The Fair Budget Coalition fights for a just and inclusive District of Columbia through advocacy and organizing and by advancing budget and public policy initiatives which reflect the inter-dependency of the District’s community and economic development systems. Organized in 1994, Fair Budget is a coalition of grassroots community groups, human service providers, advocates, faith organizations, and concerned community members.
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Our Policy Director, Cheryl Cort, speaks about the importance of investing in transit, walking and biking after the success of Inauguration Day, where 2.6 million people used Metro in three days.
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“The transportation portion of the stimulus badly misses the mark.” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, “It fails to mandate that most of the spending go to maintenance and operations of roads and transit and allows the Virginia and Maryland Departments of Transportation and the other state DOT’s too much authority to allocate $30 billion. That means business as usual instead of the fundamental change we need.”
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Rail, bus, walking and bicycle access made possible record-breaking crowds who attended downtown celebrations for the Presidential Inauguration. Metrorail marked three days of unprecedented ridership in a row, providing 2.6 million trips for people during three days of inaugural celebrations. Officials decided against any significant role for private automobiles and encouraged visitors to take transit or bus, walk or bicycle.
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The District of Columbia faces severe economic challenges. Declining revenues have already led to the adoption of significant budget cuts in the Fiscal Year 2009 budget. The cuts affect a wide range of programs, including parks, public safety, and transportation. However, they will fall especially hard on low-income families due to reduced funding for affordable housing, homeless services, health care, and income supports.
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