The Importance of Transit Equity

Car-dependent metropolitan areas divide and isolate people from one another. Strong public transit systems and walkable and bikeable city infrastructure helps to make communities more accessible and fosters connection. This virtual discussion will focus on the impact of public transit and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure on equity, and how inaccessible, car-centric cities disproportionately marginalize and endanger BIPOC and other vulnerable communities. We will discuss how cities have been shaped by historic and ongoing discriminatory housing and transportation policies, and how transit advocates are helping to transform urban planning in cities like Ann Arbor and Detroit. Panelists include Dr. Molly Kleinman, former Chair of the Ann Arbor Transportation Commission and Managing Director of the Ford School’s of Science, Technology, and Public Policy program; Donnell Wyche, Ann Arbor transit advocate, Pastor of Vineyard Church, and an Ann Arbor Planning Commissioner; Idrees Mutahr, former activist of Motor City Freedom Riders and Project Manager with the City of Detroit’s Joe Louis Greenway, among others TBA.

Discussion Recording