JTA

Jaguars fans leaving last Saturday nights BIG Win against the Tennessee Titans are sounding off to News4JAX about the delays they experienced while riding JTA’s Game day express after the game.

Gameday Xpress takes Jaguars fans to and from secure parking lots to TIAA Bank Field. Their website says it ends 1.5 hours after the end of the game. But after the Titans game, many fans said they waited a long to get back to their cars.

Health care workers are some of the most essential employees as the country continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, and JTA wants to make sure they can get to their shifts.

The St. Johns River Ferry remains closed Friday morning until port conditions improve in the wake of Tropical Storm Nicole.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority wants to help you get around the city’s public transportation system more easily, and starting Monday, you can use the newly revamped MyJTA mobile app

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority said it plans to return to its regular bus service Friday by noontime after canceling services ahead of Ian.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority said it is suspending all bus services Wednesday starting at 8 p.m. with closures continuing through Thursday.

A crash involving a truck and a Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA) bus sent five people to the hospital Monday morning.

Duval County students, from middle school to college, can now ride JTA buses for free any time of the year.

Authorities say a Jacksonville teenager was found safe.

A former JTA bus driver was sentenced to seven years in prison Friday after pleading guilty to a manslaughter charge in the 2019 death of a woman who was run over by his bus.

Some Murray Hill Residents are calling on JTA to bring back a bus route in their neighborhood.

The Safety and Crime Reduction Commission hosts the first Community Bus Tour in partnership with JTA to promote mental health awareness.

A crash that involved a Jacksonville Transit Authority bus blocked all lanes of Beach Boulevard on Friday night.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority hopes a new roundabout at a busy intersection in Arlington makes the area safer for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.

JTA will start giving free bus rides to all middle and high school students in Duval County when public school students return from winter break on Tuesday.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will receive $1.7 million in federal grant money to replace and expand the Skyway.

JTA, in partnership with Goodyear, announced the agency will become the first public transit agency to test “airless tires.”

Days after the Acosta Bridge was re-lit in the colors of the rainbow, hundreds gathered Saturday to unite to support the LGBTQ+ community.

A parade of colors could once again be seen shining along the surface of the St. Johns River on Wednesday night, a reflection of a rainbow light display along Jacksonville’s Acosta Bridge.

The Acosta Bridge is lit up in rainbow colors to celebrate Pride Month in Jacksonville.

There were a lot of questions raised but few answers when the Jacksonville City Council met Wednesday to discuss a proposal to double the city’s gas tax.

If you're wanting to get a COVID-19 shot but you're having trouble with transportation, JTA has come up with an option that might help.

JTA is offering a week of free rides on the ferry to say thank you to riders for their patience over the last two months.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority announced Friday that the refurbished St. Johns River Ferry passed its U.S. Coast Guard inspection and sea trials and has returned to service.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The JTA and Agape Family Health in Jacksonville has partnered to create the Wellness on Wheels campaign, which provides mobile COVID-19 vaccinations. The JTA has released a schedule for vaccination stops that covers the next couple of weeks. Here is the schedule as of Tuesday:Tuesday, March 3010 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Inspire to Rise at 5927 Old Timuquana Rd, Jacksonville, FL 32210Wednesday, March 3111:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. - ILA Longshoreman 2040 at E. 21st St., Jacksonville, FL 32206Thursday, April 18 a.m. to 7 p.m. - Ruth Upson Elementary at 1090 Dancy St., Jacksonville, FL 32205Friday, April 21 p.m. to 7 p.m. Greater Macedonia Baptist Church at 1880 Edgewood Ave. W., Jacksonville, FL 32208Saturday, April 39 a.m. to Noon - Mt. Agape Family Health is also offering COVID-19 vaccinations to eligible people on the campus of Edward Waters College.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – More than one-third of the money raised from the proposed 6-cent hike in Jacksonville’s gas tax would be used to expand the Skyway -- the underutilized automated downtown transportation system. At the time there was an outcry from people not wanting to see local tax dollars spent on the system. AdTommy Hazouri, who the mayor at the time, wasn’t even keen on the project, then called the ASE -- the Automated Skyway Express. I think it’s an expensive means of transportation for Jacksonville, but it’s with us. Now, despite millions that would go to fund Skyway expansion, Hazouri said the city is still keeping that promise to taxpayers.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville University Public Policy Institute Director Rick Mullaney guest hosts this edition of “This Week In Jacksonville.”Mullaney sits down with JTA CEO Nat Ford to discuss the gas tax increase proposal. Also, JEA CEO Jay Stowe talks about the new direction of the utility.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority plans to open a Skyway passenger station at the edge of the growing Brooklyn neighborhood by September -- its first new station since the city’s existing elevated rail system was completed 25 years ago. It will link to the Central Skyway Station at West Bay and Lee streets in LaVilla and continue on to the existing Downtown and San Marco stations. Passenger parking will be provided at an existing JTA surface lot off Riverside Avenue. Two refurbished Skyway trains will be used for the station wrapped in a “Brooklyn Shuttle theme,” according to a JTA project summary obtained by the Jacksonville Daily Record. “There’s no better destination right now than the activity that’s happening in Brooklyn.”Shuttles will connect from the Brooklyn Station to carry people deeper into Riverside.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As Walmart locations in Jacksonville start offering COVID-19 vaccines, public transportation officials are working to adjust routes to make sure people can get to their appointments. Since mid-January, the state-run vaccination clinic at Regency Square Mall has been the primary vaccination site in Duval County. A bus stop was also added to the front of the vaccination site. AdAccording to JTA, 211 people have used the routes to get to the state-run vaccination site and 20 people used JTA services to get to the pop-up site on the Northside of Jacksonville last week. If you need transportation to a vaccination site, visit health.jtafla.com

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The city’s pop-up vaccination clinic at the Clanzel Brown Senior Center in Moncrief opened for a second and final day Saturday. It’s in an effort by city and community leaders to reach underserved communities where the vaccine has not been available. The Clanzel Brown Center was open Saturday for health care workers, first responders and people 65 and up whose birthdays are from July through December. (Nearly 500 doses were administered Friday to those with January through June birthdays.) Ron DeSantis has pushed for vaccination clinics to open at places of worship across the state -- with a focus on predominantly Black churches.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – When the doors opened at 9 a.m., more than 100 people were waiting to get their COVID-19 shot Friday morning at the Clanzel T. Brown Senior Center on Moncrief Road. Many of the seniors said they were pleased the city had opened the center for vaccines, even if supply is limited. Many said they would not have gotten the shot if the pop-up clinic had not opened in their Northside neighborhood. City Council members Ju’Coby Pittman and Sam Newby were out at the senior center, encouraging seniors in the area to get the shot. It also provides direct service through its Northside ReadiRide Zone and a new Northwest Core ReadiRide Zone established to service the area.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville will be opening another COVID-19 vaccination site at a senior center -- this time in one of the city’s underserved neighborhoods. Individuals who are feeling sick should not go to a vaccination site. After receiving the vaccine, patients must stay on site for at least 15 minutes to be monitored for potential reactions by healthcare and emergency professionals. While allergic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine are rare, this safety measure is in place out of an abundance of caution. The city’s new senior center vaccination site opens as a group of local church and community leaders announced their own plan to do the same.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will temporarily suspend service of the St. Johns River Ferry for approximately eight weeks starting Jan. 6. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced July 24 the award of a $5.2 million grant through the FTA’s Passenger Ferry Grant Program to the JTA to continue improvements and upgrades to the Ferry. That’s in addition to the $3.9 million FTA Passenger Ferry Grant awarded to the JTA in August 2019. This is the latest round of upgrades spearheaded by the JTA since it assumed operations in 2016. The Jean Ribault is a car and passenger ferry built in 1995 that connects the north and south ends of Florida State Road A1A, linking historic Mayport Village and Fort George Island via a 0.9-mile voyage across the St. Johns River, 2.5 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will use an $11.9 million grant from the federal government to take eight diesel buses out of service and replace them with eight compressed natural gas buses. Replacing them with cleaner CNG powered buses is part of the JTA’s mission of sustainability. JTA spokesman David Cawton said all buses purchased by JTA since 2015 have been CNG buses. The eight new CNG buses will make a total of 96 CNG buses in JTA’s fleet of 220 buses total. Four other projects in Florida also received funds from the bus and bus facilities grant program:

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will receive $5.2 million in federal grant money to modernize its ferry. JTA had requested $9.3 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration -- which would have included enough to buy a second boat. “This $47.5 million in federal funding will improve mobility and enhance safety for passenger ferry services across our nation,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) in Boston, Massachusetts, will receive $3.5 million to repair two passenger ferry vessels to ensure continued service reliability, passenger safety, and a state of good repair. The selected projects will receive $30 million in Fiscal Year 2020 funding and $17.5 million in prior year funding.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration awarded the funds in two grants to JTA. The $12.9 million grant awards are in addition to the $15.2 million CARES Act funding JTA previously received in May. JTA will use the grant funds for administrative expenses associated with its transit, passenger ferry and skyway operations. The CARES Act was signed by President Donald Trump on March 27. CARES Act funding can be used to cover 100 percent of these costs.

Customers have been giving the agency feedback about which routes need more service as the city has begun reopening after the lockdown. Additional “plug” buses will continue to add frequency to routes as needed throughout the day as demand for ridership begins to grow, JTA said. As a precaution, all JTA employees are required to wear face coverings while on the job, at a JTA facility or construction site, or while driving a revenue vehicle. While not required, JTA strongly encourages customers to wear at least a cloth covering while on board. Social distancing, enhanced cleaning activities and other measures remain in place at the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla, and at all JTA transportation hubs.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. The Jacksonville Transportation Authority and Florida State College at Jacksonville have agreed to expand JTAs autonomous vehicle program with testing and educational initiatives on FSCJ campuses. Through four initial phases, the U2C will leverage the existing Skyway infrastructure and expand that network through ground-level connections and convert those structures to support autonomous vehicles. The first phase, the Bay Street Innovation Corridor is fully funded. Our community is leading the way to the future of autonomous vehicles, said FSCJ President Dr. John Avendano. Through this MOU, JTA and FSCJ will develop an Agile Plan for on-campus use.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. To show respect over Memorial Day weekend and to honor those who fought for the United States and did not make it home, the Jacksonville Transit Authority is lighting up the Acosta Bridge. The recently installed LED lighting system turned the bridge red, white and blue Friday night and it will continue to shine through Monday evening. The lights will be on from dusk until dawn.

Published: May 23, 2020, 6:01 am Updated: May 23, 2020, 7:01 amJACKSONVILLE, Fla. A third Jacksonville Transportation Authority bus driver tested positive for coronavirus. JTA said the bus driver was last at work on Thursday and went to the hospital on Friday after experiencing symptoms. JTA spokesperson, David Cawton, said after learning about the positive coronavirus test, all areas, vehicles and facilities were identified. All JTA buses are equipped with protective barriers to add another layer of separation between Bus Operators and customers. Customers with concerns can reach out to JTA Customer Service at (904) 630-3100 or customer- svc@jtafla.com

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will transition bus operations from the Rosa Parks Transit Station to the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla on May 4, according to a release. The JRTC at LaVilla is located at 100 LaVilla Center Dr. near the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center. The JRTC at LaVilla will replace the Rosa Parks Transit Station as the JTA’s main downtown bus transfer facility, serving most JTA regular and express bus routes, the Skyway and the First Coast Flyer Bus Rapid Transit network. All JTA bus routes will continue to operate on a “modified weekday schedule” to promote social distancing and to ensure safe travel for everyone, the release said. The east half of the Rosa Parks Transit Station will be closed and prepped for future transit-oriented development projects.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – New reports released Thursday in the criminal case of a bus driver accused of running over a passenger allege the JTA driver “ignored the victim’s screams” as she tried to pull her arm out of the bus. Jacksonville Transportation Authority bus driver Jean Silney is now accused of manslaughter in connection with her death. The driver responded “soon.”Rozar then began to curse at the driver, according to investigators. He added that when a JTA driver is operating the bus, there are no radios or music being played. JTA pastSilney had been a driver with JTA since 2007.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – New LED lights will illuminate the Acosta Bridge by this summer, according to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA). You may remember the blue neon system that used to light up the Acosta Bridge. The new color-changing LED system cost $2.6 million and will be installed by Miller Electric, John Finotti spokesman for JTA said last year. Crews test new LED lighting system on the Acosta Bridge. After testing a 48-foot strip of the lights on Tuesday night, JTA said it expects the new LED lighting project to be online by July 4.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Pages and pages of calls for service paint the picture of how much goes on at the busiest bus station in Jacksonville. In less than 2 months – half of the Rosa Parks Transit Station will close down – and Jacksonville Regional Transit Center in LaVilla will become the busiest bus station in Jacksonville. JTA officials have added cameras and added private security guards, but bus operators said they are concerned about safety after learning there might be fewer JSO officers patrolling the grounds. But a sticking point for local union members is JTA is considering decreasing the traditional two JSO officers patrolling the transit station and using more security officers in their place. “The First Coast Security officers are well-trained.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority’s new University Transit Hub on Bowden Road features shelters, benches, bike racks and digital signage with up-to-date scheduling information and ticket sales. The new facility, which opens to customers Friday, includes service for the First Coast Flyer Blue Line, part of the largest Bus Rapid Transit Network in the Southeast United States. The First Coast Flyer is JTA’s premium bus rapid transit service, offering customers a frequent, limited-stop way to get around Jacksonville. The First Coast Flyer provides 10-minute frequencies during peak hours and 15-minute frequencies during non-peak hours in three distinct corridors. The First Coast Flyer Blue Line currently runs from the JTA’s Avenues Walk Park-n-Ride located at 10508 Avenues Walk Blvd.

Jacksonville, Fla. – The term innovation has become a big word in the transportation industry. However, a number of transit agencies are making significant strides where innovation provides the greatest impact for the end user: the pocketbook. With local officials unanimously approving funding to eliminate fares for all bus riders, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) is poised to become the next trendsetter. In early December 2019, the Kansas City city council approved a resolution requiring a set aside to allow riders to use local buses for free, beginning in 2020. Viewed as monumental and meant to reduce barriers to access to people, according to Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, “this is going to improve the lives of so many and help fuel the local economy.”Read full article on ModernCities.com

If you’re looking for some holiday cheer, the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA)The Holiday Bus is back and will be driven by Santa! The bus will feature a custom bus wrap and decorations, Christmas music, candy canes and more. The Holiday Bus will run on a different JTA bus route every weekday until Dec. 24., so be on the lookout for it on your trip! Schedules for JTA bus routes and other transportation services can be found at www.jtafla.com or by calling JTA Customer Service at (904) 631-3100. JTA Customer can call us at (904) 630-3100 if they want to find out where the bus is that day.

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. - Two pedestrians sitting at a bus stop were seriously injured after being struck by a car early Saturday morning on Third Street North in Jacksonville Beach. The car crashed into the JTA bus stop in front of Jacksonville Beach City Hall at 1:40 a.m.Police said a silver Chevrolet collided with a white truck at 1st Avenue North and 3rd Street North. The Chevrolet then veered east, striking the bus stop and the pedestrians. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department blocked off all north and southbound lanes of Third Street between Beach Boulevard and Second Avenue for several hours to investigate the scene. News4Jax is still waiting to learn the names of the pedestrians and the driver of the Chevrolet.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The St. Johns River Ferry is back up and running Friday after being out of service for roughly two weeks. The ferry, which runs between Mayport Village and Fort George Island, underwent emergency repairs because a submerged rope got entangled and damaged the propeller system. As a way of saying thank you for riders' patience during the two weeks the ferry was out of commission, all rides on the ferry Friday are free. The ferry was removed from service July 25 for emergency repairs. According to JTA, as the ferry began to dock at the Fort George slip early that morning, the ferry operations team reported hearing an unusual noise and halted service.