Transit in the Tri-State Region: Who’s on Board?

How do you make public transit more useful for more people?  TransitCenter’s Who’s On Board 2016 report identified two fundamental principles: Make transit fast and frequent, and concentrate transit in neighborhoods where many people can walk to it. This back-to-basics message has struck a chord with transit agencies and commentators across the country, which is why the research has been cited in places as diverse as Charlotte, Houston, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC.

What are the lessons for our region, which has grown up around transit? TransitCenter and Tri-State Transportation Campaign invite you to participate in a conversation with leaders from the tri-state area as they discuss the connection between transit and walkability, what new infrastructure projects may mean for the region, and how to get beyond the commuter mindset and make transit more useful for more people.

Panelists:

Mayor Tom Roach of White Plains, N.Y., a major jobs center in Westchester County currently engaged in planning efforts to improve access to its downtown Metro-North station and new rapid transit in the Tappan Zee corridor.

Doug Hausladen, the Transportation, Traffic, and Parking Director of New Haven, Connecticut. In recent years, New Haven has sought to build “complete streets,” begun to rip out downtown highways, and will soon be the terminus of a new rail line connecting it to Hartford and points north.

Veronica Vanterpool, Executive Director at Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a nonprofit advocacy organization which works towards a more balanced, transit-friendly, and equitable transportation network throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. She was appointed to the MTA board in 2016.

Moderator: Steven Higashide, Senior Program Analyst at TransitCenter.  His work focuses on transportation opinion research and advancing parking reform, demand management, and congestion pricing. Steven is the lead author of TransitCenter’s report Who’s on Board, which will frame the evening’s conversation.

For more information, download our report here.