Washington, D.C., residents may see $100 per month for Metro transit after a bill advanced out of the D.C. Council’s transportation committee.
The five-person committee passed the bill unanimously. If approved by the full council, most city residents could receive essentially free or significantly cheaper public transportation for both Metrorail and Metrobus, per a DCist report.
The council is set to discuss the bill and possibly hold a vote in early October.
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The bill would provide residents with a $100 subsidy, with added installments to keep them at that amount. A rider only spending $25 in one month would receive a $25 subsidy to bring their total back up to $100. Any expenses above the monthly subsidy would have to be covered by the resident.
The subsidies would cover the transit needs of 92% of adult riders in the city, according to the committee.
“I think that this is a major step forward,” committee Chairwoman and Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh said. “First, we need to help our transit system. It’s in a lot of trouble, and this will do that. The second thing is, it will increase ridership and increase transit use with all the benefits that accrue.”
The $100 subsidy would help over 75% of residents who depend on the Metro transportation system to get around the city. A study from the committee showed that 78% of riders do not receive transit subsidies from their employers.
However, if approved, the bill would exclude federal employees who already receive transit subsidies due to most of them exceeding $100 per month.
Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen, who introduced the bill, said it is essential to the city’s economic recovery to get more people on the Metro and back up to pre-pandemic numbers.
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“Metro’s success is so closely linked to the district’s success and, frankly, the region’s success,” Allen said during the committee’s hearing. “It’s how our residents get to and from work. It’s how neighbors move around their community. It’s how students get to and from school. It’s what small businesses rely on to get customers to and from their storefronts, as well as their employees.”
