FORT WORTH, Texas — Trinity Metro announced Thursday it will offer voters free transportation to polling places on Super Tuesday, even though Tarrant County will no longer reimburse the transportation authority for the program.
County commissioners voted Wednesday along party lines to end its election day partnership with Trinity Metro. The move left activists, non-profits and other organizations scrambling to ensure voters who need rides on March 5 could find free transportation.
"March 5 is right around the corner," League of Women Voters Tarrant County President Angela Rainey told WFAA, before Trinity Metro's announcement. "Right now, it's like, 'quick, fast, in a hurry.' We've got to move and get something going quickly."
Since 2019, Tarrant County has paid Trinity Metro to transport voters to their polling places on Election Day. The county agreed to cover some of the transportation entity's costs for the service, up to $10,000 each year.
"I don't believe it's the county's responsibility to try to get more people out to the polls," Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare said prior to Wednesday's vote. "It's the responsibility of candidates, it's the responsibility of political parties, it's the responsibility of political groups. Taxpayer funds should not be used to get people to the polls."
O'Hare questioned the program's legality, citing an out-of-state decision and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's opinion on the issue. He also noted the effort almost exclusively benefited Fort Worth residents, particularly those who live near bus stops and train stations.
"I don't think taxpayers across the entire county want to pay for a small segment of the population to go get on a bus to vote," he said, equating the service to paying people to vote.
"I hate to say it did not surprise me," Rainey said. "But we're tired."
Rainey added seniors, people living with disabilities, and those on fixed incomes relied on the free rides to the polls.
"No matter what political party, we just want people to come out and vote," she said. "If there's a barrier, we've got to get to the bottom of that."
Rainey said she spent Thursday meeting with other "like-minded" organizations, trying to formulate a transportation plan.
Then, Trinity Metro announced it would continue the program without financial backing from Tarrant County.
"We are offering free rides to remove any transportation barrier that would prevent anyone in our community from voting," Trinity Metro President and CEO Richard Andreski said in a statement. "The ability to vote is one of our core rights, so we want to do our part to help residents exercise that right."
Voters should notify their driver or train conductor that they are going to or from a voting location to secure a free ride March 5 on Trinity Metro buses, ZIPZONE on-demand rideshare, ACCESS paratransit, TEXRail and Trinity Railway Express trains.
It's not yet clear whether Trinity Metro will also offer free rides on other election days in 2024.