California Clean Air Day is Oct. 7, and Santa Barbara County will be offering free rides for all passengers to celebrate.
Local government officials announced they will be partnering with select transit agencies for the program, including Clean Air Express, Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District (MTD), Santa Ynez Valley Transit (SYVT), City of Lompoc Transit (COLT) and Santa Maria Regional Transit (SMRT).
The program is designed to get people out of their cars and interacting with public transportation.
“Clean Air Day is an opportunity to think about the choices we make every day,” said David Silva, a member of the California Air Resources Board. “Offering free bus rides makes it easy to try transit to get to work, school or any everyday trip. Choosing transit for just one trip is one way each of us can contribute to cleaner air.”
While the free rides may only last a day, the county has worked hard to promote clean energy through public transportation.
Both Santa Maria Regional Transit and Santa Barbara MTD have expanded to battery-electric fleets of vehicles, with Santa Barbara looking to expand its zero-emission fleet.
Other agencies have also invested in zero-emission vehicles, as the county expands their push for cleaner methods of travel.
“More and more families are realizing they don't need to use their car for every single trip to see big financial benefits,” said Gamaliel Anguiano, transit services manager for the City of Santa Maria. “By letting our beautiful new electric buses handle a few of their routine trips, families are pocketing those savings while gaining better use of their commute time. With free rides this Clean Air Day, there’s no reason to miss out on what thousands have already discovered."
To learn more about the program, residents are encouraged to visit www.sbcag.org
