Under the program, drivers of the city's 189 buses will provide young people in distress with a free ride while they radio their dispatcher to contact Open Inn, which provides social services to youths and families in crisis. Once contacted, an Open Inn outreach worker will meet the youth at a bus stop along the driver's route.

"We're trying to catch folks before they run away," said Jason Thorpe, Open Inn's community education and outreach coordinator. "If they stay on the streets for 48 hours, they stay there longer. There's so much substance abuse and so many predatory adults who victimize young people on the streets. The culture so quickly grabs them in."

Open Inn assigns a counselor and provides referrals for shelter and other services. According to Thorpe, Project Safe Place is aimed at young people up to age 18 who have been sexually, physically, or verbally abused, who are at risk for alcohol or other drug addiction, and may be a runaway or facing homelessness.

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