CITY OF NEWBURGH – There is such a thing as a free ride.

Starting Friday people using the Newburgh Area Transit service, which ferries passengers around the city and to stops in parts of the towns of Cornwall, New Windsor and Newburgh, will ride for free through Dec. 31.

Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus, joined by county and Newburgh officials, announced the “Ride Free” program at City Hall on Tuesday morning.

The goal is twofold: to support a Newburgh initiative that encourages people to patronize city businesses during the holidays and to introduce more riders to a service whose ridership has grown by more than a third since it was expanded two years ago.

Newburgh-Beacon Bus Company, which operates the service, usually collects between $20,000 and $40,000 in fares each quarter. The county will use federal funds to offset the free rides.

“This is a wonderful opportunity,” Neuhaus said. “And we know a lot of people that are actually using it not only to shop but also to go to work, so we want to encourage more and more people to utilize that.”

The system operates Monday through Saturday. Among the major stops are Mid-Valley and Newburgh malls, Price Chopper in Vails Gate, and the City of Newburgh and Cornwall campuses of St. Luke’s Hospital.

With one-way fares set at $1.50, the bus service is seen as a cheaper alternative to taxicabs, whose prices between points within the city run $5.

“The difference between $5 and $1.50 is a huge difference, and we want to make sure people are aware of that,” Councilwoman Karen Mejia said.

In 2014, the county announced a major expansion of the service.

The number of buses was doubled to reduce wait times, a new route connecting St. Luke’s Hospital’s campuses was added and service was extended to Newburgh’s waterfront.

The yearly number of bus trips is roughly 110,000. Ridership has increased 35 percent since buses were added two years ago.

“It’s a really tremendous service,” said Harry Porr, director of operations for the county and a City of Newburgh resident.

lsparks@th-record.com