Growing up in the Detroit suburbs, I struggled with feelings of isolation due to unsafe or nonexistent sidewalks and inadequate bike infrastructure. I remember the smell of diesel I inhaled in otherwise crisp winter air while I got on the school bus way earlier than I wanted to be awake. As an independent kid, I found it so hard to understand why I didn’t have other choices to get to school or see friends.
When I turned 16 in my junior year of high school, I felt an immense sense of freedom driving, but I was often late to school because of traffic entering the parking lot. And if I wasn’t free, my little brother’s best friend was often stranded at school.
When I went to college, I would take the Amtrak to Chicago, where I was in school, arriving three, four, or five hours late. I once took a greyhound that took eight hours.
In this context, compared to the buses I was riding to class in Chicago, I realized something wasn’t right. The federal government has not given our state the necessary transportation resources to reduce traffic and clean our air.
Voting in a presidential election isn’t a valentine or an all-encompassing endorsement but rather a strategic moment that is an important step toward our longer-term goals.
In my case, one big reason I am voting for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in Michigan is because they are the most likely ticket to invest in safe, reliable transportation. While President Donald Trump has repeatedly proposed slashing funding for trains and other essential transportation infrastructiore, Harris and Walz have a consistent track record of funding clean buses and building fast trains.
Vice President Kamala Harris has a strong track record on electrifying school buses so kids don’t breathe in diesel fumes and supporting high-speed rail to unclog highways and give people options for getting around.
Governor Tim Walz famously signed the country’s most impressive sustainable transportation law to improve transportation and reduce wasteful projects. Walz also funded rapid buses set 100% renewable energy goals and helped fund a new popular Amtrak line, the Borealis.
Most people in the United States only have driving as an option to get around, and while that works for many, young people, older adults and some people with disabilities need alternative options. Many Americans like me would rather take a train to the bar so they can come home safely without splurging on an Uber, but don’t have that choice.
From an environmental perspective, transportation is responsible for 28% of greenhouse gas emissions in the US, the most of any sector. In addition to being a major contributor to climate change, our current transportation system has an enormous impact on the environment including water pollution, over-mining, reduced air quality, and increased flooding risks.
Some studies have shown that safe, reliable transportation is the fastest economic accelerator for lifting people out of poverty.
There are few things I love more than taking a road trip up north to cross-country ski or pick apples, and I plan to keep doing that throughout my life. But I would love to not crawl through traffic to Red Wings games.
Harris and Tim Walz are the best option for investing in the transportation systems we need in Michigan.
Planet Detroit’s Voices column includes opinion pieces from our community of partners and readers. These pieces express the voices of the authors and not necessarily those of the publication.
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