Someone's purchase got her a safe ride to school.
That's Ride for Ride. With every seat you purchase on one of our experiences, we give a Detroit kid in need a safe ride to school or an after-school program. You ride, they ride. Literally ride for ride.
One seat in, one ride out
- Purchase a seat on any of our tours or adventures. Do good by having fun! All of our tours and adventures qualify for Ride for Ride. We keep track of every ticket sold so every single sale results in a Detroit kid in need getting a safe ride.
- We work with schools and youth programs in need. There's a tremendous need for safe youth transportation in Detroit, yet most schools and programs cannot afford the high cost of bussing. We work closely with quality youth programs to identify the kids most in need of transportation to build true educational equality across all neighborhoods.
- They get the safe rides they need. When enough rides are gathered, we head out to the neighborhood and make dreams happen. Sometimes a simple bus ride is all the difference it takes to get to graduation when your home is miles from the nearest school.
- From rides comes magic. Our dream is every child in Detroit getting a ride every time they need one — and we're one ride closer to that every time you buy a ride on one of our tours.
A bus ride shouldn't decide who graduates
Driving around the neighborhoods, we realized that one group in particular needed safe, reliable transportation to get around — Detroit kids. Many didn't have a safe way to get to their school or after-school programs. We wanted to help.
So many kids were dropping out of school and after-school programs because of access issues. To think that a simple bus ride between home and school was all that was keeping some kids from succeeding seemed crazy, but we set out to see if the issue was true and — spoiler alert — it's bigger than we ever imagined.
We started giving free rides to Detroit students in 2012. With one 24-seater bus, we gave 5,711 rides during the 2012–13 school year alone. In 2025, that number was 22,752 — most of them getting students to STEAM, STEM, and future-of-work programs. And still, schools and programs call us every week to say transportation is their single biggest barrier to success. The story hasn't changed. The need has only grown.
From rides comes magic
Amazing things happen when a kid has a chance to prosper. Studies have shown there's all kinds of good things that come out of a simple ride:
_Better attendance
In Detroit, attendance starts off strong at the start of the year and drops off dramatically as it gets darker earlier and the weather turns cold. Safe, reliable rides keep attendance higher than any other initiative.
_Better graduation rates
Regular attendance in school and participation in after-school programs causes a large increase in high school graduation rates. More grads means more opportunities and more success in communities throughout Detroit for the long haul.
_Increased youth safety
Incidents of violence against youth happen most in the hours immediately before and after school. By giving kids a safe ride door-to-door with a safety-minded driver onboard, our kids and their parents can breathe easier knowing they're out of harm's way.
Professionals, not volunteers with a van
The same hand-picked, thriving-wage drivers who run our tours run these rides. Safety-minded, youth-aware, and genuinely glad the kids are aboard. It's the part of the week they talk about most.
It just never gets old watching a kid get off the bus at a baseball game with their classmates. It's really joyful, and every ticket you buy makes you a part of it.
Get your own ticket on a tour today and provide a ride for a kid in need.
Tours are how Ride for Ride gets funded. You have fun, a kid gets to school. That's what we call a win-win.
Run a school or youth program that needs rides? Email us at help@thedetroitbus.com and tell us what your kids need. We hear the same story every week — we'd rather hear yours directly.