Another meeting occurred at the Rosa Parks Transit Center Thursday, where longtime riders of the Detroit Department of Transportation (D-DOT) buses continue to speak out loud over the bus cuts that Mayor Dave Bing has recently laid out starting next weekend, which includes waiting on Clairmount (#11) for an extra 5-10 minutes; no early morning runs for people taking the Eight Mile (#17) or Southfield (#46); no late Saturday night service, and no service available for Grand Belt (#20), Holbrook (#24), Oakland (#36), Russell (#40), and Tireman (#47).
Though Eight Mile (#17), Grand River (#21), and Evergreen (#60) are several that have less than ten minutes off the waiting period, only Jefferson (#25) is the only route available for 24-hour service during the weekday. With unemployment rate up to 30%, this will affect the Motor City even more with the high possibility of going into a Depression.
Since the Mayor made the announcement, public hearings like the one from Thursday have taken place throughout Detroit, as people spoke up, write and email their comments to D-DOT, proposing ideas of their own to help D-DOT, and even call in the Mayor’s office to fight an injustice in service to God and in tribute to Rosa Parks and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Bing has stated to the press that he’s ready to take on the unions as well as be prepared for the backlash over this because as Mayor, he has to make the tough decisions — but is he ready for the fallout? In other words, will he take responsibility for this political move of cutting down bus routes, giving out pink slips to the drivers, and most of all, the chance of people losing their jobs and the potential rise of crime victims?
D-DOT is “a major source of transportation of working people” said Pan-African Newswire‘s Abayomi Azikiwe. “Bing is doing this to appeal to the creditors as opposed to the people of Detroit. I think it is a disaster.” Azikiwe is with The National People’s Summit, in league with the Moratorium NOW! Coalition, as a demonstration outside Bing’s office is currently in the works right now.
For now, they’re going to the March 4 Jobs in Pittsburgh starting this Sunday and up until next week, where they’ll be protesting with others outside the G-20 Summit in Pittsburgh with the purpose of bailing out the people, not the banks. There’s still time to come and participate, volunteer, or donate on behalf of your fellow man, woman, and child; go online at www.bailoutpeople.org for more information, or call at 412-780-3813 or email them at [email protected].
Also, if you haven’t made it to any of the public hearings over the proposed bus cuts, you can be heard, so call Mayor Dave Bing’s office at 313-224-3400.
