The ORCA Opportunity program will provide free bus passes to some of the city’s low-income residents.
Sarah Anne Lloyd reports that Seattle is expanding its ORCA Opportunity program, which currently provides free bus passes to high school students and some Seattle Colleges students. The city will start offering the passes to some Seattle Housing Authority residents, and distribution could start early this summer.
The city plans to give priority to high-density SHA sites near transit hubs or to sites along routes with investments from Seattle Transit Benefits District funds. The STBD funds come from a sales-tax increase and vehicle license fee that voters approved in 2014 to expand transit services in the Seattle region.
Lloyd reports that 14,500 students have participated in the program so far, and the SHA expansion will add another 1,500 participants. "The expansion will start as a 12-month pilot program, then be re-evaluated for an extension by SHA, King County Metro, and the Seattle Department of Transportation."
FULL STORY: Seattle will provide free transit for some low-income residents
Seattle Transit Investments Show Promising Results
The Seattle Transportation Benefit District has led to a growth in ridership and improved access to frequent service, according to a third-year performance report.
Seattle Ready to Give Free Transit Passes to All High School Students
About 16,000 Seattle students would get free transit passes when school starts again in the fall under a plan approved by the Seattle City Council yesterday.
Seattle Mayor Wants to Provide Free Transit for All High School Students
Here's one way to make a kid-friendly city and introduce the joys of public transit at a young age: offer free multi-agency transit passes to high school students.
Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units
Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.
Santa Clara County Dedicates Over $28M to Affordable Housing
The county is funding over 600 new affordable housing units via revenue from a 2016 bond measure.
Why a Failed ‘Smart City’ Is Still Relevant
A Google-backed proposal to turn an underused section of Toronto waterfront into a tech hub holds relevant lessons about privacy and data.
When Sears Pioneered Modular Housing
Kit homes sold in catalogs like Sears and Montgomery Ward made homeownership affordable for midcentury Americans.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
.jpg){kind=link}
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions