Spare the Air Day No Longer Gets You a Free Ride

Harvimalhi

Guess what? You still have to pay for this, no matter how hot and filthy it gets.

​Aside from people dressing sexy, what advantages are there for us on blazing hot days with crappy air conditions? "Spare the Air Days" used to get you a free ride on Bay Area public transportation; you could hop the F-Line, Transbay Bus, or Ferry for a whimsical ride on a sun-soaked evening for the same price as stepping in chewing gum.

Those waiting for a prize other than altruistic joy of appeasing air quality regulators by not driving on Spare the Air Days will have to just keep waiting. They're not doing the whole free rides thing anymore.

Kristine Roselius, a public information officer for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, confirms the free public transit rides were fun while they lasted. But that was back when the district had federal funding to compensate the mass transit agencies. And those days are gone.

"We had our last transit day two summers ago," she confirms. Egad, has it been that long? Indeed, it has.

"The point of that was to get people to try transit and find out how convenient it could be, and hopefully make it a habit."

Ebaum's World

Nope. No free ride for you.

​So, folks who didn't normally use public transit were supposed to gauge its desirability on a blisteringly hot, sweaty day when buses and trains are jam-packed with people? Giving away free rides may have been a great idea for one-day goals of lessening car traffic. But this doesn't seem like the catalyst for hordes of people to get on the bus.

And for those of you who were going to ride anyway -- you're going to have to pay. Roselius confirms there'll be no free ride deals "in the near future."

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