30 Apr

Topeka JUMP maintains its goals with meeting held online

Posted by in Affordable Housing, Public Transportation, Topeka JUMP

April 30, 2020. WIBW.

Though the coronavirus pandemic caused the Topeka Justice Unity and Ministry Project to hold its biggest meeting of the year online this week, rather than in person, group leaders say the organization is going strong, advocating for affordable housing, public transportation and a reduction in gun violence in the capital city.

The group’s Nehemiah Action meeting, which last year attracted a crowd of 1,200 people, took place online, with a number of local officials expressing their support for JUMP and its mission.

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02 Mar

Local Group Calls For More Frequency Along CARTA Bus Routes

Posted by in CAJM, Minority Rights, Public Transportation

March 2, 2019. The Charleston Chronicle.

Last week, the Charleston Area Justice Ministry (CAJM) along with the ACLU of South Carolina, Citizens Climate Lobby, Best Friends of Lowcountry Transit, Charleston Climate Coalition, and the Center for the Study of Slavery Social Justice Working Group held a press conference at the Cherokee United Methodist Church to show support for increased bus frequency. The average bus in Charleston runs on a frequency of once every hour making life extremely difficult for the 11,000 people who rely on public transportation every day, the group contends.

Last year, thousands of people gathered under the banner of CAJM to push for more frequent buses – specifically on North Charleston routes with high transit-dependent ridership. They are carrying that campaign into 2020.

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05 Nov

Hundreds attend Charleston Area Justice Ministry assembly to discuss community problems

Posted by in Affordable Housing, CAJM, Criminal Justice Reform, Public Education Improvement, Public Transportation

November 5, 2019. CountOnNews2.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- Hundreds of community members attend the Charleston Area Justice Ministry’s 2019 Community Problems assembly to discuss issues in the Charleston area.

CAJM is a faith-based organization comprised of many different Christian, Jewish, and Unitarian members. Their mission is to “come together to make the Charleston area a more just place to live, work, and do business.”

Tonight’s assembly addressed four different areas in the community that CAJM feels need attention: Education, Policing, Housing and Transportation.

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26 May

CARTA’s network of bus shelters, now with solar-powered lighting, is growing fast

Posted by in CAJM, Public Transportation

May 26, 2019. The Post and Courier.

One of the worst things about using the Charleston area’s bus system — waiting at a bus stop with no shelter, exposed to the elements — is getting a lot better.

The Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority is in the midst of a bus-shelter-construction boom, with the near-term goal of having shelters at 20 percent of CARTA’s bus stops. That would be 171 stops with shelters, 44 of which are expected to be installed this year.

In addition, the new perforated steel shelters and the existing shelters are lighted, using solar panels on the shelter roofs. Daniel Brock, a spokesman for the authority, said the solar systems already installed have been working well.

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15 May

CARTA will eliminate transfer fees, expand senior fares in response to CAJM plan

Posted by in CAJM, Public Transportation

May 15, 2019. Charleston City Paper.

A week after a social justice group called for improvements in the area’s public transit system, the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority announced fares that are friendlier to low-income and older riders.

The system will expand its $1-a-ride senior fares to all operating hours. Currently, the discount is only available between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., a restriction that advocates say prevents older, low-income users from riding during peak hours.

Transfer fees, which cost 50 cents each, will be eliminated. In addition, $15 unlimited weekly passes and $25 weekly unlimited express passes will be introduced.

CARTA’s board of directors voted to revise its policies at a meeting on Wednesday, according to a press release. The changes will come up for approval on July 15.

The changes come after the Charleston Area Justice Ministry, an advocacy group made up of 30 interfaith congregations, held its annual Nehemiah Action rally at Mount Moriah Baptist Church in North Charleston on May 6.

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