Philly Free Transit Pilot Clocks 1.8 Million Rides

A two-year pilot program in Philadelphia offers free transit fare to low-income residents. As Maylin Tu explains in Next City, “Participants in Philly’s Zero Fare pilot must be 18 to 64 years old, have an income at 150% or less of the federal poverty line, and be Philadelphia residents.”

The program launched last August and, as of mid-April, participants took over 1.8 million trips. “Increasing ridership through the Zero Fare program could enhance trust and safety in the system as a whole, adding “eyes on the street’,” says Connor Descheemaker, coalition manager for Transit Forward Philadelphia.

The program is unique in that eligible residents don’t need to take action. “Unlike many similar programs, there is no need to apply. Instead, the city used a lottery system to select 90% of participants from a pool of eligible residents enrolled in a qualifying low-income benefits program. For the other 10%, the city worked with community-based organizations to reach those who might not be eligible due to immigration status.”

The city acknowledges the program could benefit a much larger segment of the population if expanded. However, future funding is uncertain. “Unlike other cities, Philadelphia is extremely limited in its ability to directly fund transit, says Descheemaker, due to a state legislature split along partisan lines.”