Lawton school students and staff can ride city buses at no cost for another year, under an agreement with the Lawton Area Transit System.
The program began several years ago with a pilot program that allowed students in grades 6 through 12 to ride the transit system at no charge if they have their Lawton Public Schools photo ID. Subsequently LPS and LATS agreed to extend the service to staff members, too.
And during the 2021-22 school year, the agreement was amended yet again to allow any student in kindergarten through fifth grade who has an LPS photo ID to ride at no cost. However, students younger than 6 must be accompanied by a paying adult.
LPS pays LATS $70,000 a year to provide the service.
“Our [passenger] numbers continue to grow,” LATS General Manager Ryan Landers told the City Council recently.
Because of the COVID pandemic, LPS ridership plunged from 70,526 in 2019 to 20,331 in 2021, but climbed back up to 50,591 in 2023, LATS records show.