Catch a Free Ride to the Polls

Beginning Feb. 18th, Tarrant County voters will be able to catch free rides to the polls on six transit services.

The Tarrant County Commissioners Court approved a partnership with four transportation services in Tarrant County to pay for customer trips to voting locations for the entire early voting period from Feb. 18-28 and Election Day on March 3rd.

The Commissioners Court approved the plan, which is not to exceed $20,000, on Jan. 28th.

Last month, the Commissioners Court also approved early voting locations at nine college campus sites. The Texas Secretary of State also signed off on countywide vote centers, meaning Tarrant County voters can go to any polling place on Election Day.

“With vote centers, early voting sites on college campuses and free rides to the polls, Tarrant County is giving voters every opportunity to participate in the upcoming March 3rd primaries,” said Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley. “We are including as many public transit providers as possible within Tarrant County, from accessible services for the elderly and mobility-impaired, to on-demand service in Arlington.”

Tiffany Moore-Turner, general manager at Trinity Metro, said this partnership encourages voter participation. “Providing free transportation is an excellent way to help voters get to the polls. We appreciate the Tarrant County Commissioners Court for funding this initiative.”

The six transit services included in the program are Trinity Metro’s fixed-route bus, ACCESS paratransit, Tarrant County Transportation Services (TCTS), Northeast Transportation Services (NETS), Arlington’s Via and Handitran

Those who qualify and want to ride to vote on ACCESS, TCTS, NETS, or Handitran, should call the provider at least 48 hours ahead of the trip to schedule their free ride to any of the Tarrant County Vote Centers.

To use Via’s on-demand service in Arlington to vote, riders simply download Via’s app, enter the address of a Vote Center within Via’s service area along with promo code ARLINGTONVOTE, or call 817-794-7382 to hail a ride by phone. The rider will not be charged for trips scheduled to or from a Vote Center location.