Free Shuttle

SDG&E Helping to Expand Free Electric Shuttle Service Downtown

If you’ve been to downtown San Diego recently, you’ve probably seen  FRED – the popular electric shuttle service that provides free rides to dining, shopping, parking garages and entertainment destinations. FRED, which stands for Free Ride Everywhere Downtown, began service in July 2014 and evolved under a partnership between the City of San Diego, Civic San Diego, and the Downtown San Diego Partnership.

Today, FRED is so popular it’s slated to expand from a fleet of 17 zero-emissions shuttles to 30 by 2020. SDG&E is lending a helping hand to support this expansion by working with local and state officials to secure an allocation from the state Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to help offset the shuttle service’s operating expenses.

At SDG&E, we share San Diego’s commitment to clean transportation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and clean the air we breathe. Electric vehicles in our region, including the FRED shuttles, are powered with some of the cleanest energy in America, as 43% of SDG&E’s power supplies come from renewable sources, such as wind and solar. 

We are also working aggressively to expand the charging infrastructure in our region to make it easier for people to switch to electric drive. Under our Power Your Drive initiative, SDG&E will install 3,500 EV chargers at apartments, condos, and workplaces. 

How FRED Works

FRED ferries passengers in open-air, five-seat shuttles. Anyone can hail a ride from FRED using a mobile app – similar to how Lyft and Uber work – or stand at a corner and hail FRED the old-fashioned way. The FRED shuttles help cut down on traffic and make it possible for people to spend more time enjoying downtown San Diego.

According to Civic San Diego, FRED shuttles to date have saved 12,000 gallons of gas and 107 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, while providing more than 140,000 rides totaling over 200,000 miles! That’s an initiative we’re proud to be a part of.

Click here to learn more about how we’re powering clean transportation in the region.