As part of broader vision for the creation of a just and green sustainable regional economy, CAUSE's campaign for transit equity seeks to expand public transportation service, access and  affordability through research, coalition building, policy advocacy and community organizing.

CAUSE Transit Equity 2020 Vision Goals

• Decrease in Ventura County's total 2010 daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) by 10% by 2020
• Increase transit use from the current less than 1% of all trips to 5% of all trips
• Increase the total percentage of housing and jobs that are located within a quarter mile of a transit stop where transit runs from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. to 25% (my guess is that this percentage is low, maybe 10%)
• Any new development that would create over 100 jobs must be in a transit accessible area
• 10,000 units of affordable housing built within a quarter mile of a transit stop
• 500 new miles of bike lanes and bike racks in every commercial center and on every block of commercial districts
• Three car-free districts/neighborhoods that encourage public transit use, biking, and walking

CAUSE Transit Equity Strategy Goals

• To build a coalition of Ventura County organizations to increase transit use, service, and affordability,  and promote bike, transit and pedestrian friendly communities (land use changes) as a way to combat climate change
• To develop a base of community leaders to develop and lead CAUSE's transit equity work, with a focus on South Oxnard and Santa Paula.
• To secure more transit operating funds for buses to keep fares affordable while increasing ridership and service. The core of this goal is the securing of funding for future transportation projects in the region through such means as a proposed county half cent sales tax in 2012.  

Identified Regional Transit Equity Issues:

• Ensuring transportation stimulus spending has local hire provisions. Working with state and federal partners to make 10% of transit capital stimulus funding available for operating funds.
• Finding sources of funding for bus operations including through sales tax and other transportation funding mechanisms. Provide an equity lens and advocacy strategy.
• Safe routes to school and complete streets.
• Finding strategies to avoid bus fare hikes and service cuts.
• Increasing participation in the unmet transit needs process.
• Working with cities to ensure housing and jobs are located in transit, bike, and pedestrian friendly areas.

Actions Currently in the works:

• Organizational sign-on letter to VCTC and meeting with the Commissioners as follow up. This letter asks to work with VCTC on a Ride Transit Free Day, A Safe Routes to School Day, to adopt meaningful performance measures to evaluate transportation projects and plans, apply an equity lens to stimulus funding, a sales tax measure that has principles of equity, and making VCTC more accountable and accessible.
• Working with the residents of Villa Victoria and CEDC on traffic, pedestrian safety, bus access improvements near this farmworker housing.
• Trying to stop fare increases or making sure they are fair
• Advocating for 10% of Federal Stimulus capital funds for transit can be used for operations
• Working with partners at a state and federal level to provide more opportunities to fund public transit including increasing gas taxes, vehicle registration fees, and other funding mechanisms like congestion pricing and VMT fees. This will include working on Federal Reauthorization of a national transportation bill this year.

State and National Transit Policy

Decisions made at the state and federal level greatly affect our local and regional transportation system. CAUSE works with TRANSFORM in a statewide coalition to restore state transit operating funds recently eliminated and continues to look for alternative sources to fund transit operations. Nationally, CAUSE works with the Transportation Equity Network and the Labor Community Strategy Center to ensure the reauthorization of the federal transportation bill in 2009 addresses transit equity and supports better public transit for the Central Coast.

CAUSE, in collaboration with VC COOL, PUEBLO and the Santa-Barbara based Coalition for Sustainable Transportation (COAST) have formed the Alliance for Sustainable and Equitable Regional Transportation (ASERT), a collaborative effort to organize a regional Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties transit equity alliance of community, environmental, labor, business and faith-based organizations. Among its recent accomplishments, on January 31 ASERT hosted the region's first Transportation Action Forum "Moving the Central Coast Forward," where over 250 community members and elected officials were energized to work on improving transportation in the region, especially public transit, biking and walking improvements.

Get Involved!

For more information on CAUSE's transit equity efforts contact Cameron Yee at (805) 658-0810, or at  cameron@coastalalliance.com.