Phoenix City Council voted unanimously on Wednesday to continue a program providing free light rail rides for US Airways Center event attendees for three more years.
The Rail Ride Event Program allows eventgoers to use their ticket to any US Airways Center event as a light rail pass for the rest of the scheduled day and up to four hours before the beginning of the event.
The program started in June 2009. The fares are paid for by US Airways Center, the Phoenix Suns and other event sponsors, providing about $370,000 a year for Valley Metro, said John McCormack, Valley Metro chief financial officer.
“It is an innovative way to share our ticket and encourage US Airways attendees to ride the rail to get to the event,” said Maria Hyatt, the city’s public transit director. “When we have 2,000-plus people that are going up to the platform to get on the ride to go home, go to dinner, get drinks or wherever they’re going to go. We are then able to focus not on the lineup waiting to buy a ticket but instead on making sure it’s a safe entry onto the platform.”
District 8 Councilwoman Kate Gallego supported the continuation of the Rail Ride program.
“Any cars we can take out of downtown is a win for our downtown residents who will have a little bit of an easier time getting home,” she said.
The transit department previously reached out to Chase Field officials, trying to extend the deal to all events at the downtown ballpark, but no agreement was secured. The possibility of a future arrangement including Chase Field events is not out of the question.
“It’s entirely possible. We have had conversations in the past,” Hyatt said. “It probably hasn’t been the right time to have that sort of agreement, but we are ever hopeful because it is a great way to encourage passengers to go to their events and use the light rail.”
Contact the reporter at Kmlane5@asu.edu.
