Get on Board!

After months of recruitment and a rigorous selection process, Link21 is proud to announce the selection of 18 community members for appointment to the newly formed Equity Advisory Council (EAC). Serving up to a two-year term, members will be compensated for contributing their time, perspective, and “lived experience” or professional familiarity in technical and/or policy areas such as passenger rail transportation and land use, housing, environmental, environmental justice, transit justice, and economic development.

“Equity is integral to every aspect of Link21,” said Sadie Graham, Link21 Program Director.  “We created the EAC to help shape the Program’s planning of passenger rail improvements in the Northern California Megaregion. The EAC will serve as an advisory body to the Link21 Program, providing input and guidance on key milestones. The EAC will provide a space for meaningful community collaboration to help advance equity throughout the development and implementation of the Link21 Program. We are committed to listening to and learning from the EAC members, and the community input they will contribute.”

Link21 received a robust response from people who were interested in serving on the EAC. From a large pool of dozens of applicants, Link21 selected members who represent the diversity of the 21-county Northern California Megaregion, including low-income communities, communities of color and young people that have been most impacted by transportation inequities, as well as other communities that have historically been underserved.

The EAC comprises the following members:

• Ameerah Thomas, Oakland
• Angela E. Hearring, Sacramento
• Beth Kenny, Alameda
• Clarence Fischer, Cherryland
• Cory Mickels, San Francisco
• David Sorrell, Union City
• David Ying, San Leandro
• Elizabeth Madrigal, Seaside
• Fiona Yim, Berkeley
• Gracyna Mohabir, San Jose
• Harun David, Richmond
• Landon Hill, Oakland
• Linda Braak, Davis
• Maya Amichai, Oakland
• Samia Zuber, San Francisco
• Stevon Cook, Oakland
• Taylor Booker, Hercules
• Vanessa Ross Aquino, San Francisco

The EAC will hold its first two meetings in January and February 2023, with subsequent meetings scheduled approximately every other month. Meetings will be held virtually and will be open to the public for brief comments with livestreaming. Information, agendas, and other materials will be available in advance of each meeting.

About Link21

Sponsored by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) and Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA), Link21 is working with the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) and other transportation partners to create a connected, equitable, and accessible network of train service that cares for people, the environment, and quality of life for generations to come. A new train crossing between Oakland and San Francisco is the core of the program.