Palm Tran is the public transit bus system run by the Palm Beach County Government, serving Palm Beach County, Florida. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 8,612,200, or about 31,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024. Palm Tran also serves a portion of Broward County, Florida where it overlaps with Broward County Transit. Palm Tran has four main facilities (North Campus in West Palm Beach, South Campus in Delray Beach, Palm Tran Connection/Military Trail and the Belle Glade Facility) with its main headquarters in West Palm Beach on Electronics Way. The current executive director is Clinton B. Forbes.
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| Parent | Palm Beach County |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1971 as (CoTran) later renamed as Palm Tran |
| Headquarters | West Palm Beach, Florida |
| Service type | Bus, paratransit |
| Alliance | Broward County Transit, Tri-Rail, Amtrak, Martin County Transit |
| Routes | 31 |
| Stops | 3,000 |
| Destinations | West Palm Beach Intermodal, VA Medical Center, Boca Town Center Mall, Wellington Mall, Tri-Rail |
| Fleet | 192 |
| Daily ridership | 31,300 (weekdays, Q2 2024)[1] |
| Annual ridership | 8,612,200 (2023)[2] |
| Fuel type | Diesel, diesel-electric hybrid, |
| Chief executive | Ivan Maldonado |
| Website | palmtran |
History
editIn 1971, Florida Transit Management, Inc. began service with 20 buses on seven routes. In 1980, this service was expanded to over 60 buses in 22 routes, then renamed CoTran, short for "County Transportation". Finally, in 1996, CoTran was completely restructured to over 150 buses in over 30 routes, then renamed Palm Tran, its fleet repainted to the present white and teal design scheme, and has been that way since. At that time the basic design of the livery of the buses was changed from white and orange to white and teal, some of which are screen-wrapped to the logos and design of the company that sponsors those particular buses, but preserve their Palm Tran logos and bus numbers, the latter of which are assigned a four-digit number according to the year and order in which they were acquired. Also at that time, Florida Transit Management was replaced with Palm Tran Inc., a nonprofit. Palm Tran will introduce USB charging stations on its newest fleet in early 2017.
On September 30, 2018, Palm Tran implemented the first overhaul to the entire network since 1996. In addition, free Wi-Fi was added on all buses.[3]
Future
editOn April 23, 2019, The Palm Tran broke ground on an expansion project on its South County Facility in Delray Beach, Florida.[4] The current 3,800 Square foot space will be converted into a three-story 34,000 square foot facility.[4] The project is set to cost 25 million, 90 percent of which is federally funded.[4] The facility will feature charging stations for their fleet of fully electric buses; along with service stations for 20 additional buses.[4] The building will feature art by Palm Beach County's Art in Public Places Program.[4]
Rates
editPlexiglass shields on the driver's side are in place, to reduce interaction.
The standard adult one-way fare is $2. People eligible for the reduced fare, such as students, disabled, and senior citizens, pay $1. $5 buys an unlimited 24-hour pass ($3.50 for reduced fare). Daily and 31-day unlimited ride passes are also available for purchase at Palm Tran Connection. There are 31-day unlimited passes that are available reduced or regular costing $55 and $70 respectively. Kids below 9 ride free with fare-paying rider, limit is 3.[5]
Bus technology
editAll Palm Tran buses have bicycle racks on the front, capable of holding two bikes. They are also equipped GPS and video surveillance cameras which record activity on the bus and the outer side facing the bus stops.[6] Recently Palm Tran has equipped all fixed-route buses with automatic vehicle location technology that enables passengers to track buses and bus arrivals in real time. Palm Tran also offers real-time bus arrival information on its website or through its MyStop Mobile app, as well as on-demand through SMS. In October 2018, all 159 fixed route buses started to offer free Wi-Fi to its riders.
Palm Tran announced plans to incorporate new payment methods in addition to cash.[7] The new upgrades will allow the service to accept credit cards and smartphone payments.[7] The upgrade was set to cost between 5 million and 6 million dollars.[7]
Palm Tran Connection
editPalm Tran Connection is a shared ride, door to door, paratransit service that provides transportation for residents and visitors in Palm Beach County under six programs:
- Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Program
- Transportation Disadvantaged (TD) Program
- Division of Senior Services (DOSS) Program
- Board of County Commissioner (BCC) Program
- County Senior Transportation (CSTS) Program
- Medicaid
Palm Tran Connection is operated by private transport companies and oversight is provided through Palm Tran. They travel to every destination in Palm Beach County – from Jupiter to Boca Raton and from Palm Beach to South Bay. Palm Tran Connection schedules all trips, prepares vehicle manifests, handles customer concerns & commendations, determines eligibility, and monitors the performance of the Transportation Providers.
Route list
edit
Routes are divided into four regions within the county.[8]
Main Corridor
editMain Corridor routes traverse the primary north–south surface roads of the county from Boca Raton in the south to Riviera Beach in the north.
| Route | Terminals | Primary streets traveled | Service notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1[8] | Palm Beach Gardens The Gardens Mall |
↔ | Boca Raton Camino Real |
US 1 | |
| 2[8] | West Palm Beach Intermodal Transit Center |
↔ | Boca Raton Town Center Mall |
Congress Avenue | |
| 3[8] | Palm Beach Gardens The Gardens Mall |
↔ | Military Trail | ||
| 4[8] | West Palm Beach Military Crossing |
↔ | Riviera Beach VA Medical Center |
Haverhill Road | |
North County
editNorth County routes mainly serve Palm Beach Gardens, Riviera Beach, and Jupiter.
| Route | Terminals | Primary streets traveled | Service notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10[8] | Palm Beach Gardens The Gardens Mall |
↔ | Jupiter Jupiter Town Hall |
Indiantown Road, Military Trail | No Sunday service |
| 20[8] | ↔ | West Palm Beach Intermodal Transit Center |
Northlake Boulevard, Congress Avenue | ||
| 21[8] | ↔ | Mangonia Park Tri-Rail Station |
US 1, Old Dixie Highway | No Sunday service | |
| 30[8] | Riviera Beach VA Medical Center |
↔ | Singer Island Lake Drive |
Blue Heron Boulevard | |
| 31[8] | ↔ | West Palm Beach Intermodal Transit Center |
45th Street, Tamarind Avenue | ||
| 33[8] | Palm Beach Gardens The Gardens Mall |
↔ | West Palm Beach Cross County Plaza |
Australian Avenue, Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard | |
Central County
editCentral County routes serve West Palm Beach, Wellington, Lake Worth, and Belle Glade.
South County
editSouth County routes mainly serve the cities of Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, and Boca Raton.
| Route | Terminals | Primary streets traveled | Service notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70[8] | Lantana County Public Health |
↔ | Delray Beach Tri-Rail Station |
Seacrest Boulevard | |
| 71[8] | Boynton Beach Lantana Road & Military Trail |
↔ | Boynton Beach Boynton Beach Mall |
Lawrence Road | No Sunday service |
| 73 [9] | Boynton Beach Bethesda Hospital West |
↔ | Boynton Beach Tri-Rail Station |
Boynton Beach Boulevard | |
| 80[8] | Delray Beach Delray Square |
↔ | Delray Beach Plaza at Delary |
Lake Ida Road, SW 4th Avenue | |
| 81[8] | Delray Beach Hagen Ranch Library |
↔ | Delray Beach Atlantic Avenue & SE 6th Street |
Atlantic Avenue | No Sunday service |
| 88[8] | Delray Beach Lakes of Delray |
↔ | Delray Beach Plaza at Delray |
Linton Boulevard, Lowson Boulevard | |
| 91[8] | Boca Raton Sandalfoot Square |
↔ | Boca Raton Florida Atlantic University |
Glades Road | |
| 92[8] | ↔ | Deerfield Beach Hillsboro Boulevard & Federal Highway |
Palmetto Park Road | No Sunday service | |
| 94[8] | Boca Raton Tri-Rail Station |
↔ | Boca Raton Camino Real & Federal Highway |
NW 8th Avenue, NE 20th Street | Serves Florida Atlantic University |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Transit Ridership Report Second Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. September 3, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Home".
- ^ a b c d e "Palm Tran Breaks Ground on its South County Facility Expansion Project". www.MassTransitMag.com. Retrieved 2019-10-22.
- ^ "Your Guide to Palm Tran's QUIK PASS & Fare Information" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-09-16. Retrieved 2008-08-14.
- ^ "MyStop".
- ^ a b c Ostrowski, Jeff. "Palm Tran to move out of 'Dark Ages' by taking credit cards for fares". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 2019-10-22.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae "Rider's Guide" (PDF). Palm Tran. January 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)