City to improve public transportation system

JONESBORO, Ark. (KAIT) – Jonesboro JET will soon add more bus routes, shelter stops, and a new way to get around town.

The Jonesboro Economical Transportation System will begin implementing upgrades this fall.

Director Lee Wells said the goal is to decrease passenger’s wait times.

“All of these things are just benefiting the community as a whole,” Wells said.

JET runs three routes now, but Wells said four new routes will be announced in October.

The city also plans to add a rubber wheel trolley system before the year ends. There will be five trolleys in total, two red and three blue.

Trolleys typically run on electricity with a metal track and an overhead wire, but Wells said the city wants to lower its carbon footprint.

“They are all hybrids which means we’re going to have that decrease in fuel consumption,” Wells said. “It’s better for the environment and the economy.”

The city has two kinds of bus stops. “Bus shelters” are stops with a covered seating area. Others have no seating or cover.

Wells said the city is adding 20 more bus shelters, and improving the ones already in place with extra lighting for safety and a digital message media point.

“To announce when the vehicles will be there,” Wells said.

Jonesboro native Harold Sims rides the bus roughly eight times a week. Sims said the worst part is waiting for it to arrive, but more bus stops with awnings would make it better. He said it depends on the weather.

“That would be nice to provide shelter, of course, if it was raining,” Sims said.

Wells hopes to partner with Arkansas State University to provide free rides to and from campus for students and staff in the future.

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