Free smart cards for those affected by Sonoma County wildfires

The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District is providing free passes good for at least one ride on SMART trains to those affected by the Sonoma County wildfires, agency officials said.

The passes will be in effect through Dec. 31, and come in two forms: individual and business. 

The Individual Relief Passes will be loaded on Clipper cards and will allow individuals to ride an unlimited number of times for free, according to agency officials.

The agency is providing 5,000 individual passes for those who lost their home, rental unit or place of employment because of the fires, agency officials said.

In the second program, 5,000 Business Relief Passes will be provided to the Santa Rosa Metro Chamber of Commerce for distribution to businesses in the greater Santa Rosa area.

Businesses will offer customers a SMART Business Relief Pass for every $25 spent this weekend and the weekend of Dec. 2 and 3, agency officials said.

Each Business Relief Pass is good for a free one-way trip on board the SMART train, and can be used through Dec. 31.