City, county and state legislators in the Pittsburgh region published a letter on Tuesday calling for the implementation of emergency low-income fares for Allegheny County public transit as a way to help address health impacts caused by COVID-19.
The letter echoes a call from dozens of Pittsburghers for Public Transit members in late May to allow for riders who qualify for assistance to show their Electronic Benefits Transfer cards to board public transit for free during the pandemic.
“Many of our fellow community members, especially those working in essential industries and on the front line of the pandemic, rely on public transportation to reach their employment.” Allegheny County Councilwoman Bethany Hallam said. “The devastation that has resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic is both social and economic. Those hardest hit are our low-income neighbors, whose financial precarity is exacerbated by the crisis.”
Ms. Hallam said she also plans to introduce a motion for the program at Tuesday’s Allegheny County Council meeting.
Apart from providing relief for low-income riders who depend on public transit, the letter asserts that the program also will help prevent COVID-19 transmissions at fare boxes by reducing cash transactions and front-door crowding.
The letter also notes that the Port Authority of Allegheny County received over $141 million in federal stimulus funds earlier this month due to the fallout of the virus.
Ms. Hallam and the other signers of the letter say they want to use a portion of those funds to implement their proposed program.
“I am honored to join many of my colleagues from state, county, and local levels to call for a portion of those funds to be used to implement an emergency low-income fare program to ensure that all of our neighbors— especially those in greatest need and hardest hit by the crisis — are provided with the access to transit, and are able to access all necessary services,” she said.
First Published: June 23, 2020, 8:22 p.m.
