With the cost of cars, fuel, insurance and maintenance eating a large portion of students’ budgets, many could relieve their financial burden by using the transit services that we fund collectively.
In April 2021, the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees collaborated with LA Metro to create the GoPass program, according to the Roundup. This service gives K-12 and community college students in Los Angeles free fares to ride buses and trains in the city, as well as in neighboring cities.
The service was extended in 2023 and has recently been made permanent. Students at Pierce College could benefit from setting aside a couple of car trips a week in favor of public transportation.
Not only is taking buses and trains free through the GoPass program, saving students from paying hundreds or thousands of dollars each year, but it also provides health benefits through extra walking.
Walking to and from the bus station can provide much-needed exercise to people who might otherwise forget to do the minimal amount that health organizations, such as the CDC, recommend.
The switch from personal vehicles to mass transit can also have a big environmental impact, even on an individual basis. The average passenger vehicle emits more than 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year on 11,500 miles driven annually, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The adoption of hybrid and electric vehicles helps to reduce that number, but riding the bus or train remains one of the cleanest options.
Pierce is connected to the G Line (Orange Line) of the LA Metro. Riders can go east on the path to the Sepulveda Basin for additional exercise and recreational fun, or they can choose to go to the North Hollywood station, which connects the San Fernando Valley to the rest of the city via subway.
Riding public transit can open affordable opportunities to have fun and experience new things without the need to pay high prices for gas, find and pay for parking or worry about automobile accidents.
Without needing parking, students can save a lot of time and money when going to crowded areas.
It isn’t only riders who benefit either. The American Public Transportation Association found that businesses see an increase in profit when public transportation is expanded in their areas.
With the GoPass program being made permanent, it’s time for students to leave their cars in their garages, grab their TAP cards and wait at the station to catch the next bus.
