Need a ride to a polling place?
Community groups will offer voters free rides to Tarrant County polling places during early voting Oct. 19-30 and on Election Day, Nov. 3.
The efforts come after a state district judge denied a request to reinstate 92 locations that were eliminated from the list of polling sites by the Tarrant County Commissioners Court. The downsizing disproportionately impacts Black and Latino voters, four current and former Fort Worth officials said in their complaint.
Fort Worth resident Ken Shimamoto is among those organizing rides for voters in an effort to counteract the downsizing of voting locations, he said.
“We’re going to get people to the polls,” Shimamoto told the Fort Worth Report. “There will be plenty of folks driving people.”
Shimamoto said he is working with Fort Worth churches such as New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church, 2864 Mississippi Ave. in the Morningside neighborhood, to provide rides to voters without transportation.
“We’ve got people power and that’s powerful,” he said.
On Friday night, two groups — Mothers of Murdered Angels and Black Voters Matter — rallied Historic Southside voters with an education event at 1205 E. Rosedale St. A car caravan and bus rolled through Southside streets to publicize the voting effort.
Fort Worth Community Collaborative is also mobilizing volunteers to drive voters to polling sites.
Shimamoto said two groups plan to take University of Texas at Arlington students to voter sites after the Mavericks Activity Center was eliminated as a polling place by county commissioners despite an appeal from the Arlington City Council.
Another effort will transport voters who live near Las Vegas Trail about 6 miles south to Benbrook, the closest voting location for those residents, Shimamoto said.
Janet Mattern, president of the League of Women Voters of Tarrant County, said the organization is supplying voters with information about ride programs.
“Our role is education,” she said. “We provide voters with resources that they can access as well. We think everyone should be able to vote.”
Free transit rides
Trinity Metro is also providing free rides through its Let’s Ride to Vote campaign.
“Connecting people to the places that matter in their lives is what we do every day,” Rich Andreski, president and CEO of Trinity Metro, said in a statement. “Let’s Ride to Vote is another way we can make those connections easier for our customers. Voting is your choice. Getting there is on us.”
Transit users can use Trinity Metro services, including buses, On-Demand rideshare, TEXRail and the Trinity Railway Express to travel to a Tarrant County polling place. To obtain a free ride, notify the driver or train conductor that you are traveling to or from a voting location.
GoPass customers can also use promo code VOTE26 to receive a complimentary day pass. A paper day pass is available at the customer kiosk at Fort Worth Central Station, 1001 Jones St.
Trinity Metro Bikes customers also can use the same promo code in the bike app to access the free-ride offer, officials said.
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
At the Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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