Queens Link Rockaway Beach rally Oct 9, 2022
Greetings from Parents to Improve School Transportation, better known as PIST. While we mainly fight for the rights of school bus riders, our organizing has at least three things in common with this protest for the Queens Link.
One: Policy decisions at the MTA are like policy decisions at the Office of Pupil Transportation, but on a larger scale. Decisions made by executives who do not have to use the services themselves, and/or who can be influenced by the business sector, are often insensitive and even cruel.
Two: Aside from OPT’s bad decisions – like allowing the wage structure of school bus workers to be cut so badly over the last 10 years that there’s a critical shortage of drivers – another factor making the rides so long that kids miss classes is…TRAFFIC on the roads in Queens.
Queens is the home of several school bus bases, and some large programs that serve students with disabilities. These buses have to cross the borough 4 times a day to bring students from other school districts that do not offer them the appropriate resources. It’s common knowledge that students who are Black, Brown or disabled have the longest commutes to school, and these transit deserts are a contributing factor.
PIST is bound to support any mass transit solution to decrease the number of cars so that yellow buses can get our kids who need them to school, on time and safely. Queens Link trains will also make travel more efficient for those students who use metrocards.
Three: The past weeks of hurricane season have reminded us that global warming is dangerous and must be slowed down by all means!! Shifting from private cars to rail lines fits that goal.
To summarize, Parents to Improve School Transportation send our solidarity in the fight for more humane decisions, easier travel for all, and a healthier planet. Transit Equity NOW!
