Changes to JUTC Shuttle Transfer Routes to Take Effect Monday

In its bid to provide increased travelling options for commuters, come Monday (September 8), the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC), will be implementing a number of changes to its shuttle transfer routes.
Marketing and Sales Manager at the JUTC, Lenworth Simms, explained that as of Monday, commuters who take the 500, 600, 700, and 800 shuttles, will be able to transfer to a number of additional routes. He said that passengers on the 700 bus will now be able to transfer to the 12A, 21, 23A, 32, 42, 44, 46, 47, 49 and 52 routes; the Hill routes 53 and 54; the Barbican route, 74; and the Six Miles route, 75. Currently, the JUTC # 700 shuttle, which goes to Downtown Kingston, via Lyndhurst Road and Slipe Pen Road, only transfers to the # 47 bus.
Commenting on the increased travel options that this initiative will provide commuters, the JUTC Manager said, “Before the 8th, only passengers travelling from route 47 could transfer to the 700. All the passengers from these additional routes are now able to transfer, not only to the 700, but can transfer to the 500 and the 600.”
The 500, 600, and 700 shuttles, he said, all terminate in Downtown Kingston, using different routes. The 500 shuttle runs to Downtown Kingston via Half Way Tree Road, Cross Roads, and Slipe Road, while the 600 goes Downtown via Cross Roads and Heroes Circle.
The 800 Shuttle Transfer route will also have changes. Like the 21 and 12A, the 23A will now be able to transfer to the 800. However, the 900 route will remain the same, with the 50 from Seaview Gardens, the 51 from Hagley Park Road, and the 75 from Six Miles, all continuing to transfer to the 900, which terminates in Papine.
According to the JUTC Marketing and Sales Manager, this initiative forms part of ongoing efforts, to reposition the JUTC brand as an efficient, professional company, that satisfies its customers.
“We are always looking at ways to improve the system and filling the empty seats that are on the buses,” he noted, adding, “it is not fair for a commuter to be waiting on a specific bus, if other buses may be passing by with empty seats that may be filled with this commuter.”
Another aspect of the JUTC’s repositioning strategy, is the use of the JUTC Smart Card. He said that unlike the Premium Service, which went cashless on July 1, the regular system is not, at this point, cashless.However, he is imploring commuters to acquire their Smart Cards, so that they can begin to get accustomed to travelling cashless.
“We (JUTC) offer the commuter a lot more convenience in travelling; we offer them secure travelling. So there is no need to carry cash in the Transport Centre, there is no need to join a ticket line, and you board whatever JUTC bus you want to travel on,” he emphasised.