Dear Transit Equity Advocates and Supporters

2022 has been a year full of opportunities for LINK Houston. Our Board of Directors was hard at work interviewing and recruiting an Executive Director (I’m honored to have been selected) and the staff was keeping our programs and advocacy priorities moving forward, including:

• Piloting S.A.F.E. Sidewalks (Safety and Accessibility for Equitable Sidewalks) in Second Ward. This audit – conducted with volunteers – demonstrated the need for significant investments and improvements to sidewalk safety and accessibility in the neighborhood.
• Surveying over 200 bus riders in Gulfton with our Community Research Team and volunteers for our upcoming Equity in Transit 2022 report. Read on for more information about our report launch!
• Joining our partners StopTxDOT I45, Air Alliance Houston, and community members to urge the Texas Transportation Commission to fund more sustainable, safe, and accessible multi-modal mobility projects that connect communities – not further divide them.
• Nominated over two dozen individuals to serve on the Houston-Galveston Area Council’s (H-GAC) subcommittees to advise transportation officials on more equitable and sustainable multi-modal solutions. H-GAC leadership selected 22 of our nominees, including 12 people of color; 12 women, and eight women of color.
• Increased awareness of the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP) impacts on the Spanish-speaking community in Houston previously ignored by TxDOT’s public engagement hearings.
• Educated voters on their rights and ballot issues, including the Harris County bonds, created neighborhood maps showing bikeways and public transit routes alongside early and Election Day voting sites, and distributed 5,000 METRO passes for voters to access the polls during the second week of early voting.
• Lastly, we expanded the LINK Houston team with our Director of Communications, Nick Arcos, who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to help our organization grow.

My heartfelt thanks go out to the board and our tremendous staff for all that they do to advocate for a robust and equitable transportation network so all Houstonians can reach opportunity. As LINK Houston looks ahead to 2023, we will continue this work by influencing policy and funding to promote safe, accessible, multi-modal, and sustainable transportation; support environmentally just policies and initiatives that create resiliency and mitigate the impact of climate change, and co-power with individuals and communities to advocate for safe and dignified mobility options.

Next year promises to be even bigger, but only with your help. Please consider making an end-of-year gift to LINK Houston. And if you are able, consider becoming a monthly donor to support our work in the new year and beyond.
Happy Holidays!

Gabe Cazares