The Stories team at CAP Action works with storytellers who author op-eds about how policy impacts their lives. The team helps elevate their op-eds.
It’s no secret that the Triangle region is growing rapidly. But our current transportation and housing infrastructure is decades behind in being able to support such a population and future employment opportunities. To account for this rising growth and offset impacts – like increased housing costs, traffic, and air pollution – we need to dramatically expand our public transportation system.
As the vice chair of the Raleigh Transit Authority, I see how critical our existing public transit is for residents and the need to improve connectivity and reliability. After a bus driver shortage, we had to reduce the frequency from every 15 minutes to 30 minutes or 30 minutes to an hour. And despite this drastic change in convenience, our ridership numbers did not change. This shows people need this service—they have no other choice. So although the buses are free, I say our riders are paying a fare in lost time.
The above excerpt was originally published in Cardinal & Pine.
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