LTD cuts summer bus fares to $1 for Dollar Days of Summer

Lane Transit District cut summer bus fares to $1 for a single ride and $2 for a day pass, launching a two-month promotion designed to give Lane County riders a break while prices for gas and other essentials still bite into household budgets. The discount runs from July 1 through August 31 and covers fixed-route and EmX buses, RideSource, Rhody Express, Diamond Express, LTD Connector and Rural Shuttle service.

LTD CEO Jameson Auten said the district could afford the temporary reduction because it has reserve funds available, and because many local households are still under financial strain. Auten said about 40% of Lane County households work but still struggle to make ends meet, a figure that helps explain why the agency is using fares as a short-term relief tool as much as a ridership strategy.

The savings are not limited to single trips. An adult 92-Day Pass drops from $135 to $77 during the promotion, showing that LTD is discounting some of its biggest fare products as well as day-to-day rides. The district introduced new 31-Day and 92-Day Passes in January 2026, with both passes valid for 31 or 92 days from first tap rather than by calendar month, and LTD said those pass prices themselves did not change when the new system launched.

The fare cut arrives on top of LTD’s free K-12 Student Transit Pass, which is valid from September 1 of the current school year through September 30 of the next year. LTD says that program is meant to reduce family transportation costs, ease the burden on parents and help create life-long transit users, a goal that now extends into summer for adult riders who may be trying transit for the first time.

Budget documents show LTD has a strong financial base and a Sustainable Services Reserve Fund, giving the district room to absorb a limited-time fare reduction. LTD’s broader budget is supported by fares, local employer and employee taxes, and state and federal money, so the summer discount is also a deliberate choice about how much revenue the district is willing to forego in pursuit of greater access.

The policy sits within a wider cost-of-living squeeze. Oregon Department of Energy profiles say low-income households spend more than four times as much on energy costs as non-low-income households, and 28.4% of Oregon households were energy-burdened in 2022. For Lane County riders deciding whether to leave the car at home, LTD is testing whether a lower fare alone can turn occasional passengers into regular ones after Aug. 31, when Dollar Days of Summer ends.