Transportation and education officials gathered on the campus of Santiago Canyon College on Sept. 25 to celebrate the launch of OCTA’s second college student bus pass program. The first began in 2017 at Santa Ana College.
“This is another example of an innovative way that we are helping students discover the benefits of public transportation, while at the same time helping students to get to school and, ultimately, to achieve their dreams,” said OCTA Director Mark Murphy, also the mayor pro tem for the city of Orange.
Through the Santiago Canyon program, full-time students will pay $5 each semester for unlimited OC Bus rides.
This latest effort follows OCTA’s highly successful initial ridership program at Santa Ana College, which recorded more than 900,000 boardings in a little over a year of operation. In addition, the program increased bus ridership, introduced new riders to public transit, decreased campus traffic and parking congestion, and allowed some students greater access to higher education.
A survey of students at Santa Ana College showed that, overall, 86 percent were satisfied with the college pass. Nearly 70 percent of those who rode the bus to school also chose OC Bus to travel to other destinations, and 96 percent said using the pass helped them achieve their educational goals.
Based on that initial success, OCTA looked at opportunities to expand the student pass program to other Orange County campuses.
This effort is part of OCTA’s OC Bus 360° initiative, which is enhancing bus service in Orange County by maximizing existing resources and tailoring transit solutions to meet market demands.