Since August of 2021, San Francisco’s Muni has been free for everyone under the age of 18, allowing students to commute to school at no cost — an important relief for many of the city’s youth. Although Muni offers free transport to all minors, BART, the backbone of the Bay Area’s transportation network, does not offer free rides for minors. For the sake of equity, BART should allow students under the age of 18 to ride for free, ensuring greater access to education and opportunity.
For families with financial aid, free lunch, and other support, finding the money to pay for BART transportation to and from school each day can be a struggle. “It’s costly to live here in the Bay Area. I feel like the youth shouldn’t have to pay to take BART because we’re not able to generate a steady income to sustain paying for transportation to school every day,” Cole Geurtsen, a Berkeley High School junior, said.
Additionally, regardless of their financial situation, students should not be expected to have to pay for transportation just to access education. “There are a lot of kids in the Oakland, San Francisco, and Berkeley areas that don’t have a lot of money … where BART is really the only option, students shouldn’t be charged for that when it’s their only way to get to school,” Geurtsen said.
Unfortunately, BART already has financial struggles. Cutting back on youth payments for transportation could heavily affect BART’s already struggling finances. Nonetheless, there are solutions to BART’s financial strain besides charging youth for rides.
The jumping of turnstiles and other underhanded ways to avoid paying for BART are common. Before the pandemic, BART estimated that it lost between $15 million and $25 million a year from fare evasion alone. Fortunately, BART has already begun implementing solutions to this. As part of a new $90 million project, BART is installing six-foot tall plexiglass doors with a mechanical auto-lock to prevent fare evasion. This, in theory, should prevent fare evasion, which might allow BART to afford to let minors ride for free.
Providing free BART rides for students under the age of 18 is crucial for ensuring equitable access to education in the Bay Area, where transportation costs can be a significant burden to students. By addressing these fare evasions, BART can help alleviate the financial burden on students and families, nurturing better opportunities for youth without needing to compromise the system’s financial stability.