They have just 10 weeks to get their message out to the public, and a group formed to save Lawrence’s public transit system isn’t wasting any time.

“‘Yes for Transit.’ That is our simple three-word slogan,” said David Smith, with Grassroots Action. “Yes for Transit is what we think Lawrence should call for and vote for as well.”

The group is hoping voters in Lawrence will approve two separate sales tax questions on the Nov. 4 ballot totaling 0.25 percent to fund the T.

“We think there’s a good chance that we can unite a large majority of Lawrence behind this proposal, and that’s our task in the next 10 weeks,” Smith said.

That effort started with a volunteer fair Monday night at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt., where the work of conducting a 10-week campaign began. From yard signs to mass e-mailings, volunteers could sign up for a variety of tasks.

“We want to build as big of a citywide coalition as we can, get as many people involved and raise the funds to get the word out there,” campaign coordinator Lisa-Marie Wright said.

The group has already raised at least $2,000 in donations and secured a $5,000 grant from the American Public Transportation Association.

The funding allowed them to hire Wright to coordinate the campaign. She’s been on the job for about two weeks.

“Our main goal is just to make sure that public transportation survives in Lawrence, and that the sales tax initiative gets passed on Nov. 4,” Wright said.

Supporters of Lawrence’s public transit system said the program has made great strides in its eight years of operation, and while they agree improvements need to be made, they believe preserving the system is the key.

“For a community like Lawrence with 90,000 people and a sense of itself moving boldly into the 21st century, the idea that we wouldn’t have public transportation is distressing,” Smith said.