World-Class Transit Report

In 2000, TransForm released World Class Transit for the Bay Area. The report presented a detailed vision of harnessing the power of our existing transportation infrastructure, including nearly 18,000 miles of roads and 600 miles of rail tracks, to create a system that greatly increases transit ridership.

The timing was perfect. As noted in the the report: "The Bay Area stands on the threshold of a new era of massive transportation investments. Counties throughout the area are now creating transportation sales tax proposals that could be worth over $10 billion, and billions more dollars may come from state legislation and other sources."

Indeed, over the next 4 years Bay Area voters passed $17 billion of new investments as part of county transportation sales taxes and a $1 bridge toll increase. TransForm helped lead joint environmental/social justice campaigns on many of these, as described in our History and Highlights. In total, 75% of the funding, over $12 billion, will help expand and operate the region's public transit systems, with over $1 billion for safe walking and bicycling.

For a detailed account of our effort on the Alameda sales tax as covered in Dr. Robert Bullard's Highway Robbery: Transportation Racism and New Routes to Equity, (when we were known as TALC) click here.

You can read World Class Transit, or to get involved with TransForm's ongoing work to achieve our vision for world-class transit contact Carli Paine.