SEATTLE — People age 18 and under will ride buses, water taxis and streetcars for free in Washington state’s most populous county starting Sept. 1.
The King County Council on Thursday unanimously approved the plan, The Seattle Times reported.
Introduced by Executive Dow Constantine, the vote kicks off an effort to get as many public transit cards — known as ORCA cards — into the hands of young people as possible. The new policy comes after state lawmakers passed a nearly $17 billion transportation funding package in Washington’s 2022 legislative session, with almost exclusively Democratic votes.
The state transportation package includes $3 billion for transit, about half of which only goes to local transit agencies if they adopt policies to make ridership free for young people. This includes local buses, as well as Amtrak trains and Washington State Ferries.
So far, every local transit agency in the state has indicated they will adopt free fares for youth in order to become eligible for state funding. Transit is already free for young people in Everett. Community Transit, Kitsap Transit, Pierce Transit and Sound Transit will similarly go fare-free for youth by the start of this school year.