KINGSTON, Jamaica – Transport Minister Mike Henry has given the green light for a limited reopening of 436 Route Taxi and 48 Rural Stage Carriage routes across the Island, as of next Wednesday.

In a statement from the ministry, today, Henry said the routes are being made available by the Transport Authority in order to satisfy the increasing demand for public transportation services in rural Jamaica.

These routes include 18 newly created routes for Route Taxis and 2 Rural Stage Carriage (bus) Routes.

Applications for these routes will remain open until October 13.

Henry said the opening of the routes follows an island-wide review of the demand and supply for public transportation by the Transport Authority.

This, he said, took into consideration recent housing developments in some areas and several requests from Route Taxi Associations and commuters for underserved routes.

Some of the new routes include Charles Town to Kinloss, Trelawny, Lionel Town to Longville Park, Clarendon, and Port Antonio to Belleview, Portland. The complete list of open routes will be published in the print media, this weekend.