On Friday April 26th, students from Cesar Chavez Public Charter School joined with community leaders, and ATU Local 689 members at a city council hearing asking council members  not to privatize  20 public bus lines.  In the fall of 2012 the District Government submitted a RFI concerning the privatization of 20 city bus lines. Some of the bus lines are used by the students from Cesar Chavez and their families.  Chavez students testified at the hearing  and they also wore badges that said “Please don’t privatize my ride”.  The hearing was for budgetary issues for the environment and public transportation.

Research shows public transportation in the hands of private interests, may result in unregulated fares, route changes, changes in the hours of operation and services may be cut for our most vulnerable  brothers and sisters who live in areas deemed “not profitable.”  In other jurisdictions – PG county for example, residents are complaining about their private bus system because it often leaves late night restaurant workers, service workers, cleaning crews, and other “invisible” workers stranded at night and weekends.

Show your support for this campaign by tweeting about it. The Chavez students have created the hashtag #dontprivatizemyride. Please use this in support of the campaign.