image description: cutouts of the faces of John Weinstein, Michael Lamb, Sara Innamorato, and David Fawcett, and Will Parker are superimposed over a PRT bus. Text reads “Transit Q&A with candidates for County Executive. #VoteTransit on May 16th!"

From Chris Potter at WESA: "New poll shows Innamorato vaulting to lead in county executive race"

image description: cutouts of the faces of John Weinstein, Michael Lamb, Sara Innamorato, and David Fawcett, and Will Parker are superimposed over a PRT bus. Text reads “Transit Q&A with candidates for County Executive. #VoteTransit on May 16th!"

The race for Allegheny County Executive is tight! And the election is just days away on May 16th.

Many of the candidates have answered our #VoteTransit Questionnaire and laid out their positions on public transit, affordable housing and environmental justice.

Read their answers now and take the pledge to #VoteTransit on May 16th.

image description: collage of photos from the bus rides we took with the 4 candidates who accepted our invitation. The top photo shows Dave Faucett speaking with PPT Organier Cheryl Stephens and PPT Member Alisa Grishman. The second photo shows Michael Lamb speaking with PPT Member Clara Weibel, the third photo shows PPT Board Chair Verna Johnson speaking with Sara Innamorato. The bottom photo shows PPT Member and PRT Transit Operator Sascha Craig speaking with John Weinstein.

Innamorato, Lamb, Weinstein and Fawcett all accepted our invitations to ride the bus with us. We got to speak about our demands and hear their thoughts about the system.

image description: image includes photos of all 7 candidates running in the primary election on May 16th for Allegheny County Executive with text that reads, “transit rider demands”. To the left and right of the text are PPT’s logo, a bus outline with “PPT” in the center, and a circle of riders and workers around the bus holding hands.

Transit riders have more at stake in the Allegheny County Executive race than any other race for local office. The County Executive controls the majority of appointments to the PRT Board of Directors and other County entities, along with hundreds of millions of dollars that impact our lives.

PPT is mobilizing to make sure that a champion for public transit is elected to office. Join our monthly meeting on May 10th to get involved in this organizing.

image description: image includes photos of all 7 candidates running in the primary election on May 16th for Allegheny County Executive with text that reads, “transit rider demands”. To the left and right of the text are PPT’s logo, a bus outline with “PPT” in the center, and a circle of riders and workers around the bus holding hands.

In other news: Dozens of Pittsburgh Residents Call on City Council Not to Renew the Spin Scooter Pilot

The goals and the data that are being presented by DOMI and SPIN are incredibly murky.

If the point of the scooters is to provide underserved populations with mobility options, then the City should start by assessing who in particular this form of transportation can serve and who it excludes. DOMI should be clear about which populations this technology can help and what problem it will fix, and then assess whether that’s working.

We know that students—young people—traveling largely on weekday nights and on weekends in the key corridors of Oakland, Downtown and Lawrenceville are predominantly using the service to meet friends, dine out, or joyride. The Pittsburgh student population owns fewer cars, is lower income and more diverse than the city as a whole. So in order to actually understand the data of scooter usage, we should hear about what percentage of students are the same as the no-car household data that Spin is reporting, are the low-income households, and are the minority population using the scooters. 

Pittsburghers for Public Transit is a grassroots union of transit riders and transit workers. We are fighting for a more expanded, affordable, and equitable transit system as a human right.

You can help us win campaigns for better transit by becoming a member today.

Pittsburghers for Public Transit
5119 Penn Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15224
United States

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