MTS, NCTD look to boost transit with "Free Ride Day"

• It's great timing for anyone heading to Game 2 of the Wild Card Series at Petco Park at 5:30pm, and MTS has already increased service for expected crowds.

Driving the news: Transit officials are hosting pop ups with giveaways at stations around the county.

• Check them out at the San Ysidro, Old Town, Fashion Valley, E Street and Euclid Avenue Trolley stations, the City Heights Transit Plaza, and La Mesa Blvd station.

By the numbers: Last year, MTS ridership on Free Ride Day jumped 10% to 280,000 total rides — the highest single-day total since March 2020, when the pandemic led to a prolonged slide in ridership.

The big picture: Overall ridership on the system in the last fiscal year climbed back to 85% of its pre-pandemic level.

• Quietly, the MTS Trolley has become the highest ridership light-rail system in the country in the years since the pandemic.