As a Streetsblog Chicago reader, if you're short on time to do a full read of new mayor Brandon Johnson's 223-page 2023 Mayoral Transition Report, consider at least checking out the 15-page section provided by Johnson's transportation committee. We may do a deeper dive into the document on Streetsblog in the near future. But before the weekend kicks off, I just wanted to give you a quick heads-up about the existence of the report, and a very brief rundown of what's in the most SBC-relevant section.
According to the initial intro to the document, "Nearly 400 Chicagoans, representing a wealth of diverse perspectives, served on 11 transition committees that offered robust ideas and recommendations for Mayor Brandon Johnson's administration." Transportation was one of these groups. "They represent an unprecedented diversity of voices and perspectives—including diversity based on race, gender, generation, income level and neighborhood, and with representatives from business, civic, social justice and community-based organizations." Sounds like a good approach.
The transportation committee section states four primary transportation goals for the administration:
- Stabilize CTA delivery and reliability
- Increase equitable access to existing transportation
- Grow investments in equitable transportation
- Prioritize infrastructure that prioritizes safe movement
Each of the four goal sections states a short "Vision" explaining the goal, followed by several more specific strategies, each of which has "Near Term Recommendations," "Long Term Recommendations," and/or "Metrics and Milestones."
The section concludes with an "Additional Insights" section that discusses some of the challenges members of the transportation subcommittee faced in finding a unified vision of these issues. It also addresses some of the connections between efforts to improve local transportation and aims to create more equitable education and workforce development; economic development; housing; safety and public health; and climate and environmental justice.
