Students heading back to school can continue to take advantage of free rides on the entire Sacramento Regional Transit network.
The RydeFreeRT program — a partnership between the City of Sacramento and SacRT — offers students in transitional kindergarten through 12th grade free rides on buses, light rail and on-demand microtransit services.
Championed by Councilmember Jay Schenirer and launched in the fall of 2019 , RydeFreeRT responded to the needs expressed in a survey involving three Sacramento Unified schools, which found that approximately one in four students reported missing at least one day of school during a six-week period because of transportation issues.
“We are very proud of the continued success of this program,” Schenirer said. “Not only has it has removed barriers for young people to attend school more consistently, it has helped them to maintain employment and participate in more recreational activities. It also has helped working parents while creating lifelong public transportation riders, which ultimately will benefit our city and our environment.”
The program is available to any young person who lives or goes to school within SacRT’s service area, which includes the cities of Sacramento, Elk Grove, Folsom, Citrus Heights, Rancho Cordova and parts of Sacramento County.
RydeFreeRT is available all day, any day of the week, all year during regular service hours.
Approximately 220,000 students including home-schooled students, and foster and homeless youth are all eligible.
New cards for the current 2022-2023 school year are distributed by schools and are valid through June 30, 2023.
For more information on the program visit RydeFreeRT.com.