Free Fast Pass would give San Francisco youth a ticket to opportunity
For immediate release
Sept. 20, 2011
Contact: Sheila Chung Hagen, Office of Supervisor David Campos, 415-554-5144;
Jaron Browne, POWER, 415-377-2822
PRESS RELEASE
Free Fast Pass would give San Francisco youth a ticket to opportunity
Bus riders, parents & community organizations rally, take proposal to Board of Supervisors
All young people in San Francisco would be able to ride MUNI for free under a proposal
put forward by a broad spectrum of community organizations and supported by many public
agencies and officials. Advocates for the free youth pass will hold a rally and press
conference in front of San Francisco’s City Hall on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 12:00 noon.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors will introduce a resolution backing the project at its
meeting immediately following the event, at 2 p.m. Supervisor David Campos, San Francisco
Unified School District Superintendent Carlos Garcia and other city officials will speak at the
rally, along with youth and adult representatives of several community groups.
“As a single mother, the cost of transportation is a huge burden on my family. That’s why
I joined POWER and started reaching out to other parents in the schools and on the buses,”
said Estela Rosales, a leader in the campaign. “The youth passes are a critical issue for Latino,
African American, Asian, Pacific Islander and low-income families like mine who are hit hard
by rising transit fares. I pay twice as much as I used to for the Fast Pass for my children. This is
about fairness and equal access.”
With the San Francisco Unified School District scaling back its yellow school bus system, the
need for youth access to transportation is more urgent than ever. The SFUSD has announced that
it will cut the bus service by 43 percent over the next two years, cutting its fleet from 44 buses
to 25 by 2013. The cost of MUNI’s Youth Fast Pass went up 110 percent between July 2009 and
July 2011.
“The District remains committed to equity and access for all our students, not only to
schools, but also to after-school programs and all the resources the city has to offer,”
SFUSD Superintendent Carlos Garcia said. “We welcome the Free Youth Fast Pass
program; state funding for schools has been dramatically reduced and we have had to
make difficult choices, including cutting school bus services,” Garcia said.
Young people say they depend on MUNI for necessities as well as the activities that enrich
their lives. “I currently take the 8x and 30 bus to get to school and to volunteer at the Adopt-an-
Alleyway program, said Amy Huang, a junior at Galileo High School and a youth leader at the
Chinatown Community Development Center. “MUNI is my school bus and my lifeline,” Huang
said.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and the SFUSD implemented
the Youth Lifeline program as a free pass distribution for low-income students last spring; the
demand far exceeded the supply of 12,000 passes.
The free pass would be available to all San Francisco students and/or residents between the
ages of five and 17. Backers of the proposal have developed a plan to pay for a three-year
pilot program using a combination of private contributions, efficiencies in MUNI, and funds
from several different public agencies: the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency
(MTA), the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, the Metropolitan Transportation
Commission and the San Francisco Unified School District. The agencies still need to consider
and approve the proposal. Once the pilot is running, they will have information to help develop a
long-term funding plan.
“The resources to fund the program are coming from a city-wide, multi-agency investment
in this project,” said Supervisor David Campos. “It’s one critical step we can take to improve
the quality of life for all families in the city, and to support and encourage a new generation of
transit riders for our future,” he said.
A report by the Budget and Legislative Analyst for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
suggests that the pass would only increase overall MUNI ridership by five percent, with the
growth concentrated before and after school. The proposed legislation authorizing the pass
coincides with new efficiencies that the MTA is considering to improve and increase service
throughout the system.
Officials, agencies and community groups backing the free Youth FastPass include San
Francisco Supervisors David Campos, John Avalos, Malia Cohen, Jane Kim, Eric Mar and Ross
Mirkarimi; the San Francisco Unified School District; People Organized to Win Employment
Rights (POWER), the Chinatown Community Development Center, the Jamestown Community
Center, SRO Families Collaborative, the MORE Public Transit Coalition, Senior Action
Network, and Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth.
Sept. 20, 2011
Contact: Sheila Chung Hagen, Office of Supervisor David Campos, 415-554-5144;
Jaron Browne, POWER, 415-377-2822
PRESS RELEASE
Free Fast Pass would give San Francisco youth a ticket to opportunity
Bus riders, parents & community organizations rally, take proposal to Board of Supervisors
All young people in San Francisco would be able to ride MUNI for free under a proposal
put forward by a broad spectrum of community organizations and supported by many public
agencies and officials. Advocates for the free youth pass will hold a rally and press
conference in front of San Francisco’s City Hall on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 12:00 noon.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors will introduce a resolution backing the project at its
meeting immediately following the event, at 2 p.m. Supervisor David Campos, San Francisco
Unified School District Superintendent Carlos Garcia and other city officials will speak at the
rally, along with youth and adult representatives of several community groups.
“As a single mother, the cost of transportation is a huge burden on my family. That’s why
I joined POWER and started reaching out to other parents in the schools and on the buses,”
said Estela Rosales, a leader in the campaign. “The youth passes are a critical issue for Latino,
African American, Asian, Pacific Islander and low-income families like mine who are hit hard
by rising transit fares. I pay twice as much as I used to for the Fast Pass for my children. This is
about fairness and equal access.”
With the San Francisco Unified School District scaling back its yellow school bus system, the
need for youth access to transportation is more urgent than ever. The SFUSD has announced that
it will cut the bus service by 43 percent over the next two years, cutting its fleet from 44 buses
to 25 by 2013. The cost of MUNI’s Youth Fast Pass went up 110 percent between July 2009 and
July 2011.
“The District remains committed to equity and access for all our students, not only to
schools, but also to after-school programs and all the resources the city has to offer,”
SFUSD Superintendent Carlos Garcia said. “We welcome the Free Youth Fast Pass
program; state funding for schools has been dramatically reduced and we have had to
make difficult choices, including cutting school bus services,” Garcia said.
Young people say they depend on MUNI for necessities as well as the activities that enrich
their lives. “I currently take the 8x and 30 bus to get to school and to volunteer at the Adopt-an-
Alleyway program, said Amy Huang, a junior at Galileo High School and a youth leader at the
Chinatown Community Development Center. “MUNI is my school bus and my lifeline,” Huang
said.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and the SFUSD implemented
the Youth Lifeline program as a free pass distribution for low-income students last spring; the
demand far exceeded the supply of 12,000 passes.
The free pass would be available to all San Francisco students and/or residents between the
ages of five and 17. Backers of the proposal have developed a plan to pay for a three-year
pilot program using a combination of private contributions, efficiencies in MUNI, and funds
from several different public agencies: the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency
(MTA), the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, the Metropolitan Transportation
Commission and the San Francisco Unified School District. The agencies still need to consider
and approve the proposal. Once the pilot is running, they will have information to help develop a
long-term funding plan.
“The resources to fund the program are coming from a city-wide, multi-agency investment
in this project,” said Supervisor David Campos. “It’s one critical step we can take to improve
the quality of life for all families in the city, and to support and encourage a new generation of
transit riders for our future,” he said.
A report by the Budget and Legislative Analyst for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
suggests that the pass would only increase overall MUNI ridership by five percent, with the
growth concentrated before and after school. The proposed legislation authorizing the pass
coincides with new efficiencies that the MTA is considering to improve and increase service
throughout the system.
Officials, agencies and community groups backing the free Youth FastPass include San
Francisco Supervisors David Campos, John Avalos, Malia Cohen, Jane Kim, Eric Mar and Ross
Mirkarimi; the San Francisco Unified School District; People Organized to Win Employment
Rights (POWER), the Chinatown Community Development Center, the Jamestown Community
Center, SRO Families Collaborative, the MORE Public Transit Coalition, Senior Action
Network, and Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Youth Pass FAQ 09-19-11.doc | 50 KB |
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