Riding the Birmingham Xpress routes to and from the Fair Park neighborhood, downtown and Woodlawn will be free again, at least for awhile.

On Tuesday, the Birmingham City Council approved an amendment to the current agreement between the city and the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority, adding $300,000 to cover the cost of suspending fares for the Birmingham Xpress while a consolidated payment system is being developed.

Riders who were using both the fixed-route MAX Transit buses and the Birmingham Xpress rapid transit system have had to pay separate fares for each.

A consolidated payment system would fix the issue and make navigating the city by bus more accessible, said City Council member Darrell O’Quinn, chair of the transportation committee.

He said the one-time allocation will be bridge funding while the BJCTA temporarily suspends fares for the Birmingham Xpress.

“Having a consolidated payment system for both of these bus systems is really going to help alleviate a problem for some of our riders,” O’Quinn said. “The first few months of the Birmingham Xpress being operational there were no fees and ridership was really high. That dropped off a bit once the BJCTA began charging fares. One of the side benefits of the BJCTA suspending fares is that I think we will see ridership increase again and maybe introduce more people to the Birmingham Xpress.”

The Birmingham Xpress started Sept. 22 and offered free rides for the first month.

The buses make quick stops at 32 locations in 25 neighborhoods, running from Five Points West to Woodlawn with a fast-boarding system meant to operate like a subway.

The project is being funded by $20 million from the city to match a $20 million federal “Tiger” grant from the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program.

“Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority appreciates Mayor Woodfin and the City of Birmingham for moving transit in the right direction,” said BJCTA Executive Director Charlotte Shaw. “This funding will assist BJCTA with servicing customers as our systems continue to expand and grow.”

See also: Birmingham Xpress bus line starts; free rides for 30 days

Birmingham Mayor Woodfin on what public transit should be: ‘embrace’ it