Press Releases
Montgomery County Launches Middle School Art Contest to Celebrate 50th Anniversary of Ride On Bus Service
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, March 25, 2025
The Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) Ride On bus service is excited to announce an art contest to celebrate 50 years of Ride On service in Montgomery County. The contest is open to Montgomery County middle school students until Tuesday, April 15.
“Our Ride On bus system has been a vital part of Montgomery County for 50 years, helping people get to work, school and everywhere in between,” said Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich. “This contest is a fun way to engage our students, who are the next generation of transit users, in recognizing how public transportation connects people and strengthens communities. I look forward to seeing how young artists capture the importance of Ride On and the role it plays in improving the quality of life and our environment for everyone in the County.”
The contest is designed to educate students about Ride On, the quality-of-life impacts transportation has and encourage the use of public transit. Winning artwork should depict one or more Ride On bus services and capture the value that Ride On brings to the community.
“The contest is a way for us to celebrate fifty years of Ride On bus service connecting our communities and expanding access to opportunities,” said MCDOT Director Chris Conklin. “We hope this contest will give students who rely on Ride On an opportunity to celebrate the service and encourage students who have not yet tried public transportation to hop on board. Ride On is free for students in Montgomery County and we hope to see more young people choosing public transportation.”
All contest participants will earn five Student Service Learning hours for submitting a contest entry. Entries will be scored for relevance to the topic and adherence to contest rules, creativity and execution in a blind judging process.
The winning entry will receive a $100 Amazon gift card, second place entry will receive a $75 Target gift card and third place will receive a $50 Visa gift card. The first-place winner’s art entry will also be displayed on all Ride On buses. The top 10 entries will be displayed in Montgomery County government buildings. The middle school with the most entries will receive a $500 gift card to Michaels or Target for art supplies.
Winners will be announced at the Ride On 50th Anniversary Celebration in May.
MCDOT’s Ride On buses were launched in 1975 with 20 buses serving Takoma Park and Silver Spring. Today, Ride On has a fleet of 385 ADA-accessible buses. Operating seven days a week, Ride On is the second-largest bus system in the region with over 80 routes and 5,425 bus stops. In addition to the standard Ride On bus service, Ride On also includes Ride On extRa, Ride On Flex and Flash Bus Rapid Transit services.
Students and parents can learn more about the contest on the MCDOT contest website. Entries will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, April 15.
For more information on Ride On routes and services, visit RideOnBus.com or download the free Ride On Trip Planner app.
For information on MCDOT programs and services visit montgomerycountymd.gov/mcdot, follow @MCDOTNow on X, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and subscribe to MCDOT’s “Go Montgomery!” newsletter.
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Media Contact: Emily DeTitta 240-372-2282
Categories: Transportation