Public transit agencies have faced many challenges since the COVID-19 pandemic, including reduced operating budgets and decreased ridership. To address these challenges, more than a dozen transit agencies and local governments have turned toward income-based, discounted fare programs to encourage people to take transit.
These programs are proven to improve riders' health, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and traffic congestion, and generate more demand for transit. Yet participation rates are low—among most of the programs we analyzed, fewer than 1 in 3 people eligible for the programs participate in them.
But one program stood out. Philadelphia’s Zero Fare program has a 63 percent participation rate, thanks in part to its autoenrollment process, which consolidates or bypasses several burdensome application steps by using information already on file via other benefit programs. What can transit organizations and local leaders learn from Philadelphia’s autoenrollment approach?
The Education-to-Workforce Framework Data Tool displays success indicators across geographies and years allowing users to get a complete picture of the factors that help or hinder a students’ success in their communities.
