RTA Announces Upcoming Changes for Seniors Ride Free Program

March 7, 2011

Seniors who are currently enrolled in the Seniors Ride Free program can continue to ride fixedroutes without interruption. However, there are changes that will take place because of the new
program.

The following changes will occur with the Seniors Ride Free Program:

• All current senior free ride cardholders will receive correspondence from the RTA in the next few weeks advising of the program changes.
• The RTA is working with the Department on Aging to verify all seniors currently enrolled in the Circuit Breaker program
• Newly designed magnetic stripe card to distinguish between low-income seniors who will be able to ride free and those who must pay a reduced fare. The distribution date is scheduled for the mid-summer timeframe, and the RTA will follow up to announce the exact date.
• All seniors wishing to qualify for free rides must be registered with the Department on Aging’s Circuit Breaker program and meet eligibility requirements. For more information call 800-252-8966 or visit www.cbrx.il.gov to enroll. Incomes to qualify range from $27,610 to $45,657 depending on household size.

The Seniors Ride Free program changed in February after Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation amending the RTA Act to allow only low-income seniors to continue riding free on fixed-route services. All other seniors would be required to pay a reduced fare. The RTA will continue to broadly communicate and publicize the program’s status.

There are no changes occurring for the People with Disabilities Ride Free program.

For more information about the recently changed Seniors Ride Free program, visit www.RTAchicago.com.