D.C. students could eventually ride the Metro at a discount if next year's Student Government follows through with the current SG's talks with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the D.C. Metro-University Student Alliance, according to SG President Joe Vidulich.
The DCMUSA met with the Riders' Advisory Council and the WMATA board to negotiate a fare for college students at AU and other schools in D.C., Maryland and Virginia, according to Vidulich, whose term ends in May.
"This is something that is feasible if we continue effort," he said.
SG President-elect Seth Cutter said he plans to continue attempting to get students a discounted Metro fare. Vidulich and Class of 2011 Senator Nick Troiano worked with DCMUSA this year.
"I will work this summer on continuing the effort and will do my best to see this proposal come to fruition in a timely manner," Cutter said.
Neither Vidulich nor Cutter said they knew how much the discount would be or when it would go into effect.
"Nothing is off the table yet," Vidulich said. "We're just trying to figure out what the best plan for us is."
Approximately 1,900 students region-wide have joined the Facebook group "Student Metro Discount - It's Only Fare."
Evan Schwarz, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, said that although the group is intended to support the fare reduction, many of the group's postings claim WMATA would not find a reduction in fares to be realistic or profitable.
"I'm not sure how it will increase ridership," Schwarz said. "People still need to get around, no matter what the cost is."
WMATA officials said a student discount could end up being profitable because it would encourage more students to ride the Metro off peak hours, Vidulich said.
"[WMATA] thinks that this will be lucrative to them," he said.
Jasmine Elatab, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said students should get a discount so they can afford other things.
"Those extra 20 cents per trip adds up and sometimes make the difference between getting to eat dinner or not," she said.
Schwarz said he thinks using the Metro for class activities has become costly.
"There have been plenty of times when I've had to use the Metro for something class-related, like field trips, museums and supplies," he said.
