Federal workers who are going without a paycheck during the government shutdown can ride for free on Maryland’s commuter trains and buses, the governor announced Friday.

The free rides apply to the Maryland Transit Administration’s MARC commuter trains and various commuter buses. Riders should show their employee badge to the train or bus operator.

“I’m ordering our MTA to have free MARC and free commuter buses for every federal worker inside the state of Maryland, that you are not going to have to worry about your transportation costs,” Gov. Wes Moore told reporters after touring an assistance fair for federal workers in Howard County.

Moore and other officials lamented the negative effects of the federal government shutdown, now in its 17th day with no resolution in sight, as Congress remains at an impasse over spending bills.

Federal workers, both those now off the job and those forced to work without pay, are starting to tap into state services, Moore said. That includes more than 2,000 applications for unemployment benefits and more than 1,000 applications for a state loan program.

“There is too much uncertainty that is being forced, that doesn’t necessarily have to be this way,” said Howard County Executive Calvin Ball, a Democrat. “You see so many people who are coming here because they are afraid of how they’re going to put food on their tables, how they’re going to keep a roof over their head.”