Victories for Our Communities

Since 2006 OPAL has been fighting to create safer and healthy places for our communities to live, work, pray, learn, and play, with victories including:

• Bus Riders Unite! won a $10M Low Income Fare program for riders of TriMet through grassroots organizing.

• Youth Environmental Justice Alliance won an expansion of YouthPass to East Portland schools through developing young leaders.

• OPAL won Inclusionary Zoning by leading a statewide coalition to demand this affordable housing tool.

• Developed 40+ youth leaders annually

• Built coalitions to drive local, regional, and state policy

• Secured $1.3M low-income rider mitigation fund

• Won an extended 2.5 hour bus transfer through our Campaign for a Fair Transfer

• Saved YouthPass program from repeated threats of budget cuts

• Won reduction in youth fares

• Established Transit Equity Advisory Committee to TriMet

• Established Youth Environmental Justice Alliance

• Led broad coalition to repeal statewide prohibition on Inclusionary Zoning

• Won city update of density bonus policy for affordable housing

• Developed “Best Practices” guidelines for state agencies through Oregon EJ Task Force

• $111 million investment from the state of Oregon for statewide transit

• Developed BRU Budget Alternative to propose equitable budget priorities

• Improved key bus stops prioritized by riders

• Prevented elimination of cash transfers in E-Fare implementation

• Secured agreement to phase in E-Fare, with a free introductory period

• Organized Two Annual Youth Transit Justice Days of Action

• Facilitated seven years of the Organizer-in-Training program for emerging youth leaders of color

• Built a multiracial climate justice table with explicit environmental justice lens

• Partnered with ROSE CDC to support the Lents Youth Initiative and Lents Green Ring

• Exposed use of TriMet’s Contingency Fund for secret Executive Raises

• Acted as lead author of Metro’s Equity Strategy Framework Report

• Secured major changes in Metro’s understanding/approach to Title VI analysis of projects

• Founded the Transportation Justice Alliance

• Changed TriMet Board Meeting rules to include public comment on issues prior to board votes

• Discovered TriMet Clean Air Act violation of “Transportation Control Measures” that are part of our region’s Carbon Monoxide Maintenance Plan (TriMet and Metro later received a rule change from EPA rather than change transit service levels to satisfy the old rule.)

• Significant prior and ongoing efforts to improve Metro’s public engagement practices