Transportation-related emissions are one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, totaling about 29% of all
greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., according to the EPA.
The Clean Air Partnership and Citizens for Modern Transit (CMT) are therefore teaming up for a joint initiative in conjunction with the 2024 Summer Olympics – as late July into August is traditionally known as the hottest stretch of summer and poses the greatest threat for poor air quality.
Area residents are encouraged to take MetroLink and MetroBus to get to school, work, sports and entertainment venues and everywhere else they need to go. Doing so will help reduce auto emissions and improve regional air quality conditions, while saving transit riders money on gasoline, parking fees and the maintenance costs associated with personal vehicle usage. It will also earn them gold-medal, “Clean Air Champion” status.
Let’s collectively carry the torch for clean air. Commit to “Going for the Gold” today.
Here’s how it works. Complete the pledge form below acknowledging your commitment to taking transit between July 26 thru Aug. 11 and your consent to receive color-coded, daily air quality forecasts and other information about the benefits of public transportation. The first 150 to do so will receive a “Going for the Gold, 2024 Clean Air Champion” vinyl sticker and a $5 Metro Day Pass good for
unlimited rides on MetroLink or MetroBus for an entire day.
Those who track their transit trips by responding to campaign SMS messages from July 26 to Aug. 11 will also get a free patriotic “Public Transit” t-shirt, while supplies last. Each time respondents track their transit trips, their name will be entered into a drawing to win one of 10, September monthly Metro Transit passes up for grabs – valued at $78 each. So, the more you take transit and track your trips,
the more opportunities you have to win!
PLEDGE NOW
Public transit is provided throughout the bi-state area by Metro Transit and the St. Clair County Transit District. Read below to learn more about available modes and associated schedules, pricing, programs, incentives and more.
MetroLink is the light rail system operated by Metro Transit spanning 46 miles and serving 38 stations in the bi-state area. The alignment features both a Red Line, which runs from St. Louis Lambert International Airport’s Terminal #1 MetroLink Station to the Shiloh-Scott Transit Center, and a Blue Line, which runs from the Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 Transit Center to the Fairview Heights Transit Center. It offers convenient access to many of the region’s cultural and entertainment hot spots, as well as places of employment, education institutions, and healthcare.
Visit metrostlouis.org or click the following links to learn more about schedules, fare details and trip planning via the online Trip Planner or the official trip-planning app Transit.
The expansive bus systems throughout the bi-state St. Louis Metropolitan region offer access to many of the region’s cultural and entertainment hot spots, as well as places of employment.
Metro Transit operates 24 battery electric buses and nearly 400 clean-burning diesel buses that serve 60 MetroBus routes in eastern Missouri and St. Clair County Illinois, where it provides service for St. Clair County Transit District (SCCTD). Metro’s Call-A-Ride paratransit service is available, with advance reservations, to individuals with disabilities that prevent them from using the accessible, fixed-route transit services (MetroLink and MetroBus). SCCTD’s ATS paratransit service is available in Southwestern Illinois. SCCTD also offers micro-transit service in Belleville, East St. Louis, Fairmont City and Brooklyn, Ill., via the SCCTD Flyer and in Lebanon and Mascoutah via SCCTD VanGo.
Visit metrostlouis.org or click the following links to learn more about schedules, fare details and trip planning via the online Trip Planner or the official trip-planning app Transit.
Citizens for Modern Transit’s Guaranteed Ride Home (GRH) program offers commuters – who take transit, bike or even walk to work – subsidized access to more immediate transportation options if a need arises. If a personal emergency, sickness or unscheduled overtime prevents commuters from using their typical transportation mode to get home, the GRH program enables them to utilize a ride-hailing service, like Lyft, a taxicab company or even a rental vehicle from Enterprise Rent-A-Car to get where they need to go. Commuters pay upfront for the entire cost of the ride home and then submit the receipt to CMT, which reimburses them 80% of the cost, up to $60 per ride. Pre-registration is required.
Citizens for Modern Transit’s Try & Ride program enables those who are new to the transit system to test drive MetroLink and MetroBus for their work or school commutes. Registrants get complimentary transit tickets for one month. It requires riders to commit to utilizing the bus or train for one additional month at their own expense for a total of two months. This program has been credited with helping more than 7,000 workday and school commuters learn how to navigate public transit.
Citizens for Modern Transit sponsors the Ten Toe Express® program to help individuals lead healthier lives by linking activity, sociability and exercise with the use of MetroLink and MetroBus. Walking groups led by volunteer leaders meet at MetroLink stations or MetroBus stops and take transit to the destination. They walk in a variety of places such as Forest Park, Carondelet Park, downtown St. Louis or Belleville, Ill., in the Metro East. Registration in the program costs $15 and registrants receive a walking kit (valued at $50) that includes a pedometer, MetroLink tickets and a new CMT Ten Toe Express ® fanny pack; information on how physical activity and nutrition affect their health and well-being; and online resources to track their walking and eating habits. Registration for the fall session opens in August.
