Jon StojanEstablished in 2015 by Samuel Jordan as a direct response to the cancellation of the Red Line Light Rail Transit Project, the Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition (BTEC) is a non-profit organization with a clear goal to channel equity and prosperity within the city of Baltimore.
As the Red Line project was initially granted federal approval and entered the preliminary engineering phase, its planning, design, and land acquisition cost the state of Maryland an estimated $300 millionin expenditure. Despite this, it was soon halted as former Governor Larry Hogan declared his intent to reallocate funding, classifying the project as inactive. Although the motivations behind this decision were never clearly outlined, Hogan’s sudden shift of priorities led to the construction of major development projects near properties owned by his own company, causing speculation of corruption and an investigation conducted by the United States Department of Transportation. The investigation outlined a possible violation of civil rights, as the funding decision also reallocated funds from predominantly low-income Black communities to affluent and historically white neighborhoods.
Unexpectedly, the investigation was closed and no clear findings were published; inspiring Samuel Jordan to reinvigorate the issue and bring together a group of like-minded community development advocates to form the BTEC foundation. Located in West Baltimore, BTEC centers its work on the re-establishment of the Red Line program and sheds light on the rising inequities that caused its cancellation in the first place. He comments: “In a city with a heavy segregational history, the cancellation of the Red Line had a catastrophic impact on the Black communities of Baltimore. In re-energizing this project, we have a chance not only to improve transit equity and develop a system with dramatically reduced commute times but also to attract revolutionary transit-oriented development.”
Positioned in a profitable geographic location, Baltimore is home to the deepest port harbor in the state and is the second-largest single shipper of US-produced coal. Originally, the Red Line project was placed for millions of dollars in developmental schemes that held the potential to yield transformative results for the regional economy – including the establishment of transit light rail corridors that would attract other transit-oriented developments along them. This would encourage construction, employment, and housing schemes to boost the overall economic potential of Maryland.
Recognizing the promising capacity for transit development in Baltimore, Samuel Jordan and the Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition are leading voices for change. Today, Baltimore has come under the authority of a new Governing body with a renewed interest in the coalition’s goals – as reflected through Governor Wes Moor’s recent pledge to revive the transport line and overturn its abruptly canceled plans for completion. Samuel responds: “We are on the right side of history – and reinstating funding and constructing the Red Line in the near term is much more possible than it may previously have seemed. ‘Development follows rail, and buses follow development’ is the mantra BTEC follows and it continues its revolutionary work in this space. It aims to eliminate structural racism in the public transportation sector and exchange a more autocratic system for one that is more democratic and equitable for all.