FILE An electric bus that will go into service later this summer is pictured at the Utah Transit Authority Park & Ride in Millcreek on Friday, May 31, 2019. Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — If you buy a transit pass for Utah Transit Authority (UTA), some of your trips may be free under the new Fare Cap program.
Carl Arky, spokesman for UTA, said the new ‘Fare Cap’ program started on Sunday, September 12th. It will run for six months until March 12, 2022.
UTA said the caps for use come out to $5 a day or $20 a week on regular services, and $40 a week on premium services
At normal rates, most one-way tickets on busses, TRAX or the Frontrunner are $2.50, so the program would kick in if you take more than 5 round trips a week.
Arky said “Basically, when you exceed the cap purchased on the transit, or Fare Pay, card, you’ll ride for free the rest of that day or week.”
People will still need to tap on and tap off each time they board a train so UTA can track how many ‘free’ trips people are getting. That will determine if they continue the program past the six-month deadline.
The goal is to encourage people to take public transportation not just to and from work, but for movies, to a concert, or even to lunch in the middle of the day.
The UTA is looking for participants to sign up here.
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