City Announces Results of Transit Education Program
Published on December 08, 2025
How to Ride Project expands transportation options for older residents
Lincoln Transportation and Utilities (LTU) Director Liz Elliott, today announced the results of a program conducted by LTU and Aging Partners to help older adults use public transportation. The How to Ride Project was made possible by a $19,885 AARP grant awarded to the City in July.
“LTU is committed to ensuring our system is accessible for everyone, including older adults and community members with limited English proficiency,” Director Elliott said. “These educational programs empower individuals to travel confidently and independently. Whether it is getting to the grocery store, a doctor’s appointment, or a local business, learning to use the bus and bike share systems helps people stay connected to the places and services they rely on.”
The How to Ride Project ran from July through early December. Seventy-two people participated in the program, which included:
- Six in-person educational training sessions on how to use StarTran and one training on how to use BikeLNK. The program also provided 700 transit passes for post-session bus use and 100 BikeLNK passes for bicycle use.
- Four instructional How to Ride StarTran videos on StarTran’s website each featuring translations in Vietnamese, Chinese, Arabic, Kurdish, and Karen for a total of 20 videos. The videos cover topics such as planning a ride, boarding and exiting, fare payment, and paratransit services. The City also offers the videos in English and Spanish.
- Three updated multilingual documents with tips on riding StarTran buses with translations in Kurdish, French and Nuer. The City also provides the documents in Spanish, Farsi, Russian, Vietnamese, Karen, and Arabic on the StarTran website at lincoln.ne.gov/RidingStarTran.
Carla Cosier, LTU Assistant Director of Transit, said StarTran team members conducted trainings at organizations that already offered a variety of senior and multicultural services, such as senior centers, Lincoln Public Schools, and Lincoln Literacy.
“We were truly encouraged by the strong interest shown by community members who use Aging Partners services in StarTran’s transit trainings,” Cosier said. “These trainings fostered a more inclusive community where people of all ages can live, work, and play.”
Randall Jones, Aging Partners Director, said the Aging Partners Department used listening sessions and a survey to learn that older adults in Lincoln want access to affordable and free bus passes, more accessible information on how to ride the bus, and greater public awareness of how the bus system works.
“We continue to listen to our community,” Jones said. “We secured the AARP grant focused on topics brought up in our listening sessions. Since then, we have heard from a variety of older adults who now call themselves transit riders who tell us they appreciated the educational sessions.”
To view the videos and How to Ride StarTran tips and documents, visit lincoln.ne.gov/RidingStarTran.