By Lisa Bahr

In October of last year, Metrolink launched the Student Adventure Pass pilot program which allows anyone with a valid student ID to use our system for free. Following the initial success of the program, which has so far been used by more than 27,000 students with mobile ticketing accounts from 485 schools, we announced in March that we would extend the program through the end of the 2023–24 school year.  

The Student Adventure Pass (SAP) makes transit more accessible and equitable to Southern Californians, and we believe that it encourages local youth to be lifelong users of our system and public transportation in general. Brand awareness starts at an early age – and when planning their journeys on their own or with adults, we want their first consideration to be to take Metrolink. 

But beyond what the SAP means for Southern California as a region, the program is also meaningful to each of those 27,000 students with mobile accounts and many more without. They all come to Metrolink with their own circumstances and needs, as well as their own families and communities who are also impacted by the pass. We wanted to understand the impact this program is having in the lives of individual students, so we recently conducted student surveys and interviews to learn more about how they’re using the program. 

The SAP in Numbers 

While the SAP is predominantly used by college students to commute to and from campus, the program is also available to middle and high school, community college and trade school students. One-third (34%) of the students using the SAP are new Metrolink riders, and we’ve seen student mobile account registrations increase by 12% each month. Word is spreading, and students now make up a meaningful portion of our overall ridership — as of April 2024, students accounted for 25% of our system’s total ridership. 

When we talked to Daryush, a sophomore studying biochemistry at Cal State LA, he mentioned that he’s noticed the impact of the SAP. “It’s enabling a lot of people that couldn’t afford it to get to class on time,” he said. “Every time I go, it’s basically packed.” The cost savings are a big deal for Daryush; the program has allowed him to save around $70 per month on transportation costs. 

Our student survey data found that 46% of students would typically drive to school if it weren’t for the SAP. The program allows those students to save on gas and instead use that money on the resources they need for school. 

More Than Just Students 

One of the most interesting details from our student survey revealed the different ways in which students are using the SAP. It’s no surprise that three-quarters of students say they now use Metrolink more frequently to commute to school. But the other responses show the ways in which the SAP is extending beyond students to provide benefits to their families, friends and communities. 

Just over half of students (53%) now take Metrolink more frequently to get to work. This is a crucial benefit for students who work part-time to cover their expenses, because it means they get to keep more of what they earn instead of spending it on transit. What’s more, 36% of students say they now use Metrolink more frequently to attend concerts and events; the SAP is allowing these students to take advantage of everything our region has to offer. Which is a lot!  

But most strikingly, nearly two-thirds (64%) of the students we surveyed say they’re using Metrolink more frequently to visit friends and family. You can imagine what this means for students and their closest communities: being able to care for an aging relative or celebrate a birthday with a friend when it would have otherwise been cost prohibitive.   

Improving Transit Equity 

Most importantly, the SAP has delivered transit equity to the members of our community who need it the most. We have seen the second-highest increase in student ridership on our Antelope Valley Line: according to our statistics, the median household income along the AV Line is just over $40,000, and 42% of AV Line riders in 2022 did not have access to a car. As our CEO Darren Kettle noted in a recent article about the SAP, we saw an immediate drop in use of our Mobility-4-All discounted fare program for low-income riders after the launch of the SAP — students began using Metrolink for free instead of with the 50% low-income discount. 

It’s worth noting as well that three-quarters of the students using the SAP are people of color. The SAP allows our system to better serve those who have historically had less access to transportation and mobility. 

We’re thrilled to be able to continue supporting the students of Southern California and their communities through the end of the 2023–24 school year. We are thankful for our board of directors and member agencies, who have been our biggest champions of the program, and we are hopeful that the program will be extended beyond June 30, 2024.  

Behind every app download and every free ticket is an individual whose life has been improved by this program. Let’s keep it going. 

Hear what some of our student riders had to say about the Student Adventure Pass program: https://youtu.be/1PhNrM3eXqo.