GoTriangle resumes fare collection on July 1 with new options
After suspending fares during the COVID-19 pandemic, GoTriangle will return to collecting fares on July 1, 2024, with new options for passengers that include digital ticketing and a convenient pass for low-income riders to ride fare-free. Youth (ages 13-18) and seniors (ages 65 and older) will still ride free (as they did pre-pandemic) after they enroll in one of the GoPass programs that allows them to use the Umo digital ticketing platform.
“We’re excited about rolling out these options that are incredibly beneficial to our riders,” says GoTriangle President and CEO Charles Lattuca. “Our passengers will be able to buy digital passes online and ride the bus with one swipe of the GoPass powered by Umo. Through the Umo app, users already can track their trips to see where their buses are in real time. GoPass will allow us to roll out a range of fare options to fit everyone’s needs.”
GoTriangle went fare-free and instituted rear-boarding on buses in March 2020 to help protect operators from COVID-19 at the fare box. The suspension was also designed to help ease financial burdens for frontline workers and community members who were relying on transit to get to critical jobs or obtain food or health care during the pandemic. Each year, farebox revenue funding has provided about $2 million.
Since May 2023, under direction from the agency’s Board of Trustees, GoTriangle staff members have been working to prepare for a smooth transition to fare collection and to provide new assistance for low-income riders. At its February meeting, the board approved GoTriangle’s returning to fares and
implementing expanded GoPass fare opportunities to ensure affordability and accessibility as fares are reinstated on July 1.
GoTriangle will roll out a variety of fare options, including one designed to help people with low income. GoTriangle staff are working on the details of a distribution network for the passes and will provide more information on where to buy them in June.
Once fare collection is resumed, riders who prefer to pay cash to ride the bus will be able to do so but will need exact change. Boarding at the front of the bus will resume with fare collection. View GoTriangle’s fixed-route fare options that go into effect on July 1, 2024, at gotriangle.org/returntofare.