Bring Back the 31st Street Bus!

A mother and child add their support to BA's 31st Street bus photo petition.

Bridgeport Alliance is excited to announce the relaunch of its 31st Street bus campaign!  We’re looking for volunteers who care about public transportation to help us get the service that Bridgeport needs and deserves.

Since 2011, Bridgeport Alliance and its partners have been working together to lobby the Chicago Transport Authority to reinstate the 31st Street bus.  Though it was eliminated in 1997 due to “low ridership,” many people depended on the route for access to school and work, not to mention the many retail stores along the corridor, Mercy Hospital, and the 31st Street beach.  The elderly, who often are not able to walk the extra blocks to the Archer or 35th Street buses, have been hit particularly hard.

BA brought a lot of creativity to the campaign.  We’ve had a Bike/Roll along 31st Street, photo petitions, and direct actions.  We’ve even tracked down U.S. Representative Dan Lipinski at home to bring our needs to his attention (he was gardening).  In 2014, we won a major concession—the 35th Street route was extended to the 31st Street beach.

But that’s not enough!  The extension doesn’t apply in the winter months, only the summertime.  What’s more, it doesn’t serve the schools, hospital, stores, or workplaces on 31st Street.  It’s an issue of South Side justice, according to BA chair Ruby Pinto.  “The people who live here and the businesses that operate here deserve the same kind of service we see on the North Side. . . . I think that future would be a lot brighter with a 31st Street bus."

Please join us in rekindling the fight for this necessary resource!  As Reverend Thomas Gaulke of First Lutheran Church of the Trinity, who helped has helped spearhead the campaign from its beginning, “We need help in active participation and creativity on this relaunch. How can you help?”

Jump in with us!  Bridgeport Alliance meets on the last Thursday of each month at 7pm at First Trinity (643 W. 31st Street), tweet us at BridgeportAlly, or e-mail us at BridgeportAlliance@gmail.com.