RTA emphasizes seniors still riding free — for now

The Regional Transportation Authority is putting the peace of mind of senior citizens ahead of its own bottom line — for now, anyway.

Retooling to allow free transit rides only for low-income seniors is expected to take several months. Until then, the RTA says all seniors still ride free.

Gov. Pat Quinn signed a law this week restricting the senior free rides program that was put in place in 2008.

“There’s a lot of confusion,” said Diane Palmer, RTA communications director. “In the not-too-distant future, we will be coming out with a modified program.”

Yet, in the short term, both Palmer and RTA Executive Director Joseph Costello stressed that the 435,000 seniors who have registered with the program continue to ride free, even though it’s in effect costing the RTA money.

The law signed this week by Quinn limits free rides to low-income seniors with household earnings of less than $26,000 for a single person and $37,000 a couple. All seniors, however, remain eligible for reduced or half fares as mandated by federal law.

Even at that, Costello and Palmer estimated discontinuing free rides for all seniors would bring an additional $30 million a year to the RTA.

Palmer said the RTA made the switch to free rides in 2008 in 60 days, as demanded at the time by law.

This time, the agency has 180 days but isn’t rushing the transition, in order “to make it as easy as possible” on senior riders.

Palmer promised only that it would be done “well within 180 days, and it’s certainly in our best interest because the sooner we get this implemented, the sooner we’ll be able to start to derive that revenue.”

First, however, the RTA will have to determine if some or all of the old cards can be adapted to the new use, or whether new cards will need to be issued — at considerable cost. The agency is also trying to limit fraud stemming from abuse and misuse of free-ride cards and will be working with the Illinois Department on Aging to determine who’s eligible for reduced-fare and free rides.

“We’re already hard at work,” Palmer said.

He promised an “aggressive outreach” program to get the new details out to seniors before implementing them.

Both Costello and Palmer said seniors who haven’t yet enrolled and those turning 65 should continue to enroll in the free-rides program, saying it will ease their transition to the new system, and for now they ride free.

“As soon as we work out all the administrative details, we’ll announce it,” Palmer said. “We will expedite it, but at the same time we want to do this right.”