Metro News

All Metro rides will be free July 16-18, August 6-8

CINCINNATI – Metro and Access paratransit service will once again offer free rides on designated days to improve access to the COVID-19 vaccine.

Metro and Access service will be free on all routes July 16 through July 18 (Friday through Sunday) and again three weeks later from August 6 through August 8 (Friday through Sunday).

“Transportation plays a key role in ensuring all eligible populations have equal access to COVID-19 vaccinations,” said Darryl Haley, Metro CEO & General Manager. “Metro has been proud to play a role in helping a significant portion of our community get vaccinated by removing transportation as a hurdle and providing free rides.

“By joining Kroger to promote access to vaccines and offering additional free ride days, we hope anyone who has not been vaccinated will take advantage of the opportunity to access the vaccine at sites throughout Southwest Ohio,” Haley continued. “Our community has come a long way in our efforts to defeat this pandemic, and we want to make sure no one gets left behind.”

Metro is promoting the free rides in partnership with Kroger Health and Kroger’s Cincinnati-Dayton division. The organization’s pharmacists, nurse practitioners and healthcare technicians have administered more than 400,000 vaccines across the division – and that number continues to increase daily. They created more equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine through its scheduling tool, walk-in appointments and large-scale vaccination off-site clinics.

“Kroger is committed to helping people live healthier lives,” said Erin Rolfes, corporate affairs manager for Kroger’s Cincinnati-Dayton division. “Through this program, we hope to more easily connect people who need the vaccine to locations where they can receive it.”

The rides will be funded through the “Rides for Community Immunity” program announced by the Ohio Department of Transportation, which is distributing funds across Ohio’s 88 counties to help transport the state’s most vulnerable populations to vaccine locations.

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About Metro

Metro is a non-profit, tax-funded public service of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, providing about 13.5 million rides per year. Metro’s website is www.go-metro.com.

About Cincinnati-Dayton Kroger division

The Kroger Family of Companies has been serving communities across the U.S. for more than 135 years. Kroger’s Cincinnati/Dayton division operates food stores, pharmacies, fuel centers, warehouses and offices in Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Eastern Indiana and Greater Dayton. We are dedicated to Our Purpose: To Feed the Human Spirit^TM while creating a world with Zero Hunger | Zero Waste.