The Tri-State Transportation Campaign is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to reducing car dependency in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Leading environmental and planning organizations formed the Campaign in the early nineties as a response to the mounting economic and environmental costs of automobile and truck dependence and promising reforms in federal transportation policy.
In the fifteen years since our founding, the Campaign has enjoyed a strong record of accomplishment. Among our most notable victories are winning additional sources of revenue for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the livable streets renaissance in New York City, the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s adoption of a smart-growth oriented transportation policy, and millions more in funding for bicycle, transit and pedestrian projects.
Nevertheless, in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut metro area transportation continues to be a massive environmental and economic problem:
- Nearly 1,500 people are killed in car and truck crashes in the region, including over 400 pedestrians, accounting for more than one-quarter of all traffic deaths.
- Cars and trucks contribute half of the federally regulated air pollutants and more than one-fifth of toxic pollutants emitted into the region’s air.
- Cars, trucks and highways promote inefficient use of land and destroy natural habitat by spreading workplaces and residences across the landscape in low-density patterns. In our metropolitan area, the present rate of land consumption indicates that, by 2040, every acre will be developed.
- Dependence on motor transport erodes community character and the economies of the metropolitan area’s “Main Streets” and downtowns. Traffic congestion costs the region more than $11 billion annually in wasted fuel and lost productivity, and hampers goods movement.
- Overall, auto-based transportation costs the region an estimated $55 billion per year in crashes, lost time, health costs of air and noise pollution and land consumption.
The Campaign marshals the talents of the region’s most effective environmental and transportation policy watchdogs into a dynamic combination of community and campaign organizing, technical analysis, and media and legal advocacy. The Campaign’s board of directors consists of senior staff from the founding organizations, as well as representatives from industry and academia. The staff consists of eight persons, including the Campaign’s executive director.