The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), a transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, is joining with AC Transit to offer residents of select transit-oriented development (TOD) complexes a year of unlimited free travel on AC Transit’s local and transbay buses.

The partners will distribute TransLink® electronic fare payment cards loaded with AC Transit passes to members of up to 1,500 households in about 20 TOD properties in Oakland, Berkeley, San Leandro, El Cerrito and Emeryville.

The initiative kicks off a 12-month pilot program designed to pioneer a new institutional transit pass for use throughout the Bay Area, and to help MTC and the region’s transit agencies learn more about TOD residents’ travel patterns. Through the program, MTC expects to distribute up to 1,900 personalized TransLink cards featuring the individual residents’ photos.

MTC and AC Transit will provide TransLink cards for residents of both rental apartments and owner-occupied condos. Participating properties include brand-new complexes now in sales or lease-up as well as established buildings. Taken as a whole, the properties will include a large number of units reserved for lower-income residents.

AC Transit has priced the unlimited TransLink passes at its “eco-pass” rate of $100 per person. MTC is financing the program through TransLink marketing funds provided through voter approval of Regional Measure 2 in 2004. Additional Measure 2 funds will be used to support marketing, resident outreach and program evaluation. Total program costs are expected to run about $280,000.