I came from Motor City, where our community has been denied access to reliable public mass transport for decades. Residents told me the story of our railway tracks being paved as the automobile company demolished the public tram system after its acquisition. Detroit suburbs resisted the expansion of public transport as a way to enforce racism. The Detroit story is not isolated. This familiar story unfolds in countless cities across our country.
Public transport provides access to opportunities and helps the community thrive. Critical workers rely on livelihoods and operate transportation, and many underserved areas rely on transportation to get to work. How many in our family travel to healthcare appointments and bring their children to school. Public transport is an important tool for economic, racial and climate justice.
However, recent actions by the Trump administration have threatened transportation access across our nation, from Elon Musk to recklessly stealing federal agencies to Transport Secretary Sean Duffy, who is threatening to withhold key federal funds.
Withholding important federal funds that have been allocated and signed into law is unconstitutional, causing chaos for local governments, making transportation investments that are often multi-year investments, and are nearly impossible.
Transport is always essential, but this is especially true in times of economic hardship. Increased access to public transport is key to improving economic justice for people across the nation. 60% of Americans I live my salary on my salary. I’ve heard about it from my residents in every corner of my district.
Housing and transportation are usually two of the best costs for most families in the US. Households spent on average$13,174 for 2023 shippingThis is the second largest annual household expenditure after housing. A significant amount of household income spent on transportation and housing highlights the financial challenges facing working families. High transport and car insurance costs, combined with housing costs, can seriously burden working families and affect overall quality of life.
If people can go to places where they need to rely on buses, light rails or trains to go, they have easy access to work, education, healthcare, products and services and connect with the community. They benefit from increased economic mobility and reduced household costs. Transportation systems that maximize access for people are designed to be comprehensive, without barriers related to race, income, age, or ability.
For many, a shortage of transport can be a major barrier to employment opportunities. In southeastern Michigan, we know that too many communities are being cut off from each other. Public transport serves as a lifeline of affordable, reliable access to the workplace. Ensuring a robust public transport system allows workers to create routes to ensure stable work.
Public transport also has safety and public health benefits. Mass transport is related to reducing automobilesDeadand lower cyclists and pedestriansInjury rate. Detroit has one of the bestTraffic fatality rateIn the country. The climate crisis poses an existential threat to our planet, and it is important for our government to invest in transforming our transportation systems by expanding and electrifying buses, trains and railroads to reduce emissions from the communities that make us sick. Improvements and expansion of public transport can literally save lives.
Public transport is more than just a way to get from one place to another. It is an important tool to address climate change, make streets safer, level the playing field for workers, and ensure the mobility, financial security and opportunity needed to prosper.
So I worked with my colleagues to help the law to create a no-fare transit. And that’s why I continue to fight back against the Trump administration’s attempts to give back transportation projects across our state and our nation.
When billionaires classes continue to make profits by leveraging working families, strengthening public transport systems is a practical way to reduce inequality and help people seize new opportunities.
Public transport is free and should be accessible to everyone. And we need to invest in it and not pay it back.
Democrat Rashida Tribe represents Michigan’s 12th Congressional District in the US House of Representatives.
