Kids Ride Free Cards

[Anonymous]

My kid is 5 now so should start paying for the metro and bus. I know he can get a Kids Ride Free card from the office at his DCPS school, so we're going to get one.

My understanding is that technically, Kids Ride Free cards are primarily for going to school and school-related events. Does everyone's kids just use them all the time, or are you actually juggling two cards for each of your kids and only using the free one for school stuff?

[Anonymous]

My understanding is that it covers "educational" activities. My kids do DCYOP (orchestra), which is not through or related to their school, and they specifically advertise that KRF cards can be used to transport kids to/from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that it covers "educational" activities. My kids do DCYOP (orchestra), which is not through or related to their school, and they specifically advertise that KRF cards can be used to transport kids to/from.

OP here. Right, I understand that it covers all educational activities. I'm wondering if in actual use, most people are just using it 100% of the time for their kids.

[Anonymous]

We use ours for every Metro trip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We use ours for every Metro trip.

Same, I've never heard of the limitation for "educational" activities. I guess some of the stuff we use them for is education (trips to the library and museums) but other stuff is not (going out for meals, getting to the airport or train station for vacations).

Where did people hear it was just for educational activity?

BTW we ride the bus a lot, not just metro, and it's very standard for my husband and I to be the ONLY people who pay to get on the bus. Our kid uses the KRF card but actually scans it. Most bus riders don't scan anything, they just get on. Just throwing this out there because I think it would be crazy to limit access to free transportation for kids when the city makes zero effort to get most adult bus riders to pay fares.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We use ours for every Metro trip.

Same, I've never heard of the limitation for "educational" activities. I guess some of the stuff we use them for is education (trips to the library and museums) but other stuff is not (going out for meals, getting to the airport or train station for vacations).

Where did people hear it was just for educational activity?

BTW we ride the bus a lot, not just metro, and it's very standard for my husband and I to be the ONLY people who pay to get on the bus. Our kid uses the KRF card but actually scans it. Most bus riders don't scan anything, they just get on. Just throwing this out there because I think it would be crazy to limit access to free transportation for kids when the city makes zero effort to get most adult bus riders to pay fares.

I don't ride the bus often, but twice (out of the 6 times) in the past year I have had MPD come on to the bus and make everyone rescan their cards to show they paid and actually kicked off people with insufficient funds on their cards or who didn't have cards. So enforcement does happen sporadically (and perhaps along targeted routes).

[Anonymous]

https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-program


Mayor Muriel Bowser established and championed the Kids Ride Free transit subsidy program to ensure that enrolled District students who are also District residents can get to school and school-related activities for free.

The Kids Ride Free (KRF) program allows students to ride for free on Metrobus or Metrorail while traveling within the District.

To be eligible for participation in the KRF program, each student must be:

A resident of the District of Columbia, and
Ages 5 through 21, and
Enrolled in an elementary or secondary public, charter, private, or parochial school located within the District, or youth in the care of the District.


------------
https://ddot.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/ddot/page_content/attachments/Kids%20Ride%20Free%20Brochure%20English-%202025.pdf

Students ages 5 through 21 who are enrolled in a
DC public school, public charter school or private
school or youth in the care of the District can ride
Metro Bus and Metro Rail to school and school related activities in DC for FREE.

---------
https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-frequently-asked-questions

When and where can the KRF SmarTrip card be used?

KRF SmarTrip cards are primarily for transportation to and from school and school-related activities in the District. If a student needs to get to a school-related event on the weekend, they may use this card.

-----------

You can abuse the program if you want, or you can vote MamdaniDC for free busses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-program


Mayor Muriel Bowser established and championed the Kids Ride Free transit subsidy program to ensure that enrolled District students who are also District residents can get to school and school-related activities for free.

The Kids Ride Free (KRF) program allows students to ride for free on Metrobus or Metrorail while traveling within the District.

To be eligible for participation in the KRF program, each student must be:

A resident of the District of Columbia, and
Ages 5 through 21, and
Enrolled in an elementary or secondary public, charter, private, or parochial school located within the District, or youth in the care of the District.


------------
https://ddot.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/ddot/page_content/attachments/Kids%20Ride%20Free%20Brochure%20English-%202025.pdf

Students ages 5 through 21 who are enrolled in a
DC public school, public charter school or private
school or youth in the care of the District can ride
Metro Bus and Metro Rail to school and school related activities in DC for FREE.

---------
https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-frequently-asked-questions

When and where can the KRF SmarTrip card be used?

KRF SmarTrip cards are primarily for transportation to and from school and school-related activities in the District. If a student needs to get to a school-related event on the weekend, they may use this card.

-----------

You can abuse the program if you want, or you can vote MamdaniDC for free busses.

Re abuse of the program, I have never read (and certainly never signed anything) that limits a KRF card to trips related only to school commuting or other educational pursuits. The FAQ’s use of “primarily” supports that non-school/non-educational use can be permissible.

Whenever we travel using Metro rail or bus, my kids use their KRF card.

[Anonymous]

only the child can use it. you are not supposed to use it in maryland or virginia. its otherwise fine.

[Anonymous]

My kids use theirs all the time. To get to/from school as well as any other trips both in and outside DC.

[Anonymous]

Has anybody had trouble getting a kids ride free card from their school? We requested at the beginning of the school year in August. We have still not received and I have bugged the front office school staff. The office staff say they need another shipment from metro.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-program


Mayor Muriel Bowser established and championed the Kids Ride Free transit subsidy program to ensure that enrolled District students who are also District residents can get to school and school-related activities for free.

The Kids Ride Free (KRF) program allows students to ride for free on Metrobus or Metrorail while traveling within the District.

To be eligible for participation in the KRF program, each student must be:

A resident of the District of Columbia, and
Ages 5 through 21, and
Enrolled in an elementary or secondary public, charter, private, or parochial school located within the District, or youth in the care of the District.


------------
https://ddot.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/ddot/page_content/attachments/Kids%20Ride%20Free%20Brochure%20English-%202025.pdf

Students ages 5 through 21 who are enrolled in a
DC public school, public charter school or private
school or youth in the care of the District can ride
Metro Bus and Metro Rail to school and school related activities in DC for FREE.

---------
https://ddot.dc.gov/page/kids-ride-free-frequently-asked-questions

When and where can the KRF SmarTrip card be used?

KRF SmarTrip cards are primarily for transportation to and from school and school-related activities in the District. If a student needs to get to a school-related event on the weekend, they may use this card.

-----------

You can abuse the program if you want, or you can vote MamdaniDC for free busses.

Re abuse of the program, I have never read (and certainly never signed anything) that limits a KRF card to trips related only to school commuting or other educational pursuits. The FAQ’s use of “primarily” supports that non-school/non-educational use can be permissible.

Whenever we travel using Metro rail or bus, my kids use their KRF card.

This. We've used the cards to get to and from destinations in MD and VA as well. The cards worked as normal.

Saying the card can only be used for educational activities is also an impossible position. If my kid uses the card to get to the library, but then spend all her time at the library gossiping with her friends, is this a permissible use? Yes because it's impossible to parse what is educational and what isn't.

Also it's not called a "Educational Transit Card." It's called a "Kids Ride Free" card. The obvious implication is that the cards exist to enable kids to use the transit system for free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anybody had trouble getting a kids ride free card from their school? We requested at the beginning of the school year in August. We have still not received and I have bugged the front office school staff. The office staff say they need another shipment from metro.

Our last school sometimes dragged their feet on it.

I actually suspect the cards result in rampant abuse. Not by schools but potentially by adults who collect the cards on behalf of their kids and then use them or sell them to others to use. It's something I've always wondered about because of the ease of use -- my kid uses hers to get to and from school and to other activities, and it just works like any of other metro card, except it's never empty. It would be incredibly easy for an adult to use it, or a kid who is not a DC resident or not enrolled in a DC public school. No one looks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anybody had trouble getting a kids ride free card from their school? We requested at the beginning of the school year in August. We have still not received and I have bugged the front office school staff. The office staff say they need another shipment from metro.

Our last school sometimes dragged their feet on it.

I actually suspect the cards result in rampant abuse. Not by schools but potentially by adults who collect the cards on behalf of their kids and then use them or sell them to others to use. It's something I've always wondered about because of the ease of use -- my kid uses hers to get to and from school and to other activities, and it just works like any of other metro card, except it's never empty. It would be incredibly easy for an adult to use it, or a kid who is not a DC resident or not enrolled in a DC public school. No one looks.

You can't really "collect" cards. When a student gets a new card their old card is automatically deactivated.

So, yes, someone other than the student could use the card, but it's a one-for-one thing.

[Anonymous]

Didn't the Mayor put out a PSA early this year about how every student in DC should get their KEF card and then not have to even think about jumping the turnstile? Like, please just use your card. We want kids on the metro.

My son uses his twice a day five days a week, and then also uses it whenever he takes other trips. Not something I feel guilty about.