There's no factory and no chocolate, but three people will win a golden ticket and their prize is to be among the first people to ride the region's ION LRT.

The region has launched a contest for residents to see who will get to ride the LRT for the first time when the service launches on June 21, calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

The three winners will be allowed to bring a guest and will also receive $500 to use to ride Grand River Transit.

The contest ends at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, June 7. The winning names will be drawn June 12.

People can enter the contest online or by paper ballot at the Charles Street Terminal in Kitchener and the Ainslie Street Terminal in Cambridge, as well as at the Region of Waterloo building at 99 Regina St. S., in Waterloo.

The contest asks for people's name, postal code, email and phone number. It also asks if they are a current Grand River Transit rider and if they are an employee of the region or an immediate family member, as they're ineligible to win. There is a maximum of one entry per person.

The contest can be found on the Grand River Transit website.