Overview
- District 7 Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito is directing $150,000 in unspent office funds to cover VIA spring semester passes for students ages 12 to 18 starting in January.
- A VIA spring semester pass costs $38 and roughly 3,600 students buy one each year, according to VIA CEO Jon Gary Herrera.
- VIA officials say the agency cannot waive student pass costs on its own given its finances, so the city contribution will underwrite all spring passes.
- Alderete Gavito and developer David Adelman plan to seek philanthropic donations to try to extend the free-pass program beyond the spring term.
- Three council members are promoting a broader fare-waiver pilot for youth, select low-income routes and some workers, but VIA points to limited fare revenue and bond obligations as constraints, and Alderete Gavito opposes that approach as unsustainable.