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. Other connections include JTA bus routes 25, 27 and 50.
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Customers can connect from the above-mentioned bus routes or by walking or biking to the hub.
The JTA held an official ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday with JTA staff, Federal Transit Administration officials, Jacksonville City Council members and other invited guests.
“This project is another example of the JTA taking a blighted piece of property and making it useful for our transit network and our customers,” said JTA CEO Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. “The University Transit Hub is a great amenity for commuters or anyone who wants to get Downtown or other key destinations like the Avenues Mall or MOSH quickly and comfortably."
The JTA acquired the property, near the southwest corner of Philips Highway and Bowden Road, in 2018 and began site clearing and construction in March 2019.
The First Coast Flyer is JTA’s premium bus rapid transit service, offering customers a frequent, limited-stop way to get around Jacksonville. The Flyer includes features like complimentary Wi-Fi and digital signage with the latest news and weather information -- all powered by a new fleet of compressed natural gas buses.
The First Coast Flyer provides 10-minute frequencies during peak hours and 15-minute frequencies during non-peak hours in three distinct corridors. The fourth and final First Coast Flyer route, the Orange Line, opens in early 2021 to connect customers from Orange Park to Downtown Jacksonville.
The First Coast Flyer Blue Line currently runs from the JTA’s Avenues Walk Park-n-Ride located at 10508 Avenues Walk Blvd. to the Rosa Parks Transit Station in Downtown Jacksonville. This service will relocate to the new Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla on Monday, March 30.
For more information about the First Coast Flyer, visit fcf.jtafla.com. For more information on JTA Park-n-Ride facilities and other services visit bit.ly/JTAPark.