JAC fares available at library starting Monday

Tickets and passes to ride Jump Around Carson, Carson City's bus system, will be available at the Carson City Library beginning Monday.

It's an appropriate location because hundreds of people visit the library each day to borrow books or use computers, said Andi Moore, the library's community relations coordinator.

"It will make the library more accessible to people who don't have private transportation" and those who are energy-conscious who walk or bicycle, she said.

JAC measured its highest number of users yet in March: 7,613. And JAC Assist, bus service geared toward disabled users, had almost 1,800 riders the same month, said Patrick Pittenger, the city's transportation manager.

"Ridership continues to climb," he said. "It's going in the right direction."

The fixed-route bus service began operating in October 2005 and provided rides for free during that first month. Only 3,200 riders used it in November 2005. While word-of-mouth and more aggressive promotion have helped increase use, so has the addition of more places where tickets and passes can be purchased.

Tickets and passes used to be available only at City Hall and the transit office. Riders can pay in change when they get on the bus, but long-term passes are now available for reduced cost at other locations: The Treasurer's office, City Hall, 201 N. Carson St.; City Transit Operations, 3303 Butti Way; bookstore, Western Nevada Community College, 2201 West College Parkway; and Carson City Senior Center, 901 Beverly Dr.

The JAC bus costs $1 a ride for adults and youth, and 50 cents for seniors and the disabled.

Four replacement buses should arrive by June. The buses now in use seat 12 passengers. The move is partially to allow for its expanding ridership, he said.

Three of these will be used on the routes and offer 16 seats, better air conditioning and heat, a smoother ride and more visible route numbers on the fronts and right sides because the displays will be electronic. The fourth will be modified and used for JAC Assist because it has a wheelchair lift, Pittenger said.

• Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.

For your information

To learn about Jump Around Carson, JAC, the city's bus service, call 841-RIDE (841-7433) weekdays 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

On the Net

JAC also launched a new Web site:

www.rideJAC.com.