Frequency is freedom! Sat. Feb. 22

On Saturday, Feb. 22 activists for better public transit will gather, rally and board the buses in N. Charleston starting at 10:30 am. There will be a brief gathering starting at 10:30 at 2105 Cosgrove Ave, North Charleston, SC 29405-5703. A  rally and press conference will follow at 11 am and participants will begin boarding CARTA buses across the street at Superstop at 11:30.

The event is being organized by the Charleston Area Justice Ministry (CAJM) in cooperation with ACLU of South Carolina, Best Friends of Lowcountry Transit, Citizens Climate Lobby and other groups.

A Facebook signup for the event is online at https://www.facebook.com/events/564098634182009/. For more information contact Rosemary Stump, Associate Organizer, Charleston Area Justice Ministry, Email, rose@thedartcenter.org or ph 850-590-7209

Best Friends of Lowcountry Transit will conduct a guided transit ride to the event from Mt. Pleasant and downtown Charleston starting at 9:10 am in Mt. Pleasant and connecting downtown at 80 Mary Street at 9:55 am. For details contact William Hamilton at (843) 870-5299.

Thousands of people in Charleston rely on the bus every day. However, the average bus in our community comes once every hour. People most impacted by infrequent bus service are the same people who have historically been shut out of political and economic systems: working people, poor people, Black people, and women. Those who rely on public transportation in Charleston end up being captive to a bus schedule; Infrequent bus service means residents lack access to employment centers, medical and educational institutions, recreational opportunities, grocery stores and more. Frequency is a quality of life issue.

Last year, CAJM pushed for increased frequency on routes 11, 12, and 32. Those three routes crisscross communities with the highest percentage of transit dependent riders in the Lowcountry but buses run only about once an hour. So far, there has been no increase in frequency.