Free Metrobus passes will be available at two more local high schools
Students at four additional high schools will be able to ride Metrobuses for free, beginning in September. The schools are Annandale, Falls Church, and Marshall high schools and the Davis Career Center.
A free Metrobus pilot program for students started in 2018 with Justice High School. About 50 percent of the students at Justice have a Metrobus-enabled SmarTrip card, according to a June 14 presentation to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors’ Transportation Committee.
Free Metrobus rides for students will only be allowed for routes in Northern Virginia – not D.C. or Maryland.
Since 2015, students in grades 7-12 who live in Fairfax County have been able to apply for special passes allowing free rides on Fairfax County Connector buses. Since then, students have taken more than 2 million free Connector trips.
Students can use the passes on Connector and City of Fairfax CUE buses until they graduate. The pass is valid from 5 a.m.-7 p.m. seven days a week.
The presentation by the Fairfax County Department of Transportation lists several benefits of the free bus passes:
• A reduction in traffic congestion;
• Improved student access to jobs and after-school activities;
• Potential for long-term ridership; and
• Civic participation for students involved in Fairfax Connector working groups.
2 responses to “Free Metrobus passes will be available at two more local high schools”
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This is a great idea to get kids without a driver’s license or access to a private vehicle around Northern VA with limited restriction. It also familiarizes citizens with bus routes at an early age. However, those that use Metrobus/Connector are still at an extreme disadvantage. The fact that Fairfax Connector lists “potential for long-term ridership” as a benefit of the program is laughable. Public transportation is a joke in Northern VA. While this is a nice program to have, it is going to take far more than a measly effort such as this one to legitimize alternative modes of transportation around here.
Also, what does “civic participation for students involved in Fairfax Connector working groups” mean?
The worst thing about public transportation is the public, and the transportation.