South Sound News

Pierce Transit extending free Lyft rides a few more months

As Lyft driver Crystal Vermillion approached the Tacoma Dome station, she said she makes a lot of trips to transit hubs.

Since May 2018, many of those rides have been free to the passenger, reimbursed by Pierce Transit through a federal grant.

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"There's lots of places where the buses don't go," Vermillion said.

Trinity Markray lives in one of those places. She hadn't heard of the free ride-share program, but has paid for trips on her own to catch the Sounder commuter train.

Catching a bus would be a 17-to 19-minute walk from her home in Fife.

"I don't like to walk," she said.

Rebecca Japhet of Pierce Transit said the agency has covered about 5,000 Lyft rides so far, and has enough of the $205,000 grant left over to extend the pilot project through the end of the year.

Free rides are offered to people who live in specific zones.

To use the service, they enter a special promo code on the Lyft app. Pierce Transit then reimburses Lyft for the cost of the rides.The average trip for the program is about 4 miles long and costs $10.74.

Pierce Transit says by comparison, traditional bus service in areas of sparse ridership could cost as much as $60 or $70 per passenger per trip.

"It's a more affordable way to provide individual on-demand rides for people to get to transit, rather than putting a big bus in an area where there isn't a lot of density," Japhet said.

It's also a lifeline for Richard Summers, who had to quit driving four months ago because of his eyesight.

"It's made a huge difference, otherwise I wouldn't be able to get out that often. Being out is part of living," Summers said.

The program also gives free rides home to Pierce College students who get done with night classes after the buses stop running.

Pierce Transit might try to pursue continued federal funding or cover the cost of Lyft rides itself after the federal grant expires at the end of the year.