Mobay Metro Reports Increase in Ridership in September

Montego Bay Metro Company Limited has seen an increase in ridership during the first three weeks in September 2024 when compared with the corresponding period last year.

Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport, Hon. Daryl Vaz, made the disclosure in a statement in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (September 24).

He said the expansion of the Montego Bay Metro fleet, which serves commuters in Western Jamaica, is having a positive impact.

Twelve additional buses have been allocated to Montego Bay Metro, bringing the region’s fleet to 18.

“We have seen a 35 per cent increase in the number of students transported [over] this period when compared to 2023, a 24 per cent increase in the number of seniors transported, and a 31 per cent increase in the number of adults transported,” Minister Vaz informed.

“A total of 58,185 Jamaicans were transported during September 2024 when compared to the 40,199 during the same period for 2023. This is the type of impact that we want to replicate across other constituencies, and I assure you that this will remain my priority,” he added.

Minister Vaz noted that the 200 per cent increase in the Montego Bay Metro fleet has extended public transportation to more rural students.

“Teachers, students and staff from Hopewell High, Irwin High, Muschett High, and Spot Valley High can now [access] public transportation to their respective schools and back. For the first time, nine school routes are now served within rural Jamaica by the Montego Bay Metro Fleet,” he informed.

“It is important to note that there are other schools in Montego Bay that are also benefiting greatly from the expansion. These include Mount Alvernia High School, Herbert Morrison High, Montego Bay High, Montego Bay Community College, and St. James High. That’s 14 schools onboarding to the public transportation system as a result of the efforts of this Administration,” he added.

Montego Bay Metro is also assisting in transporting students of Barracks Road Primary to the Faith Temple Assemblies of God, where classes are being temporarily held while the school building, which was damaged during Hurricane Beryl, is being refurbished.

The Minister informed that, so far, 1,521 students have been shuttled, with little or no learning loss.

“This adds to the tremendous impact that the Montego Bay Metro is having across Western Jamaica,” he said.

The Government recently acquired 100 new compressed natural gas (CNG) buses, including 10 specially designed units fitted with ramps and amenities for special needs passengers, to serve the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region (KMTR) and Western Jamaica.

The buses arrived in the island in July, ahead of the start of the 2024/25 academic year, which began on September 2.