WE NEED YOUR HELP! . . . THE METRO BOARD VOTES ON A NEW STUDENT TRANSIT PASS PROGRAM THURSDAY
Please come to the Metro Board meeting on May 26 to support the re-vamped student transit pass program that will be presented to the board—or send a student or friend. The meeting begins at 9 a.m. and LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas will ask board members to consider the measure promptly at 10 a.m. so students can get back to school to study for finals!
Currently only fulltime students qualify for Metro’s student pass, which costs $43/month—a 57% discount over the regular $100 price but still too much for lower-income students, who say they sometimes have to choose between buying a ticket and buying lunch. Students, school administrators and other advocates are pressing Metro to lower the student eligibility requirement to 6 credits for undergraduate students, many of whom (especially community college students) go to school part-time because they have to work to help support their families and/or pay for school. These are the students who need discounted student passes the most!
The meeting will be at the Metro Headquarters behind Union Station in the 3rd floor boardroom, beginning at 9 a.m. There will be time for only 5 students to speak but as many as possible should come down to the podium or stand up in the audience so board members can see there’s broad support.
SIGN THE STUDENT TRANSIT PASS PETITION
You can do it online HERE. Only 12 hours left, though, if we decide to present signatures to the Metro Board!
SIGN THE “SUPPORT AB 2222” PETITION
You can do it online HERE. This bill, by Asm. Chris Holden (D-Pasadena), would provide $50M/year for discounted student transit pass programs for K-12 and public college and university students across the state, and is likely to be taken off the Suspense File in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on Friday. But it is also likely to be stripped of its funding, which means it will need to be funded in the new state budget. However, student transit passes have not made it into the Senate, Assembly or the Governor’s budget proposals yet. We have only a week or so to fix that. You could reach out to your elected representatives! This funding source could help Metro keep student fares low.