With Race For City Hall Heating Up, New York's Leading Transportation Advocates Release 2021 Equity Agenda, Urge Mayoral and Council Candidates To Adopt Their Platform
Advocates' 'Equity On Our Streets' Policy Vision Promotes A Transportation-Led Recovery Prioritizing Ambitious Climate Goals Backed By Major Commitments To Improving Bus Service, Cycling Safety And Accessibility And Curbing Driving
New York, NY--Amid a unique and crowded campaign season in which the city's very future is being questioned, New York's leading transportation advocacy organizations unveiled a robust local policy agenda. Highlighting the tight relationship between public space and social equity, advocates urge candidates for city office to put bus riders, cyclists, accessibility, and climate justice first on our busy streets.
COVID transformed how New Yorkers move. At the pandemic’s height, many people rarely left home. Others rode less frequent and less crowded public transit. Bicycling boomed. Driving nearly stopped, only to roar back alarmingly though most offices remain closed. At today's announcement, speakers argued that an equitable recovery from the pandemic starts on the ground: Improving public space on our streets and sidewalks can boost mobility, access, safety, and resiliency. Local transportation fixes can arc toward just and sustainable growth.
Advocates also acknowledged that the hurdles are real. Cars release the overwhelming share of our stubbornly high transportation carbon emissions. COVID cases were worsened by air pollution. Drivers and motorcyclists have recklessly used empty streets to set modern crash fatality records. Still, subway ridership more than tripled since April. The City set bus lane records and reduced many speed limits. Lockdowns revealed organic 15-minute cities, with most essentials in walking distance. Open Streets and Restaurants took traffic lanes and curbs back for people.
Advocates argued forcefully that a more equitable city demands broad changes in how we use streets. Black New Yorkers have 26% longer commutes and are more than twice as likely as whites to ride buses. The overwhelming majority of bus riders are low-income New Yorkers of color. A car-led recovery would exclude the majority of families without access to a car and leave behind the millions of New Yorkers of all ages who cannot drive. The ensuing gridlock, air pollution, carbon emissions, and deadly collisions would set the city back on its heels for decades to come.
"An equitable recovery starts on the ground we walk on," said Riders Alliance Policy & Communications Director Danny Pearlstein. "COVID put the inequity that has long been built into our streets into sharp relief. Choking gridlock gave way to fast and reliable bus service during lockdown. New bus and bike lanes, Open Streets and Open Restaurants have all helped reclaim public space from private cars. The toolkit is broad. The next Mayor and Council need the political will to design a fairer, safer city for all New Yorkers."
“Accessible transportation is essential for people with disabilities,” said Christopher Schuyler, Senior Staff Attorney with the Disability Justice Program at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, “without it, people with disabilities struggle to get to their jobs, to doctor’s appointments, to visit friends and family – anything! And as always, an accessible transportation system benefits not just people with disabilities, but also senior citizens, people pushing strollers or carrying luggage, and anyone else with mobility issues.”
Patrick McClellan, Policy Director of the New York League of Conservation Voters, said, "Transportation is the leading contributor to climate change and we can't solve the climate crisis without solving the transit crisis. We urge 2021 candidates to prioritize policies that improve mass transit and reduce pollution. We are excited to release the 2021 Transportation Equity Agenda and look forward to working with candidates to adopt it."
“Nine months into the pandemic, we are still reminded that public transportation is critical, open space necessary, and the climate crisis remains a threat,” said Kate Slevin, Senior Vice President, State Programs & Advocacy, Regional Plan Association. “As we look ahead to 2021 and our post-Covid recovery, we need our future leaders to commit to bold goals that center equity, access and health. It’s one way we can all come out of this stronger than when we entered it.”
"The road to New York City's recovery will be paved with bus and bike lanes. In order to bolster the needs of essential workers, tackle climate change, and build a more inclusive city overall, New York's elected leaders have no choice but to commit to advancing equity on our city's streets. With this policy agenda, we have created a blueprint for New York City's officials to follow in order to support recovery efforts that prioritize public transit, public streets, and public space," saidJaqi Cohen, Campaign Director, Straphangers Campaign.
"We’re proud to partner once again with these vital advocacy organizations to outline a vision for the future of transportation in New York City. We’re at an inflection point, and can either take a big step toward a more walkable, bikeable, transit-rich and humane city, or slide back into a 1970’s-style decline. The city’s future leaders must facilitate the former, and this is the road map by which we can get there,” said Eric McClure, Executive Director, StreetsPAC.
“As New York City emerges from this crisis, our streets must be a pathway for recovery. With this transit equity agenda, we demand that our city’s incoming leadership prioritize people, over traffic. In doing so, we will help our city’s most vulnerable, achieve our climate goals, support our economy, and increase the quality of life for every resident,' said Danny Harris, Executive Director, Transportation Alternatives. "New York City has already proven what’s possible with Open Streets, protected bike and bus lanes, and expanded sidewalks, now is the time to scale these and other success to every community across the five boroughs.”
"COVID-19 has led to tragedy and disruption on an unprecedented scale, which makes implementing the 'Equity on Our Streets' agenda incredibly important now," said Nick Sifuentes, Executive Director of Tri-State Transportation Campaign. "As our city recovers and rebuilds, it’s incumbent on our new mayor and city council to adopt the kinds of policies we lay out here to lay the groundwork for a new era for our transportation network and transition the city into a 21st century model of urbanism that is greener and safer, more equitable, accessible, and livable for all."