Agency Adopts Low-Income Bus Fare
Half-price fare for eligible residents will go into effect July 1
Snohomish County, Wash. – The Community Transit Board of Directors today unanimously approved a reduced bus fare category for eligible low-income residents. The new fare will be half the price of a regular adult fare and will go into effect on July 1.
The low-income fare will be instituted through the ORCA LIFT program, utilizing the regional electronic fare card, ORCA. Eligible riders must use an ORCA LIFT card to pay for the reduced fare; they cannot pay with cash.
For Community Transit service, the low-income fare would be $1.25 for all local bus riders (routes within Snohomish County) and $2 for all commuter bus riders (routes that travel to and from King County). Adults and youth would pay the same low-income fare.
| ADULT | YOUTH | REDUCED Disabled/Medicare Low Income (NEW) Seniors (65+) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Bus | $2.50 | $1.75 | $1.25 |
| Commuter Bus | $4.25 | $3.00 | $2.00 |
| Swift BRT | $2.50 | $1.75 | $1.25 |
Under the program, residents will need to verify their income with a social service provider. To qualify, residents’ income must be no more than 200 percent of the federal poverty level, the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services standard. Residents will need to re-apply for an ORCA LIFT card every two years. Details on how to verify income eligibility and obtain an ORCA LIFT card will be published closer to the implementation date.
Community Transit joins other regional agencies in the ORCA LIFT program, including King County Metro Transit, Kitsap Transit and Sound Transit. Everett Transit has proposed its own low-income bus fare pending city council approval.
More information is available at www.communitytransit.org/ORCALIFT.
Community Transit is responsible for providing bus and paratransit service, vanpool and alternative commute options in Snohomish County. The agency is building a network of Swift bus rapid transit lines with Swift Blue Line along Highway 99 and Swift Green Line between Canyon Park/Bothell and Boeing/Paine Field.
