San Diego's first free, on-demand shuttle system called Free Ride Everywhere Downtown (FRED), which began operations in August 2016, is set to expand its fleet from 17 to 30 all-electric vehicles over the next three years thanks to additional funding allocated by the Civic San Diego Board of Directors. The fleet of 17 all-electric vehicles has given free rides to over 140,000 Downtown residents, employees, and visitors, without using any gasoline, taking any parking spaces, or producing any carbon emissions.
FRED is an environmentally-friendly ridesharing program that provides an innovative and eco-friendly approach to solving Downtown's first-mile/last-mile mobility issues while meeting the Mayor's Climate Action Plan goals. Civic San Diego's President, Reese A. Jarrett, stated that “FRED is an integral part of CivicSD’s mission to improve mobility in the Downtown area, and we are committed to provide funding to expand the fleet in order to meet the Mayor’s Climate Action Plan goals and to provide an innovative service and alternative mode of transportation for our Downtown community.”
Alexander Esposito and James Mirras, co-founders of FRED’s operating company called The Free Ride, are thrilled to expand their efforts in Downtown San Diego. Esposito said, “James and I are thrilled with the way FRED has taken off in San Diego. It's exciting to see the happy riders, the environmental benefits, and the City being applauded for its innovative and eco-friendly approach to solving Downtown's first-mile/last-mile mobility issues. We're thankful for support from Civic and the Partnership, as well as from our great local sponsors like Qualcomm, Batta Fulkerson, the East Village Association, and EMMES, who help make the whole thing possible.”
To catch a Free Ride Everywhere Downtown, riders can download the app at http://thefreeride.com/fred/. For more information, visit Downtown San Diego Partnership's website at www.downtownsandiego.org.
See more in Weather.