Sponsor Miller Lite along with CTA will provide free service beginning 10 p.m. on New Year’s Eve until 4 a.m. the following morning
CTA is happy to announce that it will be once again offering New Year’s Eve free rides on CTA buses and trains from 10 p.m. on Friday, December 31 until 4 a.m. Saturday, January 1. The opportunity for Chicagoans to celebrate New Year’s Eve in a responsible and safe way is possible through a sponsorship from Miller Lite.
“We are once again pleased to partner with Miller Lite to offer safe and free rides to Chicagoans as they enjoy a night out on New Year’s Eve,” said CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. “We encourage riders to stay safe and allow CTA to be their designated driver as they travel on such a festive night.”
During the free-ride period, customers do not need to touch their Ventra or personal bankcards at rail station turnstiles or while boarding buses. Signs will be posted reminding customers of the free ride period on bus fareboxes. As in past years, no refunds will be issued if customers elect to touch their fare card or other form of payment on fare-card readers during the free-ride period.
For customers traveling to and from events around Chicago this New Year’s Eve outside the free ride period, the CTA recommends purchasing fares in advance, which will decrease travel times and avoid long lines at rail station vending machines. Customers can add our permanently discounted, unlimited ride passes (1-day is $5, 3-day is $15, and 7-day is $20) or add money to their Ventra cards for pay-per-ride via the following ways: free Ventra app, rail station Ventra vending machines, online or at nearly 1,300 local retailers - for locations visit ventrachicago.com.
Single-ride tickets are also available for purchase for $3 ($5 at O’Hare) at all Ventra vending machines. Single-ride tickets include up to two transfers in two hours.
Ventra allows riders to use Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay, or any contactless credit or debit card, for pay-as-you-go rides ($2.25 for bus, $2.50 for train). Ventra can also be used on the iPhone Apple Watch.
As part of the sponsorship, Miller Lite pays a fee that covers the cost of all rides taken and helps offset the operating costs to run CTA service during the hours in which the promotion is offered.
NOTE: All CTA bus and rail service will operate on a normal Saturday schedule on Saturday, January 1, when the New Year is a nationally observed holiday. CTA will run a Sunday schedule on Friday, December 31st.
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