In an effort to boost Los Angeles County’s historically poor voter turnout, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials agreed Thursday to offer free fares on the sprawling bus and rail system on election day.
On Nov. 6, rides on Metro’s six rail lines and 2,200 buses will be free from 12:01 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. Eliminating the $1.75 fare for a day will cost the agency an estimated $600,000, officials said.
During the midterm election four years ago, Los Angeles County’s voter turnout rate was 31%, the lowest in California.
“We know there are so many impediments to folks voting,” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, one of the authors of the motion, said at Metro’s Thursday meeting. “We know how critical voting is, and what an important election we have that’s coming up.”
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