Comment from Eric Schneider

To make public transportation more family friendly: -standardize fare payment across the country. Each system has a different payment process and fare structures. These include different fare cards and technologies, fare zones vs. flat fares, child (free), child (discounted), adult, senior. Having traveled with kids all over the country, it can be very confusing to figure out fares and payments for children. -make it easier to pay for multiple children. Example: Boston has a simple tap-to-enter process, which is fine for a single person who has a credit card, but I don't believe that same card can be used for multiple entries of family members. Portland, OR, has a similar system. -cap cost of travel for families. In Alaska, rail travel is costly for individuals, and prohibitively costly for families, even with discounts for children. Unfortunately, driving is often much cheaper than taking the train, even though the train may serve the exact start and end point of the car trip, and the train is safer and more comfortable. (The Alaska Railroad receives transit funding, despite operating more as an intercity longer distance operation). -remove requirement for parents to provide car seats when using public conveyance. Alaska, again: parents are required to provide a car seat/booster seat for children on public buses around Denali National Park. Such seats are not required on school buses or motor coaches operating in the state. Again, there should be a reliable standard across the country. The car seat may provide slightly more safety, but simply being on the bus is much safer than traveling in a motor vehicle. -remove age restrictions on children traveling alone, or make the age restriction low, perhaps 8 or 10. Basically when the child is mature enough to navigate from start to destination, that child should be welcomed to ride. I took my first intercity train trip alone before the age of 10. A sibling regularly rode intercity buses alone at the same age. Today, these trips are not allowed. Interestingly, Amtrak has a very high minimum age--16--whereas transit agencies that post a minimum age, it is much lower. -Planning: improve connections between airports and transit. While some communities have excellent transit connections, many do not. It needs to be easier for all people, with or without children, to get between airports, train stations, bus depots, city centers, and neighborhoods. Thank you for reviewing.