SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

How do free ORCA cards and college fit in with affordability?

Feb 20, 2018, 3:46 PM | Updated: 5:29 pm

ORCA cards...

(Dyer Oxley, MyNorthwest)

(Dyer Oxley, MyNorthwest)

On Tuesday, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan proudly announced that all of the city’s public high school students would get free, unlimited ORCA transit passes through her new plan. She also continued to push for two years of free college tuition for high school graduates.

Durkan’s first STOC address

“We need to make college a reality, for every Seattle public school graduate by investing in two free years of college education and support,” she said during her first State of the City address.

But how do either of those things fit in with the push to make the city more affordable? It’s going to cost millions to pay for those bus passes and make college free to students.

And what is the likelihood that students will even use free bus passes? As soon as they have their license and a car, they don’t want to ride a bus. But they’re still going to get an ORCA card. What percentage of kids will actually use them?

Also, how many of these ORCA cards will be lost and then replaced? Children don’t respect things they don’t have to earn. Will we have to create $100,000 city jobs just to keep track of all these lost ORCA cards?

Seattle is teaching children a horrible lesson: That as long as they vote Democrat, everything will be free.

Taken from Tuesday’s Dori Monson Show.

The U.S Capitol is photographed Friday, July 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)Credi...

Associated Press

Georgia teen pleads guilty to gun charge for running onto Capitol grounds with loaded shotgun

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Georgia teenager who charged at the U.S. Capitol armed with a loaded shotgun and wearing body armor and camouflage clothing pleaded guilty on Monday to illegally carrying a firearm, court records show. Carter Camacho, 18, of Smyrna, Georgia, told police officers who apprehended him outside the Capitol on Feb. 17 that […]

8 minutes ago

Associated Press

Major Oregon interstate closed for 70 miles due to wildfire

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Part of a major interstate highway in Oregon was closed Monday due to a wildfire that forced a small town to evacuate, one of dozens of blazes burning across the state. The Fox Fire forced the closure of Interstate 84 for some 70 miles (113 kilometers) between Baker City and Ontario […]

40 minutes ago

FILE - Andrew Tate, right, and his brother Tristan arrive at an event, April 11, 2026, in Miami. (A...

Associated Press

This week in court: 6 high-profile cases from the Tate brothers to D4vd

There’s a series of high-profile criminal cases with hearings this week that could prove pivotal. Four of the six have celebrity defendants or victims. On Monday, there’s a preliminary hearing for singer D4vd in Los Angeles; Andrew and Tristan Tate are fighting extradition in Miami; a woman who killed her three kids is on trial […]

48 minutes ago

Visitors walk in front of the Supreme Court Friday, July 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam ...

Associated Press

Trump administration urges Supreme Court to allow order targeting mail-in voting before midterms

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to clear the way for an executive order from President Donald Trump that could dramatically change mail-in voting. The emergency appeal comes after an appeals court upheld a ruling blocking the president’s order in nearly half the country ahead of November’s midterm elections. […]

48 minutes ago

katie wilson news conference seattle shooting...

Julia Dallas

‘Everyone should be angry’: Chief Barnes confirms second gunman, Mayor Wilson addresses delayed response after Seattle shooting

Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes confirmed there is a second shooter on the loose following a mass shooting at the Bite of Seattle on Sunday.

53 minutes ago

Associated Press

Secret Service agent charged with felonies in beatings police say were fraternity hazing

A U.S. Secret Service agent and two other men have been arrested and charged with violent felonies in the Miami area, where authorities say they committed brutal beatings as part of a fraternity hazing ritual in April that left two people hospitalized with severe injuries. One of the men charged, 29-year-old Marquez Christopher Pinder, works […]

1 hour ago

How do free ORCA cards and college fit in with affordability?