A diverse, walkable community depends on a transportation infrastructure that provides a variety of ways to get around, serving pedestrians and transit-riders as well as drivers. Quality of life is key to the success of any urban community. A good transportation network also relies on healthy communities. This can be affected by housing sites, affordable and convenient transportation, easy access to shopping and services, safety and equity.
CNT promotes research and action on understanding housing and transportation affordability, revitalizing and developing communities and public involvement in shaping policy. CNT has worked on a number of projects designed to encourage community development and promote transportation options.
To learn more about CNT’s work in Transportation and Community Development, take a look at our projects, tools and resources on this page.
Wednesday, October 15th, 2008 at 10:52 am
In a press conference on Wednesday in eight U.S. cities, including Chicago, a coalition of community and business leaders announced the release of “Build for America: A Five-Point Plan to get our Economy Moving”. On the heels of the Wall Street bailout and hours before the final presidential debate, community and business leaders joined together to call on the next President and Congress to strengthen our local and national economies by building a 21st Century transportation system.
CNT joined the Transportation for America Campaign (T4) to put forth this bold economic agenda which has the potential to create millions of good, green jobs nationally, save Americans thousands of dollars per year, and reduce America’s dependence on oil once and for all.
As CNT President Scott Bernstein put it, “We’re too exposed to the rising price of gasoline and the need to own too many cars. This region’s households are spending over $40 billion annually for transportation, dwarfing what’s invested publicly. Working families now pay as much or more for transportation as they do for housing.”
The Plan calls for investment in public transit, high-speed and intercity rail, neighborhoods that are less car-dependent, more walkable and more affordable, and restoring the thousands of roads and bridges in failing condition across the United States. The five points to achieve these goals:
1. BUILD TO COMPETE with China and Europe, by modernizing and expanding our rail and transit networks to reduce oil dependence, connect the metro regions that are the engines of the modern economy.
2. INVEST FOR A CLEAN, GREEN RECOVERY through cleaner vehicles and new fuels as well as the cleanest forms of transportation - modern public transit, walking and biking - and for energy-efficient, sustainable development.
3. FIX WHAT’S BROKEN before building new roads and restore our crumbling highways, bridges and transit systems.
4. STOP WASTEFUL SPENDING and re-evaluate projects currently in the pipeline to eliminate those with little economic return that could deepen our oil dependence.
5. SAVE AMERICANS MONEY. Provide more travel and housing options that are affordable and efficient, while helping people to avoid high gas costs and traffic congestion.
Build for America is a project of the Transportation for America organization, a national consortium of environmental, consumer advocacy, business, and governmental groups preparing for the 2009 re-authorization of national transportation legislation. The speakers from the various organizations explained and reinforced the arguments for increasing investment in American public infrastructure. “Amtrak ridership in Illinois continues to break records. We’ve shown that if you build it, they will come,” said Kevin Brubaker, Deputy Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “When people have a transit option, they use it. Who wouldn’t?” As Scott Bernstein noted, “owning one less car per household raises income by 10 to 20 percent.” Providing a transit option is the single best way to increase the income of individual households of all socio-economic classes while simultaneously providing access to jobs, stores, and other essential services. Higher investments in public transit will not only create jobs, but will also increase the mobility of all people. Ultimately, “investment in transit will produce the best returns for our economy, our pocketbooks and our communities,” explained Brian Imus, the Director of Illinois PIRG.
Download the full Five Point Plan or view photos from the press conference.
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Monday, October 13th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Starting at the end of this year, residents around the Chicago region will have a more convenient way to travel. The “Smart Card” program will feature a joint card that allows access both to I-GO cars and rides on the CTA, enabling a more integrated approach to public transportation. Promoting multiple transportation options—and better ways to transfer mode to mode, like with a joint Smart Card—effectively gives people better reasons for staying out of their cars, which can save them money and reduce congestion and pollution in the region.
Read more about the details of the Smart Card program in I-GO’s press release. The Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune have also written about the new program.
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Friday, September 19th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
CNT is pleased to announce that María Choca Urban will serve as Director for Transportation and Community Development. María’s career in transportation and community development spans 15 years in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining CNT, she served as the Chicago Transit Authority’s General Manager for Policy and Strategic Solutions where she directed the CTA’s Transit Oriented Development (TOD) initiatives including a joint effort with the City of Chicago to undertake several pilot projects and development of the CTA’s first TOD plan for its rail network.
“I am excited that Maria has joined our transportation team, “said Kathryn Tholin, CNT’s Chief Executive Officer. “Her wealth of experience will be an asset to CNT as we develop sustainable transportation strategies for the 21st Century.”
María worked as an Assistant Commissioner for the City of Chicago’s Department of Planning under the administration of Mayor Harold Washington directing the Neighborhood Planning Division, where she oversaw the preparation of redevelopment plans for low and moderate income neighborhoods and acted as a liaison to community representatives and elected and appointed officials. Her tenure with the City culminated with a plan to use Chicago’s boulevard system to spur the redevelopment of inner city neighborhoods - a blueprint that guided later investments by Mayor Daley. Following her government service, María joined the Woodstock Institute as a Vice President. There she conducted research on alternative community financial institutions and provided technical assistance to banks and community representatives in the design and implementation of community lending programs. Maria returned to public policy and planning in 2004 joining Chicago Metropolis 2020 as Program Director for land use, transportation, housing and economic development. While at Metropolis she contributed to The Metropolis Freight Plan and Homes for a Changing Region, forecasts respectively of the Chicago region’s freight and housing needs through 2030, and developed particular expertise in freight-related development patterns in the south suburbs.
Maria has a Masters in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Chicago. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from the University of Notre Dame where she graduated with high honors. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
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