We need your help, Ghosties.

Just a few weeks after an influential West Side pastor with no transportation experience was appointed to the CTA Board, another one has been nominated to the RTA Board. Ira Acree is well-connected politically, but transportation activists are sounding the alarm that they don't think he's qualified for this board seat. Rochelle Johnson, chair of the North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council's transportation committee and a longtime transit activist on the West Side, said she doesn't think Acree could name a single bus route that runs through his neighborhood.

Here's the good news: This appointment won't become official unless the Chicago City Council approves it. We're the voters and constituents, so members of the City Council represent our voices — which means now is the time for us to speak up and demand that they properly vet Ira Acree before voting on this appointment. They need to make sure he's seeking a seat on the RTA Board because he's passionate and knowledgeable about public transportation and has ideas and interest to bring to the table — not just because he wants to increase his political influence.

Send a letter to the City Council Committee on Transportation and Public Way asking them to thoroughly question and ensure that Ira Acree is actually qualified for a seat on the RTA Board — and if he isn't, to vote to reject his appointment. Public transportation is too important to put in the hands of just anyone. It's time to tell our elected leaders that we're depending on them to make sure we have qualified Board Members in place.