Students Ride Metro Free Starting March 1

Starting March 1, students in grades kindergarten through 12 will be able to ride the Metro bus for free throughout Santa Cruz County.

The Youth Ride Free pilot program eliminates fares in order to increase access and encourage student youth ridership. The program applies to all routes except Highway 17.

According to a 2019 Metro survey, only 9.7% of bus riders are under age 18, although they comprise19% of the county’s population.

The fare has been $2 for a ride and $6 for a day pass, the same for youth as for adults, with passes available for purchase online plus a $1.50 shipping and handling fee.

“Our local youth represent the future of transit and they need better access to Metro,” said Santa Cruz Metro Board Chairman Larry Pageler. “A key goal for the Youth Ride Free program is to help develop lifelong transit riders, while meeting Metro’s overall goal of increasing transit ridership.”

How it Works

Riders in 8th grade and under may be asked by the driver to identify their grade level or the school they attend. Students may be asked to provide a student ID, if one is available.

Riders in grades 9-12 will be asked to show a student ID to the driver. Riders without a student ID get a special pass from their school or at the Pacific Station customer service window in downtown Santa Cruz.

Metro, which operates a fleet of 94 buses on 24 fixed routes and 32 paratransit vehicles, is focused on boosting ridership to 7 million trips annually within the next five years. n

Meet Scotts Valley Water District’s New General Manager

On Jan. 10, Scotts Valley Water District announced David McNair has been promoted to general manager, succeeding Piret Harmon, who held that role for 10 years. Nate Gillespie has been named operations manager, succeeding McNair.

McNair became operations manager in 2014, leading the Orchard Run Water Treatment Plant upgrades, construction of the new Orchard Run Well and the intertie project linking the Scotts Valley Water District with the San Lorenzo Valley Water District to provide a more resilient water supply during emergencies.

Previously he worked at the Santa Cruz Water Department. He got his start at the San Lorenzo Valley Water District 40 years ago.

Gillespie comes from the Soquel Creek Water District, where he managed day-today operations, including water production, treatment, water system maintenance and emergency response. Gillespie also has worked at the Santa Cruz Water Department and the San Lorenzo Valley Water District.

Harmon will work part-time to manage special projects.

During her tenure, the Scotts Valley Water District has become a leader in innovation, water efficiency and sustainable planning.

Scotts Valley Water District was among the first water agencies in Santa Cruz County to install “intelligent” water meters and implement WaterSmart, an online platform that provides hourly water use updates, high water use alerts and other tools for customers to monitor their water use.

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