Trans Angelenos got a side of public support this month to go along with their Thanksgiving meal in the form of transit passes commemorating Transgender Awareness Month in November.
A limited-edition Transit Access Pass (TAP) from Los Angeles’ Metro features the pink, white, and baby blue colors of the transgender flag, rendered in a ribbon pattern that dances across the wallet-sized card.
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One happy transit user wrote via Threads, “DUDE my best friend went out of his way and got me this limited edition transgender awareness LA Metro card!! now i get to use my trans transit card every time I visit home!!! im so happy 😊😊😊😊🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️”
In a press release touting the commemorative card, LA Metro described Transgender Awareness Month as “a time that aims to uplift transgender and nonbinary people, share their stories, and learn how to make communities safer and more welcoming. In recognition of this month, TAP has released a new commemorative card.”
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TAP cards are used across all of LA Metro’s transit options, including buses, light rail, and the growing subway system. Fares are capped at $20 per week for regular users, a bargain incentive to lure cash-strapped commuters out of their cars and onto public transit.
LA Metro is free for students through TAP’s GoPass program, which covers county residents in K-12, adult education, and community college districts.
LA Metro’s public show of support for Transgender Month Awareness matches those progressive policies, and acknowledges that trans “neighbors, friends, and family members enrich every corner of our county, reminding us why visibility, respect, and access for all matters so much.”
The commemoration also inspired some trans-inflected punnery among fans of the new card.
In ascending order of groans, three replies read: “hell yeah I love Public TRANSit”, “publicly transing it!!”, and “ah, for making transactions.”
Los Angeles County is home to one of the largest and most vibrant LGBTQ+ communities in the country, with about 665,000 queer adults — or nearly 9% of the population — calling the sprawling metropolis home. Of those, an estimated 93,000 identify as transgender or nonbinary.
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