People under 18 will be able to ride public buses for free in Boise this summer and next.
Idaho is the only state that has no dedicated funding for public transit, so Valley Regional Transit and the City of Boise partnered with the Blue Cross Foundation to offer the Youth Ride Free program. Starting on May 1 until August 31, young people will not have to pay fares to use public buses around the city.
For its Youth Roadmap project, Boise conducted interviews and focus groups and identified transportation as the main barrier to young people participating in the community.
“The idea here is to provide youth in the region with ways to get to work or recreation or third spaces or anywhere else they might want to go,” said Jason Rose of Valley Regional Transit.
“Taking the bus isn't always the first thing people think about. And so we're trying to make that the case,” he added, saying removing the fare for young people will hopefully encourage their families to choose public transit as well.
“We're trying to get people on board and build the habit and kind of build that culture of riding,” he said.
The program hopes to help kids take about 10 000 bus rides over the course of the summer. Rose said this can teach teens to be independent and use public transit instead of cars.
“There's driver's ed and all sorts of things in place to help people learn how to use that mode of transportation,” he said. “And so this is hopefully a great way for us to introduce bus transit and show people how to get around.”
Sign up for the Youth Ride Free passes begins April 1. The program is available for any kids and teens under 18 who are Boise residents or need to travel in and out of the city.