Inclusive Transportation: A Manifesto for Repairing Divided Communities
BikeWalkKC in conversation with author Veronica O. Davis on April 23, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: On April 23, BikeWalkKC will host an in-person conversation with Veronica O. Davis, author of Inclusive Transportation: A Manifesto for Repairing Divided Communities (publication date: July 2023). Davis is a transportation expert and the former Director of Transportation & Drainage Operations for Houston, Texas. The event will be held at iWerx in North Kansas City. Event proceeds will support BikeWalkKC’s pro-bono community planning and policy efforts in disadvantaged communities.
In her book, Davis examines the inequalities and destructive practices present in transportation planning and provides a roadmap for inclusive transportation planning. Sharing how her own family has been harmed by racist transportation policies, Davis calls for bold, new thinking and more diverse leadership to create transportation networks that connect people with jobs, education, opportunities, and each other.
Davis examines what equity means in the context of a transportation project and discusses why centering equity is critical for building better transportation systems for all people. She explores the harms caused by a car-centric transportation system and argues that centering people – not vehicles – in transportation decisions requires a significant shift in how planners and engineers are trained, how they communicate with the public, the kind of data they collect, and how they work as professional teams.
Inclusive Transportation addresses effective public engagement, including identifying stakeholders, addressing diverse concerns, and ensuring that marginalized groups are heard. Davis urges transportation professionals to reflect on past injustices and elevate current practice to create real change, not just empty catchphrases. This is a task that will require empathy while pushing against forces in the industry that are resistant to change. With Inclusive Transportation, Davis issues a call to action and delivers a practical approach to reconnecting and shaping communities based on principles of justice and equity.
Click here to purchase your tickets for the BikeWalkKC + Veronica O. Davis event on April 23.
Davis will also be a guest lecturer at University of Missouri-Kansas City for students and faculty on the afternoon of April 24.
BikeWalkKC wishes to thank event sponsors for their support: Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; HNTB; YARD & Company; HDR, Hoxie Collective; Olsson; Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc.; Vireo; Cross-Lines Community Outreach; Optimally; Benton Lloyd & Chung; Toole Design. Sponsorships are still available. Contact Amy Scrivner, amy.scrivner@bikewalkkc.org, for more information.
About Veronica O. Davis
Veronica O. Davis, PE, is the former Director of Transportation & Drainage Operations, Houston Public Works. Veronica has nearly 20 years of experience in engineering and transportation planning. She co-founded Black Women Bike and was recognized as a Champion of Change by the White House in 2012 for her professional accomplishments and advocacy. Veronica serves on the committees for the Transportation Research Board, the board for America Walks, as well as technical advisory boards at the University of Maryland and Cornell University.
About BikeWalkKC
Founded in 2010, BikeWalkKC (bikewalkkc.org) is a nonprofit organization and a recognized leader for improving multimodal transportation options in the greater Kansas City region, offering a variety of planning, policy, and education services. Its mission-based, nonprofit model makes it more affordable for urban, suburban, and rural communities to access high quality planning, advocacy, and policy assistance, such as Complete Streets policy work, Safe Routes to School planning, community engagement strategies, traffic calming demonstrations, and advocacy workshops. More than fifty percent of BikeWalkKC’s policy and planning work for communities is pro-bono.