Palo Alto Link to Offer Free Rideshare Service to Teens
Published on March 25, 2024
NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
March 25, 2024
Palo Alto, Calif. --- The City of Palo Alto announced today free rides for teens to specific Palo Alto destinations supporting teen mental health and wellbeing using Palo Alto Link, the City’s rideshare service. March 7 marked the one-year anniversary of the rideshare service in Palo Alto, fulfilling over 50,000 rides to date by an average of over 840 users per month with a customer service rating of 4.8 out of 5.
Free teen rides using Palo Alto Link launches today, March 25 and supports youth 13-18 years old.
“This new program is another option for teens to connect with each other, gain mental health services and tap into other teen-specific programming,” said Greer Stone Palo Alto mayor. “Free rideshare service for our youth to gain critical community services supports the whole community and advances the City Council’s priority of Community Health, Safety, Wellness & Belonging, with an emphasis on youth mental health.”
Free rides to Palo Alto-specific destinations include Mitchell Park Community Center, which houses the Teen Center and programming, allcove Palo Alto providing a range of youth social support services, all Palo Alto City Libraries, Cubberley Community Center, Lucie Stern Plaza, and more.
“One of my goals as the PAYC President this year is to work with the City Council to support teen mental health,” said Olivia Chiang, Palo Alto Youth Council president. “I’m thrilled to see the City prioritizing teen health by providing an easy, free option for us to link to places and spaces with support and community connections.”
Rides for teens are $1 to go anywhere within the Palo Alto Link service map. When teens toggle the setting to identify themselves as a teen within the app, their ride will automatically show as free or paid when the destination is selected. If a paid ride, users choose to pay with a credit/debit card or cash. For a full list of free locations for teens, visit www.cityofpaloalto.org/PaloAltoLinkTeen.
Palo Alto Link continues to operate Mondays – Fridays, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. with service to most of the City. There are two ways to request a ride: download the app in the Google Play or App Store, or call (650) 505-5772. The City provides this service in thanks to funding from the 2016 Measure B-Valley Transit Authority. City staff will bring a year in review progress report to the City Council later this quarter, including outcomes of studying other service enhancements.
During its first year, riders used Palo Alto Link to connect to major hubs in the City with the top three locations from Sept. – Jan. being Stanford Research Park, Palo Alto High School, and Stanford Shopping Center. Since its launch, demand for rides consistently increased with an overall increase of 22% from Q2 2023 to Q1 2024. Nearly 60% of all riders took three or more trips each month. The Palo Alto Link is powered by Via, a global TransitTech company that uses new technologies to develop public mobility systems.
For more about the Palo Alto Link Teen service, go to www.cityofpaloalto.org/PaloAltoLinkTeen
Learn more about Palo Alto Link at www.cityofpaloalto.org/PaloAltoLink
For community health and wellness resources, visit www.cityofpaloalto.org/BeWell
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Sent By:
Meghan Horrigan-Taylor
Chief Communications Officer
City Manager's Office
Office Phone: (650) 329-2607
Email: Meghan.Horrigan-Taylor@CityofPaloAlto.org