student free fare program

County of Fairfax, Virginia

Student Free Fare Program

Board Transportation CommitteeJuly 14, 2015

Stuart BoggsTransit Services Division

Department of Transportation

Department of Transportation 1


Overview

• Background and purpose• Development process• Coordination with schools• Timeline and next steps



Background and Purpose• The student bus pass and school outreach pilot program

– Developed in response to a Board matter and the FY2015 budget language requesting the Department of Transportation explore transportation partnerships with Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)

• FCDOT staff met with:– Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (WMATA)– City of Fairfax CUE– FCPS– Department of Neighborhood and Community Services

• Discussed both short- and long-term opportunities for encouraging increased student and youth ridership on public transit services in Fairfax County



Coordinated Response

• Formation of an inter-department/inter-division working group to plan and implement a student bus pass and school outreach pilot program



Student Fare and School Education Program Working Group

• Working group established by FCDOT to allow for coordinated planning of student pass and associated school education program

• Working group includes representatives from FCDOT and FCPS



Working Group Focus

Strategy – • Provide free trips on Fairfax Connector buses

to Fairfax County high school and middle school students

• Provide students with information on how to use Fairfax Connector bus services



Working Group Focus

Defining Program Limitations – • Set-up as an “opt-in” program; a specific pass

is required• Passes will be valid on Fairfax Connector only• Passes will be valid between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Monday through Friday• Parent/guardian permission is required• Students will need to conform to the same

rules of conduct as all other passengersDepartment of Transportation

7


Fairfax Connector Responsibilities• Bus operator training• Farebox programming• Public outreach

– School outreach– Public outreach

• Pass production– Printing cost shared with

FCPS



FCPS Responsibilities

• Distribution and tracking of passes– Passes have been delivered to FCPS

Administration for distribution to schools– All passes contain a unique serial number that

will allow individual schools to passes assigned to students

• Coordinating with FCDOT on school outreach



Student Bus Pass


SAMPLE


Working Group Accomplishments to Date• Design and development of student pass

program– Program operating parameters– Bus pass design and production

• Coordinated planning of school outreach program.– Defining in-school outreach at five high schools, as a

pilot for the outreach efforts



In-School Outreach• Targeted schools were chosen based on

availability of nearby Fairfax Connector bus service, and geographic distribution

• Schools– Chantilly High School– Edison High School– Madison High School– Mount Vernon High School– South Lakes High School



Timeline

• Working Group Meetings– Began in December 2014– Group continues to meet to prepare for program start

• School outreach• General outreach• Start of pass program

– Monitoring of ridership and identification of any issues (i.e. load factors, lost passes, student conduct, load factors, etc.) – Year 1



Questions?


student free fare program

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