Our goal, as we spend out our endowment by December 2036, is to build the movement infrastructure to transform transportation funding and spending.
To build that movement, we work in several interconnected ways: power building, narrative change, and mobilizing philanthropy.
Power Building
Strengthen local organizing, mobilize key constituencies, and build a base for transit advocacy.
Grassroots organizing is essential to making public transportation a public and political priority—translating people power into political power. To build and maintain this power, we must organize in unprecedented numbers, and we need our movements to be equipped to create lasting change. We will engage the most effective advocates in communities where the conditions for transformative change are ripest and invest in their ability to win by building their capacity, connecting them to build a nationwide community and movement, and creating platforms and convenings where they can share knowledge.
Narrative Change
To shift the narrative so that many more people see transit as an essential service deserving of more funding
We must shift the narrative so that many more Americans see transit as an essential service deserving of more funding and priority than it currently receives. The prevailing narrative that car-centered lifestyles symbolize freedom and that transit is an unsafe, inferior product that wastes public funds has long impeded the work of advocates. We must sow a different narrative —leading with shared values—that highlights the flaws in our current transportation priorities, fostering a growing awareness of the need for improvement and galvanizing support for change.
TransitCenter’s 2026 national research (a belief arc survey of 2,000 adults plus focus groups and narrative frame testing) found that the conditions for the transit movement are strong: 73% of Americans support significantly increasing transit funding. But it surfaced a real challenge: only a minority of people are willing to take action in support of transit.
The Transit Narrative Project microsite turns these research findings into a resource you can use. It will help you know who is already with you, who is persuadable, and who is oppositional. The microsite provides the narrative frames that move people from agreement to action, and the values that resonate most. Visit the site for recommendations you can put to work in your own posts, campaigns, and conversations.
Mobilizing Philanthropy
To create impact at scale
At TransitCenter, we are both a grantmaker—providing financial support for transit advocacy—and a resource to other philanthropic organizations, demonstrating how transit is a critical tool for building more just, sustainable, and democratic communities. Historically, philanthropy has often overlooked the role of transit in shaping equitable and thriving communities. By highlighting its transformative impact, we help funders recognize that investing in transit is a critical pathway to creating a just and sustainable future for all.