Follow SDOT’s journey toward a more equitable transportation system

Summary

• A Transportation Equity Workgroup (TEW) provides SDOT with regular input from community members representing Black, Indigenous, and People of Color and vulnerable communities.

• SDOT staff and the TEW partnered to create the Transportation Equity Framework (TEF). The TEF is a roadmap for decision-makers, employees, and the greater community to collaboratively create a more equitable transportation system.

• Transparency and accountability are important to us and the people in Seattle. We've created a public tool to track progress in implementing the 220 TEF tactics.

• The TEF Monitor tool meets Tactic 25.1, asking SDOT to, "Develop, monitor, and create a community-facing visual tool as part of the TEF implementation plan, such as a dashboard."

• We're committed to adjusting the TEF Monitor to best serve the needs of the community. It can change over time to reflect public feedback.

SDOT's Transportation Equity Workgroup (TEW) was established in early 2019 to seek input from a broad and diverse set of community members representing Black, Indigenous, and People of Color and vulnerable communities.

In 2019, SDOT staff and the TEW partnered to create the Transportation Equity Framework (TEF).

The TEF is a set of 220 tactics, divided into 10 categories, that guide our programs, projects, practices, and initiatives through 2028 and beyond. Like steps on a ladder, our TEF tactics move us towards the department's vision and values. Each tactic has its own goal and timeline.

One such TEF tactic is tactic 25.1, which is housed under the Decision-Making, Transparency, and Accountability value. It asks us to "Develop, monitor, and create a community-facing monitoring and visual tool for the TEF implementation plan, such as a dashboard." Basically, we wanted to create a monitoring tool for the TEF. To accomplish this, we first created an internal dashboard so that we could test what would be most helpful to SDOT staff, keeping in mind our ultimate goal of creating a tool for the public.

Transparency and accountability is important to us, and we know it's important to people in Seattle. That's why we are so happy to release a public tool that you can use to track our progress in implementing the tactics in the TEF - the TEF Monitor.

The TEF Monitor is meant to increase transparency and accountability as we continue to implement the 220 tactics that it co-created with community.

The TEF Monitor has a few important parts:

1. Background

1. Progress

1. Outcomes

1. Highlights

1. A place to share your feedback

The intention behind TEF tactic 25.1 is to foster decision-making, transparency, and accountability. The TEF Monitor aims to accomplish just that, with the bonus of fostering understanding. We hope that with the TEF Monitor, people who live, work, and play in Seattle can understand what the TEF is, how we use it, and how it continues to shape our work and culture.

We're committed to adjusting the TEF Monitor to best serve the needs of the community. The TEF Monitor will change over time to reflect public feedback.

The TEF Monitor will change over time. We want to use your feedback to make the tool even better and show the information that you want to know in a way that is easiest to understand.

Now that the TEF Monitor is published, we invite you to visit the page and let us know what you think.

Thank you for working with us, and holding us accountable, in addressing the disparities in our transportation system. We look forward to hearing your feedback.