WA: Valley Transit board approves continuing its zero-fare policy

Free rides for Valley Transit customers will continue for the foreseeable future.

The Valley Transit board of directors — Heather Schermann, Gunner Fulmer, Rick Eskil, Norma Hernandez, Bertha Clayton, Steve Moss, Gustavo Reyna and Ron Grace — approved continuing its free-ride policy, during a Thursday, Feb. 20, meeting.

Eskil said he was in favor of keeping the policy because riders are accustomed to not paying for bus rides.

“It helped boost ridership. At this point, I think, it would be foolish to put (fares) back on because that would just send ridership down,” he said.

A noticeable increase in ridership was reported on the route to and from College Place’s Walmart, which Hernandez said indicated riders use the buses to access affordable essentials.

“(It) kind of shocked me ... that says a lot, if adults are riding the bus and trying to get to a place where they’re not just putting money into the economy, but they're shopping for their necessities, and at a location that's affordable to them,” she said.

In September 2022, Valley Transit began a pilot program and allowed all customers to ride fixed bus routes and dial-a-rides fare-free because of funding received from the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) and the Washington Legislature’s Move Ahead Washington transportation package.

To qualify for state funding, a transit service must provide free rides to passengers under 18 years old and cannot lower the current sales tax authority.

The funding comes from the state and is not impacted by recent cuts to the federal budget. But repealing the climate act has been discussed and voted on.

In January, Washington state Rep. Andrew Barkis, R- Olympia, pushed for excess Climate Commitment Act funding to go toward “critical road projects.”

Angie Peters, the general manager of Valley Transit, in response, said, "The CCA repeal vote did fail ... and so assuming that there’s not a successful challenge in the future, there's still 14 years remaining in the life of the program."

The board can change the free-ride policy at any time and can bring back fares for riders if CCA funding went away.

Previously the board discussed whether it should keep the free-ride policy and what potential impacts bringing fees could have.

Peters said during a January board meeting that the state funding provides more funding to Valley Transit than what it would collect in ridership fees.

Currently, the grant provides $500,000 to Valley Transit, Peters said the organization would collect about $150,000 from ridership fares. Some expected costs to bring back ridership would include hiring an accountant and paying for a digital fee processor service.

Before the free-ride policy, transit fares had cost 50¢ a ride or $1 for a round trip, and various bus passes were available for more frequent riders. Paratransit services were set at 75¢ a ride or $1.50 for a round trip.

“On average, each dollar that's invested in public transit results in a net of $5 back into the community,” Peters said.

“By meeting the requirements for the transit support grants, we bring in $500,000 to the community, which in that turn around ratio is $2.5 million. So, it is an investment.”

©2025 Walla Walla Union-Bulletin (Walla Walla, Wash.).
Visit union-bulletin.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.