Scooter riders in the I Street bus lane by BeyondDC licensed under Creative Commons.

Are you passionate about transit equity? Still making plans for Saturday, February, 4? Join the DC chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL-DC) to celebrate Transit Equity Day at the Anacostia Community Museum at 1:00 PM this Saturday! Transit Equity Day is a national day of action that advocates for high-quality public transportation powered by clean energy. To commemorate the birthday of Rosa Parks, activists around the country declare that public transit is a civil right. Learn how you can advocate for transit equity in your own community through exploring the Anacostia Community Museum’s interactive exhibit about generating social change, The Utopia Project, with the CCL-DC. Learn more here.

Thursday, February 2

Engage in meaningful dialogue on the Purple Line construction: The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA) will be holding the next series of Purple Line Community Advisory Team (CAT) meetings during the month of February. The meetings will be virtual via Microsoft Teams and will provide an update on construction activities at the neighborhood level. MDOT MTA has divided the 16-mile Purple Line corridor into eight geographic areas, each to be represented by a Community Advisory Team (CAT), to promote two-way information sharing between MDOT MTA, Purple Line Transit Partners (PLTP), and the community. CAT meetings are member-driven teams of representatives appointed by neighborhood, civic, and business associations and local governments. Join the virtual meeting this Thursday at 6:00 PM with the University Boulevard CAT meeting. Learn more here.

Friday, February 3

Learn from panelists how to use climate data and tools to inform planning decisions: As climate conditions change, understanding what data and tools are available to inform planning decisions is critical. This virtual webinar, The Climate Data Power Hour, features a climate data & technology vendor panel to introduce urban planners to data and tools to help communities reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and respond to climate impacts. During this session, each climate data and technology provider will speak for 5-7 minutes. These presentations will be followed by a facilitated discussion with all providers. Register here to attend the webinar on February 3 from 1:00 - 2:30 PM ET.

Tuesday, February 7

Learn how the pandemic impacted the use of public transportation among older adults: Millions of older adults rely on public transportation in their daily lives, but adults aged 65 years or older often face additional challenges accessing and using public transportation, and this population encountered even more barriers during the COVID-19 pandemic. How did limited mobility options (e.g., lack of buses or trains in service due a combination of government lockdowns, fear of contracting or spreading the virus, and driver shortages in certain areas) brought on by the pandemic affect older adults? Did transportation challenges result in more age-related declines in perceptual, cognitive, and physical functioning? This event explores how older adults living in major metropolitan cities in the United States used and perceived public transportation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Join the Mineta Transportation Institute on Tuesday, February 7 from 12:30 - 1:00 PM (PT) to learn about the potentials of mobile technology as an option for finding transportation information and how this study’s findings may help transit agencies develop effective strategies for meeting older adults’ transportation needs. Learn more here.

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Community members submit events for inclusion on our events posts and in our events calendar. Submit your event here. Submissions may be edited for context and clarity.

Karly Meyer was an Engagement Fellow at Greater Greater Washington. She was a student at George Washington University majoring in Public Health with minors in Sustainability and Biology. Karly discovered her interests in urban planning and active transportation while studying sustainable development in Copenhagen, Denmark. She grew up in Exeter, New Hampshire and used to live in Foggy Bottom, Washington, DC.