TRANSFORMING TRANSPORTATION

Zeitgeist is embarking on a transforming transportation journey to connect, educate, and advocate around barriers that persist in our transportation networks. Our mission is to address historic inequities in our transportation infrastructure, structures, and cultures by working creatively with diverse regional coalitions in leveraging change, and by centering those most impacted in visioning the solutions. Our aim is a regional transportation network that’s fully responsive to the needs of all our community members, connecting people to all the resources they need to thrive.

“When people live at the intersection of multiple vectors of oppression, unfettered access to public space and unfettered mobility are not guaranteed, regardless of street design. Racism, sexism, classism, able-ism, xenophobia, homophobia, constraints imposed upon gender-non-conforming folks, and insecurity in the public space resulting from historic disenfranchisement can make it hostile to many. Yet this has seldom been the starting point for envisioning more sustainable transportation. It should be.” —Untokening Mobility

We Bike

The Transportation Equity We Bike series of free events, created in partnership with Continental Ski & Bike, aims to celebrate, welcome, and empower members of historically marginalized communities within cycling. Designed with low-income, BIPOC, youth, disabled, women, and gender-nonconforming people in mind, We Bike hopes to dismantle barriers to access and pave the way for a more diverse and vibrant cycling community across the Twin Ports region by providing essential bicycling education, maintenance resources, and enriching group rides.

Zeitgeist and Continental Ski & Bike share a commitment to fostering inclusivity and accessibility in cycling to support a healthier, happier, and more equitable society. Everyone should be able to bike safely and enjoyably! Join us as we pedal towards a future where we all can bike with comfort and confidence.

DONATE TO SUPPORT WE BIKE

A surplus of abandoned bikes are gathered each month by the Duluth Transit Authority (DTA) and Duluth Police Department (DPD). At the same time, road-ready bikes are hard to come by for low-income community members who often have limited transportation options and rely on busing, biking, and walking to get around. The Bicycle Rehab Program takes secondhand bicycles and rehabilitates them for distribution to low-income community members through Zeitgeist and Continental’s We Bike events. We’re looking for:

A free storage facility for gathering bikes and building a community workshop space
Equipment donations of bicycles, helmets, u-locks, lights, car racks, bike trailers, and cargo racks
Volunteer mechanics—20 volunteers by April 1st!
Financial donations—$5,000 by May 1st!

JOIN THE 2025 WE BIKE SUPPORT CREW

Come to a free open shop night at Continental Ski & Bike (1305 E. 1st St, Duluth) to learn basic bike mechanics and work on your bike in a safe queer peer environment. For women, trans, femme, non-binary, Two-Spirit, and gender-expansive folks with all levels of experience. BYOB: bring your own bike and/or buddy. Questions? Email thomlin@zeitgeistarts.com.

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HELP TRANSFORM TRANSPORTATION!

Learn about local transportation projects in the works along with community groups working on transportation efforts.

Help shape conversations to center historically-marginalized populations in our region’s transportation plans.

Become a champion of transportation equity in our region by getting involved in one or more grassroots efforts.

Reestablishing a central artery as “main street” with attractive, safe, and walkable designs

LONDON ROAD

Addressing traffic flows and adding safety improvements for all users

I-35

Re-envisioning current and future transportation needs – Learn more about potentials for reconnecting communities

HAMMOND AVENUE

Reenvisioning the street as an active corridor with multimodal treatments

W SUPERIOR STREET

Redefining an industrial corridor as a connected, safe place for all

TRANSPORTATION EQUITY RESOURCES

Zeitgeist's Transportation Equity Principles & Vision

Transportation Equity Read/Watch/Listen List

Become an Advocate

US Department of Transportation's Equity Action Plan

Making the Case for Sidewalk Snow Removal

Transportation Zine 2024 (Print)

Transportation Zine 2024 (Digital)

ABOUT THE TRANSPORTATION EQUITY DOC & TALK SERIES

Follow the history of transportation in this country, from buses and bikes to super highways and self-driving cars, as we examine the barriers that persist in our transportation networks. The Transportation Equity Doc & Talk Series includes monthly screenings of transportation documentaries followed by community conversations with speakers from the Twin Ports advancing transportation equity through their work.

Need help getting to Transportation Equity events? Contact thomlin@zeitgeistarts.com or 218-336-1370.

PAST DOC & TALKS

STRAIGHT LINE CRAZY

The filmed play starring Ralph Fiennes as Robert Moses that delves into Moses’s questionable legacy and enduring impact on New York City, particularly at the expense of people of color living in the way of his projects. Read “Reflections from Straight Line Crazy” from our blog!

TAKEN FOR A RIDE

THE U.S. HISTORY OF THE ASSAULT ON PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IN THE LAST CENTURY

A documentary about how the American auto industry engineered the demise of city public-transit systems. This Doc & Talk included a post-show presentation by the Duluth Transit Authority on the Better Bus Blueprint and the conditions, needs, and opportunities of public transit in the Twin Ports.

THE GANG OF 19

A documentary about the brave Coloradans that challenged the status quo to advocate for the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act. This Doc & Talk included a post-show panel on accessibility with Arc Northland, Duluth Aging Support, the Duluth Commission on Accessibility, and Lighthouse Center for Vital Living.

ROGER AND ME

The classic 1989 documentary by Michael Moore exploring the regional impact of General Motors closing several auto plants in his hometown of Flint, Michigan. This Doc & Talk included a post-show panel with the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Twin Ports Democratic Socialists of America about labor challenges and opportunities in our transportation networks. Read “Comments on Transportation Equity from Carl Sack” from our blog!

THE ENGINE INSIDE

A film telling the stories of six everyday people from all over the globe who reveal the unique power of the bicycle to change lives and build a better world. This Doc & Talk included a panel with Northland Adaptive Recreation and The Bike Cave about bike accessibility. Read “A Week Without Driving: Reflections from Duluth City Counselor Gary Anderson” from our blog!

BIKING WHILE BLACK

A documentary film centering the daily experiences that Black lives encounter while bicycling. The film focuses on Los Angeles and speaks to wider issues of transportation safety and institutional racism. This Doc & Talk included an in-person talk-back with Director Yolanda Davis-Overstreet about mobility justice. Read “Duluth’s Mobility Justice Leaders” from our blog!

LAND OF STORIES

A documentary film about the legacy of Indian boarding schools with excerpts from the shadow puppet performance Land of Stories that weaves together Thomas D. Peacock’s book The Wolf’s Trail & Sharon Doolittle Shuck’s book Grandfather’s Blood Memories and Unbroken Spirit. This Doc & Talk included a post-show panel about the connections between Indian boarding schools, transportation, and MMIR (Missing Murdered Indigenous Relatives) with Safe Haven Shelter & Resource Center and the MN MMIR Office.

ADVICE FOR GIRLS

This Doc & Talk includes a post-show panel on gender equity in outdoor recreation with Madison Atterbury, Megan Kress, Bobbie Larson, Lindsey Lee, and Megan McMahon; moderated by Alexandera Houchin. Hosted in partnership with Continental Ski & Bike.

FREE TO RIDE

Free To Ride is the story of the relentless spirit of community leaders from across Dayton, Ohio who overcame a suburban contingent fearfully opposed to the expansion of public transit along a commercial corridor, and the system of checks and balances that allowed justice and reason to prevail.

THE HUMAN SCALE

Half of the human population lives in urban areas. By 2050, this will increase to 80%. Life in a megacity is both enchanting and problematic. Today we face peak oil, climate change, loneliness, and severe health issues due to our way of life. But why? The Danish architect and professor Jan Gehl has studied human behavior in cities through four decades. He has documented how modern cities repel human interaction and argues that we can build cities in a way, which takes human needs for inclusion and intimacy into account. ‘The Human Scale’ meets thinkers, architects, and urban planners across the globe. It questions our assumptions about modernity, exploring what happens when we put people at the center of our planning.

A VOICE FOR THE WILD

Emily Ford and sled dog Diggins attempt to cross the secluded Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in winter during subzero temperatures to raise awareness about copper mining threats.

BIKES VS CARS

Bikes vs Cars is a documentary about the bike and what an amazing tool for change it can be. It highlights a conflict in city planning between bikes, cars and a growing reliance on fossil fuels.

DRIVING WHILE BLACK

Discover how the advent of the automobile brought new mobility and freedom for African Americans but also exposed them to discrimination and deadly violence, and how that history resonates today.

THE STREET PROJECT

THE STREET PROJECT is an inspiring story about a massive movement across the US and around the world to reclaim our largest public spaces, our streets.

REVENGE OF THE ELECTRIC CAR

Discover how the advent of the automobile brought new mobility and freedom for African Americans but also exposed them to discrimination and deadly violence, and how that history resonates today.

TRANSPORTATION EQUITY BLOG

Voices from BIPOC Outdoors

Voices from BIPOC Outdoors On March 28, 2024, as part of our Transportation Equity Doc & Talk screening of Emily Ford’s A Voice for the Wild, Zeitgeist hosted a panel talk with organizers from BIPOC Outdoors Twin Ports and Twin Cities: Sam Armacost, Cory Maria...

Building at the Human Scale / Reversing Redlining

I-35 (image from the Duluth Waterfront Collective) Karl Schuettler, Duluth economic development advisor says the legacy of redlining in Duluth endures. “Every one of the neighborhoods given a description about immigrants or African-Americans in the 1930s remains...

Duluth’s Mobility Justice Leaders

(paintings from left to right by Sylvia Houle and Micheal Matthews) In her new companion book to Biking While Black called Reimagine: A Roadmap to Justice and Joy (what she calls “the Green Book on steroids”), filmmaker and mobility justice activist Yolanda...

A Week Without Driving: Reflections from Duluth City Councilor Gary Anderson

My Week Without Driving experience was really impactful for me. First off, the organizing around the event inspired me to do something I've said I wanted to do for at least 5 years – I got on an eBike for the very first time! And, not just one bike but I got to try...

Comments on Transportation Equity from Carl Sack

Michael Moore’s film Roger & Me shows the harsh truth about the demolition of living standards that the American working class was subjected to during the retrenchment of global capital in the 1980s and 90s. This was a time when industrial production had saturated...

Reflections from Straight Line Crazy

We kicked off our Transportation Equity Doc & Talk series in May with the filmed play Straight Line Crazy about the life and legacy of Robert Moses. During our community conversation, we asked a few questions about how issues in the film reflected those in our...