Our monthly all-member meeting, which usually takes place on the second Wednesday of the month, has been rescheduled this month for September 17th at 7 PM. 

We made this shift to accommodate an important city council meeting during our regularly scheduled time on September 10th. (Which, by the way, we would love your support at!) 

Image Description: Two PPT members stand in front of a colorful mural depicting two stylized faces and the place name "Allentown" in yellow neon letters.

Do you live in Pittsburgh's South Hilltop community? 

Do you care about public transit (like, a lot) and want to see it get better for you and your neighbors? 

Do you want to learn organizing, research, and campaign-building skills alongside like-minded folks, all while getting paid? 

Then do we have the opportunity for you! The application for our PAID Hilltop organizing fellowship is now live. This is your opportunity to learn about public transit, environmental, accessibility, and economic justice issues affecting the Hilltop--and to build plans to win around them. 

If you're a community leader or transit rider in the Hilltop community, and you're looking to level up your skills, we want to hear from you. Apply by September 22nd, 11:59 PM to be considered. 

Image Description: Black text on a yellow background reads: "Tell PGH City Council: Keep PGH Home! Pass Inclusionary Zoning Now! The tools are there. The support is strong. Pittsburgh can't afford to wait." In the background is an image of housing advocates marching holding signs, and the Pittsburgh Housing Justice Table logo.

September 10th is the final public hearing on citywide Inclusionary Zoning, an affordable housing package that has been in consideration for months--a package with broad support, and policies proven to make quality housing more affordable for everyone. 

We need City Council to know that their constituents are watching, and that Pittsburgh supports affordable housing for all. Can we count on seeing you Wednesday afternoon, in the Council chambers downtown?

Even if you can't make it to the council chambers Wednesday, we need your help turning folks out to pack the room. Can you sign up to help us phone bank on September 8th? We'll provide a brief training and script. 

Image Description: text reads "We demand more transit, not less" over a photo of transit advocates at a rally holding Transit for All PA! signs. The text is stylized to look as if it's written in red marker; there is a graphic blue, red, and yellow stripe under the text.

Our statewide campaign, Transit for All PA!, is working overtime with our partner organizations across the state to champion budget solutions that actually fund transit. We've hosted rallies in key Republican districts in Philly and Pittsburgh, and hosted rallies along State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta's walk from Philly to Harrisburg--drawing crowds in Philly, Chester Co., Lancaster, and Harrisburg across the way.

We're not slowing down! We need help at our upcoming phone bank. Can you join us? 

Have you been reading confusing headlines about budget deals, proposed legislation, lawsuits, and interventions from private companies? Do you just want to know what on earth is going on with PA's transit funding crisis? 

Join Connor, our Statewide Campaign Manager, for a lunchtime Instagram Live session on Wendesday, 9/10 at 12 PM debriefing the state of the PA budget, how it affects transit systems across the state, and the impact of recent local measures on our fight for transit.

Note: the link must be opened in the Instagram App to work. If you're not in the app, schedule a reminder on your phone for Wednesday, September 10th at 12 PM, then head to our Instagram page to join Connor for the live session.

Finally: we've scheduled a statewide call for Thursday, September 18th at 7 PM. Join us to go more in-depth on what's happening in this budget fight, how our movement has shaped the narrative, and what's next for equitable statewide transit funding.

Image Description: black text with a yellow highlight reads "Skill up with PPT's Organizing Committee", next to a collaged graphic with PPT members and red starbursts.

If you're looking to grow your skills as an organizer, look no further--our fabulous Organizing Committee is hosting a series of trainings to help you take an active role in the movement for transit justice. 

Join us on Tuesday, September 30th at 6:00 PM to learn how to canvass transit riders, and spread the word about PPT!

Image Description: black text with a yellow highlight reads "This stop needs a shelter! Fill out our form", next to a collaged graphic with a bus stop sign, yellow cutout, and red starbursts.

In coordination with the City of Pittsburgh's Department of Mobility & Infrastructure (DOMI), we're collecting information from you--the expert transit riders!--to identify stops that desperately need a shelter. Have folks put out DIY chairs and shade structures at a stop on your commute? Is your stop always chock-full of waiting riders with nowhere to rest? Help us tell DOMI you need a shelter!

Image Description: An image of a person in a wheelchair entering a van. Overlaid is the black and yellow Week Without Driving PGH logo, and text reading "Sept. 29-Oct. 5. Take the Pledge. Call for change. Weekwithoutdrivingpgh.org"

Each year, we participate in the communal pledge to go a week without driving, and call for true mobility options for everyone in Allegheny County. We encourage you to sign up to join us--and to invite your favorite community organizations and elected officials to join us!

Image Description: A crowd of transit advocates holding yellow and red signs reading "Transit Moves Us" and "City Resident, Transit Rider"

The Allegheny County Transit Council (ACTC) is PRT's citizen advisory council. Every American transit system is required by federal law to host a citizen advisory council, and take its input into consideration. And ACTC just so happens to be led by our very own Andrew Hussein, former PPT board member! 

Starting this month, the ACTC will be a space in which PRT shares proposed bus & T schedule changes, in order to incorporate feedback from the community before they go live. This is an important opportunity for us to positively impact both riders and workers--bus schedules have a massive impact on reliability and working conditions.

Please consider joining the ACTC meeting on Wednesday, September 24th at 5:30 PM. This will be a hybrid meeting. In-person attendees will join at the PRT boardroom inside the Heinz building downtown (345 Sixth Avenue); virtual attendees can join at this link. Please email Andrew to RSVP: [email protected]. 

Image Description: an illustrated movie camera with the PPT logo and text "PPT Movie Night!" with time and date. A black and white poster showing a man on a swing is to right, with text reading "Join your PPT friends to watch Ikiru, an all-time classic movie about organizing from the acclaimed director Akira Kurosawa", and a longer quote from Roger Ebert.

Join your friends at PPT for a screening of an excellent movie about community organizing! We are so excited to share that the Harris Theater downtown is screening Ikiru, a classic film by the acclaimed Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. It follows a man who finds community organizing as a way to affirm the value of life, both his own and others'. 

We'd absolutely love to see you there, and share some warm fuzzy feelings about how lucky we are to organize together! Please RSVP if you'd like to attend. The screening will be held on Sunday, September 21st at 4:00 PM. 

Pittsburghers for Public Transit is a grassroots union of transit riders, transit workers and neighbors.