D.C. students are officially back in class, and many of them are taking Metro to get there.

The District’s Kids Ride Free program provides special Metro cards to D.C. residents aged 5 to 21 enrolled in a public, parochial, or independent school, or kids in the care of the District. Eligible students can ride Metrorail, Metrobus, and the D.C. Circulator for no charge during the school year.

As part of the return to school, Metro has put in place “Kids Ride Free” signs directing students to use specific faregates in stations that see higher volumes of kids commuting to school. Those stations are:

• Anacostia
• Congress Heights
• Minnesota Ave
• NoMa-Gallaudet
• L’Enfant Plaza
• Waterfront
• Tenleytown
• Columbia Heights
• Georgia Ave-Petworth
• Stadium-Armory

The transit agency says its station managers will be nearby to tap students who forget their Kids Ride Free Metro card through the faregate. The station managers will also record the student’s school, data that can help Metro distribute new cards to schools. Families have previously expressed concerns that students who forget their cards are sometimes turned away from the station, or that it takes a long time for Metro and schools to give students replacements if they lose their card.

Kids Ride Free Metro cards from last school year will still work through the end of September. Students will receive this year’s cards through their school.

In previous school years, the program saw surprisingly low usage, with just a quarter of D.C. students receiving the cards last school year, according to the Washington Post. Participation in the program has increased, but it’s not back to pre-pandemic levels.

Kids Ride Free cards are not currently available on mobile phone wallets, but Metro says it’s working on making that possible for students with smartphones in the future.