MJC students might ride city, county buses for free

Modesto Junior College students could take the bus to school for free through a program between the college and Modesto and Stanislaus County.

MJC Vice President of Student Services James Todd advocated for the program based on results of student focus groups. He said those results showed that the lack of reliable transportation was a major obstacle for some low-income students.

“We want to enable students who face transportation issues to pursue an educational goal at MJC,” Todd said in an email, “and this collaboration also aims to help with traffic flows, parking and energy conservation.”

Students now pay $1.25 to ride the bus once, $3.25 for a day pass and $38 for a monthly pass.

Under the proposed agreement, MJC would pay Modesto $100,000 annually and Stanislaus County $60,000 annually for the bus service. The city operates Modesto Area Express, and the county operates Stanislaus Regional Transit. Todd said MJC would pay for the program through state funding it receives to lower the achievement gap among certain student groups, such as low-income or disabled students.

MJC and the Yosemite Community College District have approved the agreement. The City Council will consider it Tuesday, and the agreement is expected to go before the county Board of Supervisors in the coming weeks.

The free bus service would not start until July 1.

Todd said full- and part-time MJC students could use the program as long as they can show the bus driver a valid student ID with a sticker from the current semester. If the program is approved, students could ride the bus practically anywhere, such as to and from work. Todd said many students also have jobs. MJC students cannot ride for free on the commuter buses to Merced or to Altamont Corridor Express and BART stations.

Modesto Transit Manager Adam Barth said providing free bus rides to college students is a common practice across the nation. In a report to the council, Barth and Public Works Director Bill Sandhu recommend the council approve the agreement.

MJC’s $100,000 annual payment is based on a calculation of how much students now pay in MAX bus fares. The report states these students pay roughly $96,000 annually. At the end of the agreement’s first year, the city, county and college would evaluate actual ridership and negotiate any changes based on that. The changes would take effect after July 1, 2019.

The council on Tuesday also will consider hiring a new operator for its MAX bus system. Staff is recommending the council approve an agreement with Illinois-based National Express Transit Corp. that could run as long as eight years. National Express would be paid nearly $8.2 million in the first years and $74.5 million over the eight years. State and federal funding and passenger fares pay for Modesto’s bus system.

National Express would replace Modesto’s current operator, Transdev Services. A city report states Modesto used a competitive process in picking National Express among five companies, including Transdev. The new agreement would start July 1. Barth said MAX has roughly 120 employees and they — except for the three top managers — would go to work for National Express at the same or similar compensation if the council approves the agreement.

The council meets in the basement chambers of Tenth Street Place, 1010 10th St.

This story was originally published April 10, 2017 at 6:34 AM with the headline "MJC students might ride city, county buses for free."