Access to viable and affordable transportation is a core environmental and social justice issue. East Austin residents have faced decades of inequitable planning, unsafe infrastructure, and displacement pressures that have created barriers to mobility, safety, and access. Reliable transportation determines whether families can reach work, healthcare, education, and cultural spaces, which leads to community power. 

East Austin communities continue to endure limited and unreliable transit options and unsafe pedestrian and cycling infrastructure.  Planning decisions made without meaningful community input have led to transportation costs that burden low-income families and displacement that pushes residents farther from essential services. 

These conditions are not accidental — they are the result of environmental racism and decades of policy choices that prioritized development over community well-being. 

PODER organizes with residents to challenge these inequities and build community-driven mobility solutions. The Transportation Justice Campaign supports residents while organizing for long-term systemic change. We document transportation gaps through community surveys, conversations, and lived experience. We advocate for mobility justice in city planning processes. We build partnerships that expand mobility options for East Austin residents.

Our approach is community‑led with residents defining the transportation needs and priorities in their neighborhood. We focus on those most impacted by displacement, pollution, and underinvestment. Mobility must support connection to place, tradition, and community identity. Transportation is not just a service — it is a pathway to community power.

We envision an Austin where every resident can move safely, affordably, and with dignity. Transportation should connect the community, not divide it. Through organizing, advocacy, and community led planning, PODER works toward a future where mobility is a right shared by all — not a privilege for a few.