Cornwall Ontario — Cornwall Transit’s eighth annual Clean Air Day promotion was a huge success, with thousands of residents taking advantage of the day-long offer of free rides on Wednesday, June 4^th. 

The City-run transit service recorded 6,472 passenger boardings throughout the day, making it the most successful Clean Air Day event yet. The turnout surpassed the 2012 Clean Air Day record of 6,045 passenger boardings. By comparison, the average daily boarding count is 3,191. 

“We are thrilled with the response,” said Transit Division Manager Len Tapp. “Passengers have been contacting our office to express their appreciation for the free rides and great service.” 

In addition to regular Cornwall Transit users, officials also saw a large number of Kashechewan evacuees (currently staying at the Nav Centre) and new riders on the buses on Wednesday. 

“The goal of the promotion is to get more people on our buses to experience the benefits of using public transit, and we think we achieved that,” said Mr. Tapp. “We hope the high ridership on Clean Air Day will translate into more people using our transit service on a regular basis.” 

As part of the promotion, a series of ‘mystery riders’ handed out prizes to random riders on the buses throughout the day.