How easy is it to get around your community without a car? Do you think your neighbors know what that’s like? What about your elected officials, your transit agencies, and other local decision-makers?
The Week Without Driving is a national challenge designed to uplift the experiences of people who cannot or do not drive—whether due to disability, economic factors, or choice. Transit for All PA invites you to participate in the Week Without Driving, October 1-8, 2026. By taking part, you can share your experience and call for the meaningful change your community deserves.
What is the Week Without Driving?
Whether due to disability, age, or income – non-drivers come from all walks of life. The Week Without Driving was developed by disability advocates in Washington state and is now a national initiative, led by America Walks and the Nondrivers Alliance. There are concurrent events and challenges all across the country, all intended to amplify the experiences of people who cannot or do not drive—and call for change.
In Pennsylvania, Transit for All PA is proud to join this movement to raise awareness for greater mobility needs in every community. By participating in the 2026 Week Without Driving PA, from October 1st to October 8th, you are raising awareness of the transportation needs that all residents have across our state. Beyond that, you are calling for change that improves mobility and expands access to all.
How does the Week Without Driving support Pennsylvania transit?
The more Pennsylvanians share their experiences as non-drivers, the more we lift up the fact that transit is a lifeline for Pennsylvanians, no matter where they live. Whether they can’t drive due to age, disability, or license access, there are non-drivers in every single county of the Commonwealth. This isn’t a rural or urban issue—it’s a Pennsylvania issue.
As Pennsylvanians like you take the challenge and share their stories with their neighbors and elected officials, those in power will come to understand the challenges non-drivers face in their own communities—and what they can do to help.
This is all about making the case for a meaningful solution and new funding stream for public transportation in all its forms, all across the Commonwealth. It helps decision-makers see that they all have a stake not just in auto transportation, but in all the forms of public transportation— including both shared ride and fixed route transit—and the infrastructure that allows people to get to, from, and between them without driving.
How to participate in the Week Without Driving
The Week Without Driving is a hands-on way to call for change. There are many ways to participate—choose one or all!
Sign up to take the challenge
When you pledge to take the Week Without Driving challenge, here’s what it entails:
- Get wherever you need to go that week however you want—as long as it’s not driving yourself. Walk, bike, transit, ask for a ride from a friend or family member – it’s all on the table. If you find yourself asking for rides, reflect on that choice: what does it feel like to rely on others? Does it change what trips you take?
- Consider what choices you have, and what choices others have access to. It’s easier to give up your keys if you can afford to live in a walkable area well served by transit. Understand what choices you have and why.
- If you still have to drive, you haven’t “failed.” There may be trips you can only make if you drive yourself. Reflect on what someone who could not drive would have done in your situation. How long would it have taken? How much would it have cost? Would it have been feasible at all?
Getting around your community without a personal car may be challenging. Plan ahead, think through where you need to go, and make backup plans.
Spread the word
The Week Without Driving is most powerful when non-driving Pennsylvanians—whether they be neighbors, friends, or elected officials—experience and uplift what it’s like to get around their communities without cars.
That’s where the Week Without Driving PA Toolkit comes in. Inside are templates for proclamations and press releases that you can use to publicize their support and participation in the Week Without Driving. By vocally sharing your support, non-drivers like you can uplift the narrative that non-driving Pennsylvanians matter and deserve investment.
Share your story
The true power of the Week Without Driving is the opportunity to collectively build a narrative: that non-drivers exist in Pennsylvania, that they matter, and that we can invest in infrastructure that improves their experience.
When you get around your community without driving, document the experience and share it! You can:
- Chat with your neighbors about what it’s like to run errands with no car in your town
- Take pictures and video of your journeys, and share them on social media. Tag @transit4allpa and use the hashtag #weekwithoutdrivingpa to share your story even further!
- Use the social media templates provided in our PA Week Without Driving Comms Toolkit to start conversations on your own social media pages (use the hashtag #weekwithoutdrivingpa)
- Participate in the statewide scavenger hunt! All week, PA Downtown Center, Transit for All PA, and Clean Air Council will be hosting a virtual online scavenger hunt, prompting Pennsylvanians all across the state to explore their communities without a car. If you participate in the scavenger hunt, you’ll be entered to win a prize pack! Stay tuned for updates.
By highlighting the non-driver experience in every community, Week Without Driving helps win policies that support access for non-drivers across both rural and urban communities, and everywhere in between. Together, we can create communities that include all of us.
Week Without Driving PA is organized by the Transit for All PA! Coalition, led by Pittsburghers for Public Transit, Transit Forward Philadelphia, the Clean Air Council, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, and Pennsylvania Downtown Center.
