Alex Elegudin- The Co-Founder of Wheeling Forward

Wheeling Forward co-founder Alex Elegudin served on this year’s NYC Mayoral Election Transportation Policy Advisory Committee. In this role, Alex Elegudin contributed to the 2021 Mayoral Election Policy Primer and Voter Guide on Transportation, published by University Transportation Research Center (Transportation Technology Chair (UTRC) of The City College of New York. The policy primer lays out the positions of the candidates on transportation issues such as wheelchair accessible service, the Fair Fares program, commuter vans and congestion pricing.

The Equity and Accessibility section explains that while New York City as a whole is reliant on public transportation, the accessibility of New York’s transit system to wheelchair lags that of many large cities. Despite being a world-class city, with one of the largest subway systems in the world, accessibility in the system, while improving, has a ways to go. The primer provides an overview of the transportation landscape- the options and programs that exist for people with disabilities.

“It is great to see candidates for the future mayor of New York taking accessibility seriously, and making it part of their campaigns. The disability community is a vital part of our city and deserves to be heard.” said Alex Elegudin, a disability advocate from Wheeling Forward.

With a crowded slate of candidates to choose from in this year’s primaries and the introduction of ranked choice voting, the primer has been an especially helpful resource to the City’s voters. It can continue to help voters make an informed choice in the general election in November.

It is also UTRC’s goal that the next mayor of NYC consider the ideas laid out by their fellow candidates, in addition to the transportation policy priorities outlined by the UTRC and its Advisory Committee.

Alex Elegudin was happy to be on the Advisory Committee to make sure people with disabilities have a clear understanding of the mayoral candidates’ positions on issues that affect their lives. Elegudin uses his personal and professional experience to help the disability community tackle challenges and face barriers toward fully participating in our society.

The guide was composed by Mathew Daus, Esq. The Advisory Committee provided guidance on the focus of the report and helped come up with the questions for the candidates that were included in the transportation surveys sent to each campaign.