An official appointed to a committee advising Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg doesn’t seem to be a fan of public transportation – or any other type of transportation for that matter. Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, whose role is to promote “equity” in transportation has a long and storied history of complaining about public transit and cars on social media.
An appointee on a committee advising Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg once declared “ALL CARS ARE BAD” but has a long record of complaining about public transit on social media.
“Even in late September a train car with no a/c is killer,” Andrea Marpillero-Colomina posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, in 2011. “Smells like stale doritos.”
Marpillero-Colomina was appointed last month to the Advisory Committee on Transportation and Equity (ACTE), which focuses on advising Buttigieg on civil rights and equity. Her social media history criticizing cars was highlighted shortly after her appointment, but additional posts show she also has grievances about public transportation, including tourists, cleanliness, disorganization and safety.
Marpillero-Colomina posted tweets last year in which she railed against people who refused to wear masks on the subway, wishing that they would “enjoy the extra special hell they are all ending up in together,” and wondering why they are not “dead yet.”
I hope all the people who don’t wear masks on the subway enjoy the extra special hell they are all ending up in together.
— Andrea Marpillero-Colomina (@urbandrea) June 5, 2022
I really want to know why everyone who doesn’t wear a mask on the subway IS NOT DEAD YET.
— Andrea Marpillero-Colomina (@urbandrea) July 10, 2022
The advisor has also complained at length about the lack of cleanliness on public transit and also the presence of “mentally unwell” people.
@nyctsubway psychotic man on the Queens bound F currently at York car 8763
— Andrea Marpillero-Colomina (@urbandrea) October 11, 2022
Can you please tell us what this man is doing/saying, as well as a brief description of him?^JAF
— NYCT Subway (@NYCTSubway) October 11, 2022
Sounds pretty judgmental for someone whose job is to promote “equity” on public transportation, doesn’t it?
Marpillero-Colomina is a spatial policy scholar who has conducted studies in various countries. She is also the Sustainable Communities Program Director at GreenLatinos, an organization that advocates for policies related to environmental sustainability and social justice.
The advisory committee is part of President Joe Biden’s focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Marpillero-Colomina noted that her objective is to move the country away from “its reliance on private motor vehicles.”
Buttigieg’s appointments—and his decision to revive the equity advisory committee—reflect the Biden administration’s whole-of-government emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion. President Joe Biden shortly after taking office in 2021 issued an executive order that called on federal agencies to “pursue a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all.” Under the order, agency heads must conduct an “equity assessment” to identify policies that create “systemic barriers” in minority communities.
The committee will advise Buttigieg on “promising practices to institutionalize equity into agency programs, policies, regulations, and activities” and plans to meet for the first time this fall, according to Buttigieg’s August announcement. Marpillero-Colomina told the Washington Free Beacon that she is not “advocating for a complete erasure” of cars but intends to push Buttigieg to move America away from its reliance on private motor vehicles.
