'Free Fare February' a Huge Boost for Ridership in Utah

Early returns from Utah Transit Authority's fare-free transit experiment.

1 minute read

February 21, 2022, 6:00 AM PST

A Utah Transit Authority Traxx train arrives in Salt Lake City. | Ritu Manoj Jethani / Shutterstock

People like to ride transit when it's free, it seems.

Writing for TownLift, Parker Malatesta reports that average weekday ridership on the Utah Transit Authoruty (UTA) system was up 20 percent in the first two weeks of February—a period coinciding with the system's "Free Fare February" promotion. "Saturday shows the largest increase at 34%, with Sunday ridership up 27%," adds Maletesta.

The most significant ridership increases are happening on the FrontRunner, a commuter rail system connecting Ogden to Provo. Ridership is up 163 percent on Saturday and 33 percent during the week, reports Malatesta.

All Utah Transit Authority (UTA) services are free until the end of the month. More ridership data can be found in the source article below.

FULL STORY: UTA reports significant increase in ridership thanks to Free Fare February

Thursday, February 17, 2022 in TownLift

Transportation Utah Utah Transit Authority Provo Ogden FrontRunner Free Transit Fare-Free Transit Free Fare February Public Transit Transit Ridership View More

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