A sign showing a seat has been “reserved” for Rosa Parks on MTS’s Transit Equity Day. (Image by Adrian Childress/Times of San Diego)
On the anniversary of civil rights icon Rosa Parks’ birth in 1913, county transit is joining agencies around the county in offering free rides for Transit Equity Day, which was created to remind everyone that good public transit is a fundamental right that connects people to the communities around them.
In 1955, Parks, who was then 42, refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, sparking the Montgomery bus boycott — which ultimately helped lead to desegregated public transit.
The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System has “reserved” a seat on each of its buses to honor Parks’ legacy, and the agency will join San Diego Mesa College’s Black Studies Department and the Black Student Union for a Rosa Parks birthday recognition.
MTS sign reserving a seat for Rosa Parks Day. (Photo by Adrian Childress/Times of San Diego)
The event will include a silent march from the San Diego Mesa College Black Studies Department to the Rosa Parks Transit Center at the corner of Mesa College Drive and Mesa College Circle along Route 44. There will also be presentations from students, employees and community members.
Additionally, riders can use all North County Transit District modes — COASTER, SPRINTER, BREEZE, FLEX, NCTD+ and LIFT — free for all of Wednesday. For those traveling on NCTD+ within the San Marcos and Vista micro transit zones, customers can use promo code ROSAPARKS in the NCTD+ app for free rides.
“Rosa Parks’ courage was integral to advancing the fight for civil rights in our country,” said NCTD chief executive officer Shawn M. Donaghy. “NCTD honors her life by working every day to ensure the right to equal access for all on public transit.”
Transit Equity Day began in 2018.
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