The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Proposal advances to give D.C. residents $100 a month for transit

The ‘Metro for D.C.’ bill moved through the council’s transportation committee with unanimous approval

September 26, 2022 at 6:53 p.m. EDT
D.C. Council member Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) speaks at a rally on March 2, 2020, in support of his bill that would give residents $100 a month in free public transportation credits. (Justin George/The Washington Post)
4 min

A proposal that would give District residents $100 a month for transit advanced out of a committee Monday and will go to the D.C. Council for a vote.

The “Metro for D.C.” bill, which would give the monthly SmarTrip credit to all adults and young children in the District, moved through the council’s transportation committee with unanimous approval. The bill was created to help lower-income residents with transportation costs while helping to stabilize Metro, which is facing a nearly $200 million operating shortfall next year because of fares lost to telework.

The bill was introduced in early March 2020 by council member Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), days before the region began facing pandemic-related restrictions.

“It was an important idea then, but now as we are faced with our economic recovery, it’s absolutely imperative,” Allen said Monday. “Metro success is so closely linked to the District’s success and, frankly, the region’s success.”

D.C. Council resurrects proposal to give residents $100 a month in transit fare

The bill, co-introduced by eight of the council’s 13 members, would give D.C. adults and pre-kindergarteners $100 in monthly SmarTrip credits to use on the Metro as well as regional bus systems that use SmarTrip. Federal employees who receive transit subsidies would not be eligible. Students enrolled in D.C. schools already receive unlimited transit fare through the city’s Kids Ride Free program.

About 185,000 people, or 44 percent, of people in D.C. who use Metro would qualify for the credits, the D.C. Council Budget Office said in a report. Council members initially discussed limiting the program to low-income adults, but Allen said the cost to verify eligibility was too great.

The credits would not accumulate, with balances resetting each month to $100. The bill also would devote at least $10 million a year to bus system improvements in mostly underserved areas.

Metrorail ridership has risen about 10 percent since Labor Day but is less than half of pre-pandemic levels. The transit system is facing a budget shortfall amid rising telework during the pandemic.

Budget officials this month projected a nearly $185 million funding gap next year because Metro will have used up federal coronavirus aid.

Annual funding shortfalls are projected to grow to $527 million the following year, widening each year unless there are significant increases in revenue or funding, Metro officials said last week. The “D.C. for Metro” bill, meanwhile, would cost the city between $54 million and $163 million in transit credits — depending on usage among recipients.

“Metro appreciates legislative initiatives that provide funding and improve services,” Metro spokeswoman Sherri Ly said in a statement. “We welcome all initiatives that encourage customers to choose Metro.”

After showing its worth during pandemic, momentum builds for free or reduced-fare transit

Supporters of the proposal said the pandemic has highlighted how lower-income residents rely on transit. The District budget office report found that 40 percent of those who would be eligible for the credits earn less than $36,000 a year. The office of D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) did not respond to a request for comment about the proposal.

Around the nation, initiatives to make public transit free have gained momentum during the pandemic, with Alexandria among the communities that have removed fares.

Money to pay for the D.C. program would come from tax revenue that exceeds city projections, the result of growth and rising property values. Allen estimated that the program would require up to $163 million in its first year and another $10 million for bus system improvements, such as bus lanes and shelters.

The city took in $311 million more last year than it planned for, council member Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3) said.

Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) said improving bus service would help lure more riders to the system.

“We need to figure out how do we get people to get back on public transportation in the numbers that at least we saw pre-pandemic,” Henderson said. “For some folks, it’s cost as a barrier. But for a lot of people, it’s around the reliability piece.”

Cheh, who chairs the transportation committee, said the program is expensive but that D.C. would recoup its investment.

“We need to help our transit system. It’s in a lot of trouble,” Cheh said. “It will increase ridership and increase transit use, with all of the benefits that accrue to the District as a result of that.”