Transit Equity and Climate: Moving to a Cleaner Future

For the past year, C3 has conducted research, literature reviews, and community surveys on transit and its intersections with equity and climate.

Improving our transit system is essential to extending opportunity and access to all, breaking the cycle of poverty that burdens many underserved households. Our Transit Equity and Climate: Moving to a Cleaner Future presents a roadmap for improving our transit system.  Reducing the expenses, pollution, and hassle of car-dependent communities also helps us achieve our climate goals. Let's shape together the advocacy needed to build a stronger transit system for our community!

Transit Equity and Climate Webinar

On Wednesday, September 29, 2021, report author, Caetano de Campos Lopes shared the findings of our Transit Equity and Climate: Moving To a Cleaner Future report. Watch the webinar or view the slide deck to learn what transit changes or improvements our community members would like to see happen and what the best practices are for achieving them.

Key Recommendations from the Report

1) Make fare-free transit permanent.

2) Set a goal to double transit ridership by 2024, with an emphasis on increasing average bus-occupancy levels.

3) Set a goal to have no route frequencies in excess of 30 minutes intervals.

4) Restore and expand pre-COVID service hours.

5) Relax overly restrictive rules.

6) Invest in technology upgrades to improve customer experience.

7) Move swiftly to invest in increasing safety at bus stops.

8) Complement main routes with on-demand mobility services.

9) Increase collaboration between key advisory boards to ensure that community voices have a role in transportation planning.

10) Invest in developing comprehensive regional transit policy through increased collaboration across services.

11) Develop a pilot program to introduce BEBs (battery electric buses) to CAT’s system and set a target to transition to a fleet with 50% of its buses being zero emission vehicles by 2030.

12) The City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County should double their investments in improving pedestrian and bike-friendly infrastructure, with priority placed on areas within one mile of existing and/or planned transit service.

13) Commit publicly to building affordable housing in the urban core of Charlottesville.

14) Lay the groundwork for zoning reform that allows for a denser and more transit-oriented development with affordable housing as a central feature.

SPECIAL NOTE: A Spanish version of the Executive Summary is Coming Soon!