 - The new Fare Free Summer program the Wind River Transportation Authority launched this month is generating questions from some local residents who wondered how the public transportation organization could afford the free offering in light of its current financial situation.){kind=link}
(Lander, WY) – The new Fare Free Summer program the Wind River Transportation Authority launched this month is generating questions from some local residents who wondered how the public transportation organization could afford the free offering in light of its current financial situation.
WRTA Director Tim Nichols addressed some of those questions last week, explaining that the idea for the summer program was “birthed” during a recent Community Transportation Association of America conference, where organizers “recommended that those who can should remove transportation barriers for those that might be facing an incredible hardship because of the rising cost of daily life.”
“Across the nation right now we’re seeing elevated costs which are creating an incredible strain on our middle class and lower class or impoverished populations,” Nichols said, citing information he gleaned from CTAA “workshops and conversations” last month. “(And) those agencies that have the ability to relieve that pressure, should have the responsibility to take action.”
The suggestion from the CTAA – combined with claims from some local residents that WRTA “on the regular did not contribute back to the community” – prompted Nichols and his team to review their fare box revenues when they returned from the conference last month.
That review revealed a “surprising” finding, Nichols said: the WRTA had already surpassed its projections for fare box revenue for the year due to an increase in local ridership.
Since January of 2026 the WRTA has provided 19,710 total passenger trips through its fixed route and demand-response services, Nichols reported this month, estimating that the agency would provide about 47,300 passenger trips by the end of the year.
“The data demonstrates that WRTA is not servicing any limited or isolated transportation need,” Nichols said. “The system is providing thousands of monthly trips for riders who depend on public transportation to access school, work, essential services, community programs, and overall safe mobility, (and) the WRTA remains a heavily used and essential public transportation system.”
Plus, he explained, fare box revenues – which account for 2.87 percent of WRTA’s annual income – cannot be used to fulfill the agency’s local match for federal funding.
Instead, that match is covered by local service contracts and government subsidies – and, if it passes, through funding from the proposed three-quarter percent sales tax for economic development that voters will consider in August.
In other words, Nichols said, “our motivation to continue fare collection was relatively small,” and “we saw an opportunity to provide back to the community” by offering a Fare Free Summer program.
After announcing the campaign, however, Nichols said the WRTA received feedback from community members who weren’t “comfortable with the removal of that transportation barrier being labeled as free.”
In response, he said, the agency “pivoted slightly” and worked to secure “a series of sponsors” who agreed to cover fare box revenues during the free summer program.
“That way, the fare is still being met, and the transportation barrier remains removed,” he said, thanking the sponsors who have stepped up “to ensure that the citizens of Fremont County were able to maintain that Fare Free Summer.”
The Fare Free Summer program is part of WRTA’s broader 30th Anniversary celebration, Nichols said this week.
He said the sponsors supporting WRTA’s 30th Anniversary efforts, including Fare Free Summer, are:
- Home Source Realty
- Riverton Tire & Oil
- Community Entry Services
- Service Plumbing & Heating
- Cedar Bar
- NAPA
- Wind River Realty
- The Depot
- The Trailhead
- Morvin Inc. / Ralff’s
- Startrims