The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) announced that combined registrations for its LIFE and GoPass programs, which provide free rides and discounted passes to low-income, student, and fire-impacted Angelenos, have exceeded 1,000,000 since 2021.
“Many Angelenos depend on transit to meet their transportation needs, and the LIFE and GoPass programs ensure access for those who need it most,” said Fernando Dutra, LA Metro board chair and City of Whittier council member. “Transportation costs can eat up a significant portion of a household budget, second only to housing, and programs like these help riders get to where they need to go while saving money that can instead go toward groceries, medical care, education expenses, and other basic necessities.”
In total, these programs have provided low-income residents, fire-impacted Angelenos, and students from participating school districts with more than 92 million free rides and 14 million discounted-pass rides.
“Growing these programs has been a major focus for our team over the last few years, so it’s very satisfying to see how far we’ve come in a relatively short period of time,” said Stephanie Wiggins, LA Metro CEO. “Transportation is the number two household expense, behind housing, so these free rides through GoPass and LIFE are changing lives in a really meaningful way.”
LA Metro LIFE: Free Rides Fuel Equity and Recovery
The LA Metro’s improved LIFE program launched in 2021 to support low-income and fire-impacted Angelenos with free rides and discounted passes. The agency expanded community partnerships to boost enrollment, including a key partnership with the Department of Public Social Services in 2023.
To date, more than 6,300 Angelenos impacted by the wildfires have registered for the LIFE program. Now with more than 475,000 registrations resulting in 25 million free rides and 14 million rides with discounted passes, the LIFE program “continues to expand to meet the needs of Angelenos,” according to an agency release. When SNAP benefits were recently paused, LIFE enrollment increased by 25%.
New LIFE participants receive a free 90-day unlimited-rides pass. After 90 days, riders can elect to:
Load 20 free rides onto their TAP card each month.
Opt in to receive 20 free rides automatically every month.
Purchase a discounted pass from participating transit agencies.
Sixteen transit agencies participate in LIFE: Antelope Valley Transit Authority, Burbank Bus, Culver City Bus, Foothill Transit, Glendale Beeline, Glendora Transit, GTrans, LADOT DASH, Lawndale Beat, Long Beach Transit, Montebello Bus, Norwalk Transit, Pasadena Transit, Santa Clarita Transit, Santa Monica Big Blue Bus, and Torrance Transit.
Participants using the 20-free-rides option still benefit from fare capping: after the free rides are used, riders pay with stored value, and all customers ride free after three rides in a day and 11 rides in a week.
GoPass Program Hits 500K Registered Student and Growing
LA Metro’s GoPass program provides free rides to students in participating school districts. Launched as a pilot in Fall 2021, it became permanent in April 2024. During the 2024–2025 school year, GoPass exceeded 500,000 registered students and delivered more than 60 million rides.
GoPass is available through more than 1,600 K–12 schools and community colleges across 145 participating districts. The program continues to grow, with 11 new schools and districts joining for the 2025–2026 school year.
A March 2024 GoPass student survey found:
53% reported riding LA Metro transit daily.
60% increased transit use after receiving their GoPass.
78% reported improved school attendance.
94% reported better overall well-being.
87% of surveyed GoPass students were low-income.
For more information on LIFE, including eligibility and enrollment, visit LA Metro’s LIFE page. For GoPass details, visit Metro.net/GoPass.
