Riders won’t pay to board Regional Transportation District buses and trains for a full two months this summer under a plan approved Wednesday — and a proposal that’s taking shape would suspend younger riders’ fares indefinitely.
The return of the state-funded “Zero Fare for Better Air” program in July and August is expected to cost RTD about the same as last year’s one-month outing under changes made to the initiative by lawmakers and Gov. Jared Polis this spring.
After officials approached last year’s August free-fare pilot cautiously, the coming expansion, which depends on state approval of RTD’s grant application, reflects a more enthusiastic embrace of the program by metro Denver’s transit agency.
It’s making plans to go even further by laying the groundwork to launch a one-year pilot of free fares for younger riders in September. If approved by the board in July as part of a larger package of changes to RTD’s fare structure, the new program would allow riders 19 and younger simply to display a school- or government-issued ID card to ride.
For the two-month summer program, RTD’s board on Wednesday night unanimously approved setting aside $2.2 million for set-up costs. Last year, the state provided the agency with $7.2 million in reimbursement, covering 80% of eligible costs. Chief financial officer Doug MacLeod told the board recently that all eligible costs will be reimbursed this year — including an estimated $15 million in lost fare revenue — allowing RTD to double the program’s duration.
Last fall, a report issued by RTD said overall ridership increased 22% from July to August during the promotion, and it reported few safety problems, along with fewer conflicts for operators over fare payment.
The report didn’t address the program’s air-quality impact. But an outside report issued this spring by the Colorado Fiscal Institute used modeling to estimate that in Denver and Jefferson counties, the program reduced nitrogen dioxide pollution — a contributor to the formation of ozone — by more than 7 percent.
The idea of making young riders’ cost to ride free beyond the summer is rooted in an intensive systemwide fare study that’s now wrapping up.
RTD is considering recommendations that include reducing all fares, nearly eliminating its regional zone map and cutting the cost of monthly passes, all changes geared toward making the system cheaper and simpler to use. The new local fare would be $2.75, down from $3, and a monthly pass good for all services — including the A-Line train to the airport — would cost just $88, a significant decrease from two current pass levels that cost $114 or $200.
Those changes wouldn’t take effect until early 2024 if the board approves them this summer.
But RTD officials say they want to align the start of a zero-fare youth pilot program with the beginning of the next school year, continuing seamlessly from the broader July-August summer promotion.
Riders ages 6 to 19 already qualify for 70% youth discounts on fares and monthly passes, and children 5 and younger currently ride free when accompanied by an adult. After the one-year pilot, RTD officials say they hope to extend the “Zero Fare for Youth” program with help from outside partners to offset lost fare revenue. The hit is estimated at up to $5 million during the first year.
“I’m excited about this for a number of reasons,” Director Peggy Catlin said during an early May board committee meeting, including “introducing new customers that might make them lifetime riders.”
Bill Sirois, a senior manager who has been a leader of RTD’s recent planning initiatives, said the agency’s staff plans to reach out to school districts and private schools as it plans for the youth pilot. But the agency, which has been slowly restoring pandemic-era service suspensions, doesn’t have any plans to add new service that might serve young riders, he said.
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