One of the biggest challenges we hear from our DMO colleagues and hospitality industry partners is that the lack of affordable transportation is one of the primary reasons that capable workers don’t bother to apply for the jobs that are so desperately needed in the service industry.

A few years ago, the City of Albuquerque went fare-free with its bus system and the results have been exceptionally positive…especially when one understands that charging for rides covered less than 4% of the cost of transit in the city. Not to be flip…but that’s akin to a rounding error when one looks at the greater good.

In the weeks ahead, we’ll be hosting Discover Albany’s Jill Delaney on the DMOU Podcast with a fascinating story of how her DMO worked with local transit officials to solve their workforce conundrum…and the pipeline of available workers quickly filled when transportation challenges were off the table.

The solution is out there.

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