Big Wins in 2023 are Possible, But We Need You in Our Lane

We are ready to win policy transformation and major investments that save lives, reduce barriers, and expand opportunities to the people and neighborhoods our current system neglects.

Our work is hard and getting harder.

In 2022, The Street Trust celebrated thirty years of transportation advocacy. We are proud to be the only nonprofit exclusively dedicated to achieving a complete, safe, low-carbon, multimodal transportation system that contributes to equity in access, opportunity, health, and prosperity for the greater Portland region’s people and communities.

Unfortunately, the challenges we face grow more intense with each passing year:

• Oregon has the 10th highest traffic fatality rate in the country – with 1.45 roadway deaths for every 100 million miles traveled, according to data for the first half of 2022 from the NHTSA, and pedestrian fatalities are up 61% over the same period for the year prior, according to ODOT.

• City of Portland this week announced that pedestrian fatalities have reached 70-year highs this year.

• Racial and socioeconomic disparities persist, with dangerous conditions disproportionately affecting BIPOC and low-income communities. In 2021, Black Americans had the highest fatality rate across all modes, and were 3.4% more likely to die while walking at night, according to a Harvard/BU study released this year.

• Trust in public institutions is plummeting as far-right domestic extremism and political polarization are rising sharply, according to the Oregon Secretary of State.

• Inflation means increasing costs and demand for our services, while also experiencing a decrease in giving and volunteering. Nonprofits must do more with less.

The consequences of inaction are growing.

As our leaders stand poised to make decisions about how we will invest billions of dollars in transportation infrastructure in coming years, The Street Trust’s advocacy in 2023 will be critical and your support is essential to ensure progress:

• Right-sizing major investments like the I-5 Bridge and ensuring regional congestion pricing is equitably implemented so our dollars go toward increased safety, transit, walking, biking, and rolling – not expanding highways 

• Capturing and amplifying valuable and historically marginalized perspectives to inform a 2023 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) that meets community needs and priorities, with an intense focus on Clackamas, Washington, and E. Multnomah Counties

• Ending the epidemic of deaths and serious injuries on deadly arterials and ‘Orphan Highways’ like Hall Blvd, McLoughlin Blvd, and TV Highway, through investment in sidewalks, pedestrian-scale lighting, protected bikeways, traffic cams, and bus stops 

• Creating HUB Community Coworking space at Lloyd Center, which provides affordable office space where our team can grow their impact alongside like-minded nonprofits

• Influencing across organizations and jurisdictions for immediate safety improvements to SE 26th & Powell and parking-protected bike lanes on NE Killingsworth St

• Expanding trans-inclusive bike-to-wilderness camping trips, creating precious safe space for gender and sexual minorities in a time of heightened bias and hate

• Continuing our BIKETOWN for All Ambassador Program which expands mobility to low-income youth, older adults, and BIPOC community members via shared e-bikes 

• Robust educational and Safe Routes to School programming including: Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day, Oregon Friendly Driver, and Rules of the Road legal Clinics

• Powerful community partnerships such as Human Rights Day with Street Roots and Street Books which aligned the needs of three “street” focused organizations

• Educating elected officials via candidate transportation school and policy study tours, exposing them to transportation basics along with e-bikes, walking, and transit

• Connecting with the public more effectively through our GIS-based “Community Scorecard,” upcoming digital media campaign and a new podcast series

• Connecting people and ideas across over 30 committees and coalitions including: Just Crossing Alliance, Getting There Together Coalition, DEQ Commute Rulemaking, Oregon Transportation Plan, Oregon Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (OBPAC),  Metro’s Transportation Policy Alternatives Committee (TPAC) and more… 

• Designing the 2023 Oregon Active Transportation Summit ‘Move Into Action’ to provide a venue for exchanging practical strategies, tactics, and tools for bringing about what we've collectively committed to achieve.

We need you in our lane.

Political support among elected leaders and public agencies flows directly from the level of community support demonstrated for any given issue. With your help, we can demonstrate support for better public policy and investments and ensure that community priorities are reflected in transportation decisions. 

To support your learning and engagement, we’re launching #OurStreets, a biweekly Substack publication featuring stories, events, and calls to action—all in once place. If you’re reading this from your inbox, you’re already subscribed! As a subscriber, you'll be among the first to know how to be a force for transportation transformation in our community.

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