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Celebrate Transit Equity Day: Ride Metrolink Free on February 4, 2025!
On February 4, 2025, Metrolink will offer free rides in celebration of Transit Equity Day, honoring Rosa Parks’ legacy and emphasizing public transportation’s role in community access and equity, while encouraging regional exploration.
Transit Equity Day
Los Angeles – Mark your calendars! On February 4, 2025, Southern Californians will have the unique opportunity to ride Metrolink free of charge, as the region’s six-county passenger rail provider celebrates Transit Equity Day. This annual event honors the legacy of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks and underscores the essential role public transportation plays in fostering access and equity for all communities.
On this special day, riders can board at any of Metrolink’s 67 stations without needing a ticket and can travel systemwide, including the Arrow service. To further celebrate Transit Equity Day, numerous local transit carriers will also waive fares, providing additional options for those seeking to explore the region.
A Statement of Purpose
Metrolink Board Chair and Orange Orange County Fourth District Supervisor Doug Chaffee expressed the significance of Transit Equity Day, stating, “This day honors Rosa Parks’ enduring legacy, while highlighting the vital role public transportation plays in ensuring people from all communities have access.” He continued, “When Metrolink introduced the largest service expansion in our history last fall, it was to create a more equitable system that works for all Southern Californians. Offering free rides on Transit Equity Day helps fulfill that promise.”
Exciting Changes in Service
In October 2023, Metrolink increased weekday service by nearly 23%, adding more midday and late-evening options for those needing to travel outside traditional work hours. Thanks to this expansion and recent improvements, Metrolink has seen a surge in ridership, setting multiple post-pandemic, single-day records. Moreover, a new San Bernardino Line schedule implemented on January 27 aims to enhance on-time performance along this high-volume corridor, allowing riders to experience efficient travel firsthand on Transit Equity Day.
A Commitment to Accessibility
Metrolink is not just about free rides on special occasions. The agency is dedicated to making public transit accessible to everyone year-round. In addition to offering three free-ride days each year, Metrolink provides everyday discounts for children, seniors, riders with disabilities, low-income riders, and active military members. For students, the Student Adventure Pass program allows K-12, college, and trade school students to ride free with a valid student ID, an initiative extended through June 30, 2025.
Metrolink ticketholders also enjoy free transfers to many connecting local transit providers, further enhancing accessibility across the region.
Explore the Region
If you’re looking to discover new places, Metrolink has curated a special repository of destinations that are easily accessible from its stations. Check out these exciting travel options at metrolinktrains.com/explore and start planning your adventure on Transit Equity Day!
Join Metrolink, LA Metro, Omnitrans, the Orange County Transportation Authority, the Riverside County Transportation Commission, the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority, the Ventura County Transportation Commission, and other agencies in taking part in this celebratory day of equitable access to public transportation.
Ride Free, Celebrate Equity!
Transit Equity Day is more than just a free ride; it’s a reminder of the importance of public transport in promoting equity, access, and community connection. We invite all Southern Californians to take advantage of this opportunity, explore the region, and honor the legacy of Rosa Parks. This February 4th, hop aboard Metrolink and experience the freedom of transit—at no cost!
Metrolink website: Travelers looking for inspiration can view Metrolink’s specially curated repository of destinations easily accessible from Metrolink stations at metrolinktrains.com/explore.
Last Updated on May 4, 2026 by Daily News Staff
Cinco de Mayo is a holiday that commemorates the Mexican army’s victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. In the United States, the holiday has become a celebration of Mexican-American culture and heritage, often involving parades, parties, and traditional foods such as tacos and margaritas.
How will you celebrate Cinco de Mayo?
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New hybrid event aims to give grieving audiences meaningful holiday viewing, with films from more than 25 countries and a mission centered on love, loss, and emotional truth.
A new film festival debuting in late 2026 is taking a different approach to holiday entertainment. Grief Fest™: The Grief Film Festival, created by My Grief Angels Inc., is being introduced as what organizers believe is the world’s first film festival dedicated entirely to grief, remembrance, resilience, and healing.
The hybrid festival will run in two segments: November 25–29, 2026, during Thanksgiving week, and December 24, 2026, through January 3, 2027, during Christmas and New Year’s. Top Honors films will be announced on December 31, 2026.
Organizers say the timing is intentional. Research cited in the announcement shows that grief and loneliness are major holiday stressors for many Americans, making the season especially difficult for people coping with loss. In that context, Grief Fest™ is positioning itself as an alternative to the flood of traditional feel-good holiday programming.
The festival is open to short films, features, documentaries, experimental work, AI-generated projects, and VR experiences. It is described as inclusive, non-religious, and LGBTQ+ friendly, with submissions already received from more than 25 countries. All films will be presented in English, either spoken or subtitled.
Grief Fest™ will be available both in person and virtually through Film Festival Plus, making it accessible to audiences worldwide. The launch of GriefFest.com also includes Lumen, a multilingual AI guide designed to help filmmakers and attendees navigate the festival in their preferred language.
Rather than focusing on industry prestige, organizers say the festival is centered on community and emotionally honest storytelling. For audiences who feel unseen during the holidays, Grief Fest™ is aiming to offer something rare on the seasonal screen: recognition.
Source: PR Newswire
Related Reading
- Grief Fest: Official festival site
- My Grief Angels Inc.: About the nonprofit behind the festival
- Film Festival Plus: Virtual access platform
Catch the latest in movies, TV, music, pop culture, and live events in STM Daily News’ Entertainment section.
As the United States moves toward the 250th anniversary of its independence, a new public storytelling project is asking Americans to answer a big question: what does the American Dream mean today?
McCourt Entertainment has launched America-Dreams.com at SXSW as a digital platform designed to collect video submissions from people across the country. The goal is ambitious: gather one million voices reflecting on hope, opportunity, and what Americans want the future of the country to look like.
The initiative is tied to AMERIGO, an upcoming documentary presented by South Florida PBS and distributed by American Public Television. The film, which will be available to PBS stations nationwide beginning in June as part of 2026 programming tied to the nation’s 250th anniversary, explores the past, present, and future of the American Dream through conversations with people across the United States.
According to the project team, selected user-submitted videos may become part of the broader AMERIGOstorytelling effort, turning the campaign into more than a promotional rollout. Instead, it is being framed as a living archive of public voices gathered during a milestone moment in American history.
South Florida PBS President and CEO Dolores Fernandez Alonso said the goal is to make the anniversary feel inclusive and participatory.
“To celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s independence, we wanted to do something truly remarkable and invite all Americans to share their hope for the American Dream at America-Dreams.com,” Alonso said. “We are extremely proud of the cross-section of voices from across our nation and we want to capture these stories, experiences and perspectives so that people feel included in this historic national conversation.”
Emmy Award-winning producer David McCourt said the project builds on the documentary team’s nationwide reporting.
“As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, this project asks a simple but powerful question: ‘What is your hope for the American Dream?’” McCourt said. “We want to hear directly from people across the country.”
The campaign arrives at a moment when interactive documentary projects and audience participation are becoming a larger part of public media storytelling. With AMERIGO, the combination of a PBS documentary and a nationwide video submission initiative gives the project a broader cultural footprint than a traditional film release.
Submissions are now open at America-Dreams.com. A trailer for AMERIGO is also available on Vimeo.
For entertainment audiences, the project stands out less as a conventional documentary launch and more as a large-scale invitation to participate in a national media moment ahead of America’s semiquincentennial.
Catch the latest in movies, TV, music, pop culture, and live events in STM Daily News’ Entertainment section.
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