National Recognition for a Youth‑Led Transit Model
Federation of Canadian Municipalities Sustainable Communities Award & Inspire Award
Role: Dan Hendry (Limestone District School Board)
Year: 2018
Through my work as Sustainable Initiatives Coordinator with the Limestone District School Board (LDSB), I helped develop a youth transit model that grew from a local initiative into a nationally recognized approach to sustainable transportation and education.
At the centre of this work was the Kingston Transit High School Bus Pass Program, developed in partnership with the City of Kingston and Kingston Transit. The program focused on two core elements: providing students with on‑bus transit orientation and removing cost barriers by offering free transit passes through to the end of Grade 12. The intent was not only to support student mobility, but to build long‑term transit confidence and literacy among young riders.
Images Supplied By: Federation of Canadian Municipalities 2018 awards video
As the program expanded, secondary student transit use increased significantly—from approximately 28,000 trips in its early stages to over 600,000 annual trips. This growth demonstrated the impact of investing in youth education and access as a strategy for shifting transportation culture over the long term.
In 2018, this work received national recognition at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) Sustainable Communities Conference, where the initiative was awarded the Sustainable Communities Award in the Transportation category. The project also received the inaugural Inspire Award, selected through a live vote of conference delegates in recognition of creativity and innovation in community sustainability.
Images Supplied By: Federation of Canadian Municipalities 2018 awards video
Following this recognition, I worked with FCM to help develop the national guidebook Engaging Students to Increase Public Transit Ridership, sharing lessons from Kingston with municipalities across Canada. Since then, school boards and communities across Ontario, Canada, and the United States have explored or implemented similar youth transit programs inspired by this work.
The recognition associated with the FCM Sustainable Communities Award and Inspire Award reinforced a core lesson of this work: meaningful systems change can begin with young people. By combining education, strong partnerships, and policy alignment, this initiative demonstrated how transit can support equity, reduce costs, and help shape more sustainable communities for the future.
Related Links & Media: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EiWh82OzIw&t=11s
https://greenmunicipalfund.ca/fcms-sustainable-communities-awards