brown communities, and will accelerate the harm we’ve seen from displacement and gentrification.
Decriminalize transit. For black and brown community members, policing is a threat. In this time, Black transit riders have found themselves subject to police violence for both wearing a mask or not wearing a mask.
Ensure that riders’ voices- particularly Black riders’ voices- and data around equity are governing decision-making around public resources.
Contact: Judy Asman, Labor Network for Sustainability, 714-651-6170, Basav Sen, Institute for Policy Studies, 202-997-0479
MAY 31, 2020–(TAKOMA PARK, MD)–The Coalition that organizes Transit Equity Day, which takes place each year on Rosa Parks’ birthday, stands in solidarity with Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) and its Local 1005, Minneapolis–some of whose members are refusing to transport police to protests and arrested demonstrators to police precincts. The Coalition shares the Union’s view that this is a “misuse of public transit,” which fundamentally runs counter to transit equity.
In a May 28 statement, John Costa, the President of ATU International, the largest representative of transit employees in the United States and Canada, said:
“We are deeply disturbed and angered by the tragic death of George Floyd, an African-American who was held, handcuffed, on the ground by a white Minneapolis police officer who kneeled on Floyd’s neck as he pleaded, “’I can’t breathe.’”
“We are calling for a full and independent investigation into Floyd’s death, and for appropriate action to be taken to ensure that justice is served.
“Furthermore, as our members – bus drivers – have the right to refuse work they consider dangerous or unsafe during the pandemic, so too Minneapolis bus drivers – our members – have the right to refuse the dangerous duty of transporting police to protests and arrested demonstrators away from these communities where many of these drivers live. This is a misuse of public transit.”
For three years, under the leadership of the late ATU International President Larry Hanley and current President John Costa, the Labor Network for Sustainability has collaborated with transit unions, civil rights organizations, climate justice and environmental groups, and allies, to promote public transit as a civil right and a strategy to combat climate change.
“We chose Rosa Parks’ birthday, February 4, because she is an iconic figure among many of the civil rights era who chose the tactic of refusing to give up her seat on the bus,” Michael Leon Guerrero, Labor Network for Sustainability Executive Director says. “ATU Local 1005’s action honors the tradition of Ms. Parks and generations of others who have stood up to racial oppression and violence.”
Basav Sen, Climate Policy Director at the Institute for Policy Studies, says, “Public transit is a public good, meant to serve the transportation needs of all community members at an affordable price while reducing automobile congestion, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. If police and local governments want to use transit as a tool to enable racist oppression, transit workers have the right to refuse to collaborate with that agenda.”
Since the release of both statements by ATU International and Local 1005, Transport Workers Union (TWU), another essential labor partner in the Transit Equity Day Coalition, retweeted from their Local 100, “TWU Local 100 Bus Operators do not work for the NYPD. We transport the working families of NYC , all TWU Operators should refuse to transport arrested protestors.” TWU International President John Samuelsen retweeted this video that went viral, where one bus operator stepped off of a bus refusing to transport arrested protesters in Brooklyn.
In its May 28 statement, ATU Local 1005 echoed the union’s motto: “NOT ONE MORE,” which is used to condemn assaults on drivers that have too often led to death on the job. The Local laments that “NOT ONE MORE” now has a new meaning: “‘NOT ONE MORE’ execution of a black life by the hands of the police.”
Pittsburghers for Public Transit states, “The outrage at a white supremacist system that is fueling protests across the country must be kept at the forefront of our work for transit equity. We are in the same fight: for a world where all people have the freedom to move, to be in public space without fear or threat. Together we must shift public funds away from harmful over-policing of black and brown communities and towards social investments that build racial equity and climate resilience.”
Sherry B. Williams, Public Policy Coordinator for Georgia Stand-Up, offers an important reminder that amidst the heinous systemic crime against George Floyd, to remain focused on a global pandemic that is mostly affecting black and brown communities, physically and economically; this includes essential workers such as those in transit. She says:
“Georgia Stand-Up is always in support of worker safety, especially for frontline public transit workers during COVID19. We hope Minneapolis drivers’ rights are upheld, they get needed PPEs, they are more valued and respected as they continue to work tirelessly to transport citizens despite the high risks to their own personal safety.”
About Labor Network for Sustainability
Founded in 2009, the Labor Network for Sustainability engages workers and communities to build a transition to a society that is ecologically sustainable and economically just. LNS convened the Transit Equity Day team in 2018 upon request by leaders of the Amalgamated Transit Union. The mission of Transit Equity Day is to promote public transit as civil rights and as a strategy to combat climate change—held on February 4, Rosa Parks’ birthday, each year. Involvement in Transit Equity Day grew exponentially since its first year, resulting in nearly 40 actions nationwide with impacts on thousands of transit workers and riders in 17 states. Learn more about the Transit Equity Group.
The people riding public transit right now are the essential workers who are keeping our society afloat. They’re allowing our transit system to function. They’re keeping hospitals and grocery stores open. They go to work every day, risking infection and death, to keep us all alive.
Transit is just as essential as housing, utilities, and food. However, whereas institutions have placed moratoriums on eviction and utility shut-offs, Port Authority is moving to reinstitute full fares for these transit riders. That is not the type of action that these riders need.
Port Authority needs to make it easier for these essentials riders to take transit to essential needs, not harder. That means:
Reduced fares
Suspend fare enforcement
Redistribute service to decrowd buses
Improve public comment & participation
Expand transparency about Covid-19 funding & plans
Provide masks & PPE for riders & workers
HAZARD PAY
and more
We need you to bring your ideas for expanding safe public transit for essential workers, and join us at this Virtual Transit Justice Townhall on June 10th, 7pm
Participants can join online via the Zoom program, or with their phones. If you have questions, comments or concerns about accessibility, or want to get involved with planning, please reach out to info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org.
Transit is more important than ever. We need 50 volunteers to help PPT distribute masks to essential transit riders.
Earlier this month, PPT members raised money to purchase 2,100 masks for essential workers who are riding transit every day. Now we need help packaging and distributing these masks over the next two weeks. We’re going to use these distribution days to also promote the upcoming Transit Townhall that PPT is organizing about changes that riders need to see because of Covid-19.
We will also need help packaging the masks. We will take all possible precautions not to share germs, including saying 6′ apart, using makes, gloves, and hand sanitizer.
See the schedule below and sign up with your availability. PPT Organizers will reach out with you to confirm.
Transit is essential. Pennsylvania needs stable funding for public transit.
On Thursday, May 14th, 82 organizations, unions, and elected officials across the state of Pennsylvania called on state legislators to ensure that the PA Turnpike fulfills its $450 million transit funding obligations until 2023, or until a sustainable, dedicated alternative funding source is secured. This coalition of transit riders, labor unions, community development corporations, and community advocates recognize that the viability of our transit system is paramount to both survive the pandemic and to ensure a path forward to recovery.
Recent news reports suggest that the Turnpike is looking to discharge this obligation amid the pandemic, and proposed state legislation would begin that process, with no plan for replacement. Defunding mass transit would impact residents in every county across the State. It would bring the state economy to a grinding halt and diminish access to critical needs like food and healthcare at a moment when both are precarious.
Moreover, COVID-19 CARES Act transit funding must not be used to replace the annual state contribution for transit, as it was specifically intended by Congress to address increased costs and funding shortfalls of transit agencies during COVID-19, and to ensure that mass transit could continue to serve as the economic engines of our cities. Finally, it is egregious that transit agency board members of both SEPTA and the Port Authority of Allegheny County are in positions that allow them to defund our transit systems, and undermine the viability of these economic drivers and community lifelines.
Testimonials from Pennsylvania transit riders supporting this effort:
The full letter and signatories are copied below and sign on to stay abreast of statewide advocacy for public transit:
Dear Governor Wolf and the PA Senate and House Appropriations and Transportation Committee Members,
Public transit is a public utility, and an essential extension of our healthcare and food systems. The COVID-19 crisis has brought into stark relief the need for public transit systems to be considered essential services and as a necessary aspect of our healthcare and food system infrastructure. Public transit moves front line workers in our food and healthcare industries to their critical jobs — nurses, grocery and pharmacy clerks, hospital environmental service workers, pharmacy technicians, food warehouse workers.
We the undersigned stakeholders and community organizations would like to respond to recent news reports and legislation proposing the discharge of the Turnpike responsibility to fulfill its transit funding obligations under Act 89. These reckless proposals would impact residents in every county across the State. Defunding transit would bring our state economy to a grinding halt and diminish access to critical needs like food and healthcare at a moment when both are precarious. The CARES Act COVID-19 transit funding was provided with the intention of ensuring the safety and viability of our mass transit during this crisis, and under no circumstances should it be used to justify dismantling our state funding mechanisms.
While Act 89 was an imperfect solution to the lack of dedicated funding to transit, it was nonetheless a heroic bi-partisan effort that provided stability for our Cities and rural communities and kept our statewide economy moving. That $450 Million annual Turnpike obligation does not step down until 2023. Our state legislators cannot allow for a reduction or for the elimination of those payments until an equivalent or greater dedicated state transit funding source is identified.
The federal government has responded to this crisis with bold action, directing emergency stimulus funds to transit agencies so that they can continue operating as economic engines of our states. Our federal legislators have recognized that maintaining the sustainability of our transit systems is paramount to both surviving the pandemic and ensuring a path forward to recovery. This CARES Act transit funding should under no circumstances be considered a viable substitute or stopgap for the state funding obligation, and must not be co-opted to address Turnpike shortfalls. The feds have done their part, now the onus is on our state.
Our state legislators need to rise to the urgency of this moment. This cannot be done by following the path set forth by Senator Kim Ward’s legislation or Representative Lori Mizgorski’s legislation, which would defund our state’s public transit systems with no plan for reliable, long-term replacement. Representative Mizgorski’s proposals are particularly egregious as she is a Board Member of the Port Authority of Allegheny County, with a responsibility to keep the transit agency financially solvent so that it can fully serve its riders and our regional economy. Her transit-riding constituents deserve better. PA residents deserve better. She and other legislators must take proactive steps to ensure public transit can continue to serve our state economy.
Pat Deon, Chairman of the Board of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is also a Pennsylvania Turnpike Commissioner, which places him in a uniquely compromised position. Chairman-Commissioner Deon must recognize that extricating the Turnpike from its financial obligations cannot be prioritized ahead of the critical mass transit systems that riders across the state count on every day.
If under this worst case scenario, the Turnpike reduces its transit payment obligation, then we propose that the Motor License Fund cover the shortfall. The Motor License Fund was intended to ensure the safety and viability of our state transportation system. However, over the past seven years, the State Police have siphoned billions of dollars from this fund. Annually, they have taken nearly twice as much money as the Turnpike funding that is allocated to mass transit. There is broad, bi-partisan agreement that the Motor License Fund is not the appropriate mechanism to fund the state police, particularly because their allotment far exceeds the amount needed to pay for the state troops which patrol our highways. Now is the moment for that change.
With this letter, we implore Pennsylvania Legislators to take innovative, equitable approaches to establish dedicated, long-term funding for public transit.
Sincerely,
Pittsburghers for Public Transit
Philly Transit Riders Union
Transport Workers Union Local 234
Amalgamated Transit Union Pennsylvania Joint Conference Board
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 85
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 164
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 168
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 241
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 801
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 880
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 956
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1279
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1345
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1436
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1738
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1743
Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1958
Commuter Railroad System Division / Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters
SEIU 32BJ
SEIU Healthcare PA
United Electrical Workers (UE)
Lindsey Williams, PA State Senator, District 38
Sara Innamorato, PA House of Representatives, District 21
Anita Prizio, Allegheny County Council, District 3
Bethany Hallam, Allegheny County Council, At-Large
Olivia Bennett, Allegheny County Council, District 8
Darwin Leuba, Auditor of O’Hara
1Hood Media
350 Philadelphia
ACCESS Mob
Allegheny County Transit Council
Alliance for Police Accountability
ARYSE
BikePGH
Bloomfield Development Corporation
Bloomfield Garfield Corporation
Borough of Carnegie
Casa San Jose
City County Taskforce on Disabilities, Allegheny County
Clevelanders for Public Transit (CPT)
Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW)
CREATE Lab
Delaware Valley Association of Rail Passengers
Erie United
FMB&Associates
Green Party of Allegheny County
Green Party of Pennsylvania
Hill District Consensus Group
Human Rights City Alliance
Institute for Policy Studies Climate Policy Program
Izaak Walton League of America – Allegheny Chapter
Just Harvest
Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA)
Labor Network for Sustainability
Lawrenceville United
New Sun Rising
New Voices for Reproductive Justice
North Aiken Community Council
OnePA
Perry Hilltop Citizens Council
Philadelphia Climate Works
Philly Neighborhood Networks
Physicians for a National Healthcare Program, Western PA
Pittsburgh Food Policy Council
Pittsburgh Mobile Bus Information Hotline
Pittsburgh Union of Regional Renters (PURR)
Pittsburgh United
Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project (PUMP)
Put People First! PA
Reclaim Philadelphia
Restaurant Opportunities Center United of Pennsylvania
Over 25,000 people are still riding Port Authority transit every day. These are the people who keep our hospitals, grocery stores, and pharmacies open. We rely on them to keep our families safe and fed, so let’s ensure that they stay safe by having the PPE they need.
On April 20th, Port Authority began requiring that all riders wear masks while riding transit, in line with Governor Wolf’s state health order. This was an important move to protect both riders and transit workers. However, masks are in short supply, and we know that low-income residents and our black and brown communities are both most vulnerable to the virus and least likely to have access to protective coverings. We have also seen incidents in other cities of riders without access to masks being subject to police brutality.
Pittsburghers for Public Transit started the Transit Rider Mask Fund to raise money to purchase masks for transit riders. The first round of mask distribution will give out 1,100 masks to transit riders on routes with the highest need.
You can get keep transit riders safe during this outbreak. You can keep our transit system strong.
Donate to the Transit Mask Fund to help PPT get reusable, high-quality cloth masks (with filter pockets) to transit riders who need them. All money raised will go towards purchasing and distributing masks to fellow Port Authority transit riders.
