by Rain Gresham

In this day and age, all we focus on is ourselves. But if you just took the time to stop and look around, you would see the beauty of people. The beauty of community. 

An estimated 28 million people use public transportation. That’s roughly 8% of the U.S. population and despite this, mass transit is in danger of losing its footing. 

During the pandemic, when people stopped using federal transportation and other infrastructure of economic importance the government put the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (or CARES Act) into place in March of 2020. 

This act was a 2.2 trillion economic stimulus, and 25 billion of that was allocated to the protection of public transportation; it was followed by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act later in the same year with 14 billion more dollars.

Then in March of the following year the “American Rescue Plan Act of 2021” was put into effect via a giant 30.5 billion dollar relief fund to the same cause.

Though over the four years since this, that 69.5 billion has been exhausted. It wouldn’t necessarily be a problem except for the fact that they never truly recovered from the pandemic rider-ship wise. Without the funding it is truly impossible for public transit to continue running effectively and fruitfully.   

I’m sure you’re wondering “Why should I care?” I mean we go everywhere with our parents, we have our own cars. What does public transportation have to do with us?

Everything, because public transportation isn’t just about buses or trains; it’s about the people.

The dad going home to his kids, the nurse on her way back from a long shift, the student just trying to get home early enough to eat dinner with her family. Without these little things, these quiet connections that bring us together, what are we? If not held together by the glue of these everyday moments, we are a shell of a community.  

We need to fight for this because who else will. So what can you do? 

You can give it your attention. Take the bus instead of calling an uber or door dash. Every ride counts even if it’s just once in a while. It may seem silly and useless because what can one person do? But that’s how change starts with one person taking initiative. 

Showing that you care, care enough to help the drivers keep their jobs, enough to help systems stay funded, and enough to show the people in power that this isn’t a lost cause 

Sure, we can’t vote. We’re not adults? But we are not children either, we can use our voices as little as it might seem. It makes a difference. 

Bring the problem to the forefront of people’s minds. If you can’t make them care, at least make them think.