Calls investment in public transportation critical
WASHINGTON, DC: Larry Hanley, international president of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), released the following statement in reaction to President Obama’s State of the Union address tonight.
“The Amalgamated Transit Union applauds President Obama’s call for an agenda to create opportunity for all. Action to reduce income inequality and give all citizens an equal chance to pursue the American Dream is long overdue.
“Our country continues to be a nation of two classes – the privileged few and the rest of us – bus drivers, hotel workers, school teachers, fire fighters, and working families.
“It’s time for Republican leaders in Congress to get serious about shared sacrifice by requiring Wall Street and the wealthy to pay their fair share of taxes.
“Working people are losing faith in America as a land of opportunity. While we praise the President for increasing the minimum wage for employees under federal contracts, it’s time to raise living standards for all workers. We must build a country in which all Americans have an equal chance to provide for their families.
“There are few things that can do more to reduce income inequality and ignite our economy than investing in public transportation. With exploding urban populations, worsening traffic jams, young people forgoing cars and stressed public transit systems, we call on Congress to quickly reauthorize a federal transit program that sets forth a serious urban transportation agenda for all. All Americans need accessible and affordable public transit to safely get to and from work, school, the doctor and other important daily tasks.
“Not only does public transit provide reliable mobility, it creates good jobs, eases traffic congestion, delivers customers to businesses, and helps fight pollution. There is literally nothing more effective for getting our economy moving than public transit.”
About the ATU
The Amalgamated Transit Union is the largest labor organization representing transit workers in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1892, the ATU today is comprised of over 190,000 members in 264 local unions spread across 44 states and nine provinces, including 3,000 workers at Greyhound Lines, Inc. Composed of bus drivers, light rail operators, maintenance and clerical personnel and other transit and municipal employees, the ATU works to promote transit issues and fights for the interests of its hard-working members.