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Elementary and high school students from across the region will be able to ride public transit for free on Monday, August 18, the first day of school for Chicago Public Schools and many suburban schools.
This is the fourth year in a row that Metra and Pace are offering free rides to students on the first day of classes. K-12 students attending any public or private school, as well as an accompanying adult, can ride trains and buses for free from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, August 18.
“We are excited to be able to continue this back-to-school tradition for students across the six-county region,” said Metra CEO/Executive Director Jim Derwinski. “A free, reliable, and convenient ride on the first day helps set the school year on a positive course.”
“We’re proud to make the first day of school a little easier for families,” said Melinda Metzger, Executive Director of Pace Suburban Bus. “Offering free rides on our buses helps students start the year on the right foot and introduces them to the independence and reliability public transit can provide.”
In addition to this special offer for the first day of classes, full-time students enrolled in grade school or high school in the six-county region are eligible to purchase reduced fare tickets for all travel on Metra and Pace fixed route services. When using a reduced fare ticket, students must present either a valid school ID or valid letter of certification from their school (on school stationery bearing the student’s name, school name and authorized signature). Home-schooled students are also eligible for reduced fares. To meet documentation requirements, the student must present a letter with the name and address of the person providing the home schooling as teacher/principal at the top, signed and notarized.
Throughout the year, children aged 7-11 are also eligible for reduced fares, and children 7 or under ride free with a fare-paying adult. For more information on Metra’s reduced fares for students, click here. For more information on Pace’s fares for students, visit pacebus.com/fares.
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