JAMAICA Urban Transit Company Limited (JUTC) has announced the launch of a new weekday route, #504, which will operate between Chapelton and May Pen in Clarendon, starting Wednesday, February 5.

In a release on Monday, JUTC said this service will enhance connectivity for commuters in Clarendon, providing an affordable and safe transportation option along the Chapelton-May Pen corridor.

The new route will serve passengers travelling via Turners and New Longsville, offering a regular service operated from the Spanish Town Depot. Commuters will benefit from an affordable fare structure of adults: $100 while using a SmartFare card and $150 if paying in cash. Seniors and students will pay $50 with a SmartFare card or $150 if paying cash, the State-owned bus company said.

JUTC’s Corporate Communications Manager Shantole Thompson said the new route emphasises the company’s commitment to improving public transportation services across the island.

“The introduction of Route #504 is a direct response to the needs of our commuters in Clarendon. We remain steadfast in our mission to provide safe, efficient, and affordable transportation for all Jamaicans. This new service will undoubtedly benefit residents by offering more flexibility and convenience in their daily travels,” said Thompson.

In the meantime, Carla Barrett-Morris, service planning manager at JUTC, said this new route is a part of the company’s ongoing efforts to expand its reach beyond the boundaries of the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region, in keeping with the expressed desire of Minister of Transport Daryl Vaz.

“The company’s medium- to long-term vision is to see commuters in other parishes benefit from safe, reliable and more affordable transportation, and to also play its part in the development of a more disciplined public transportation system islandwide,” said Barrett-Morris.

JUTC said it is encouraging passengers to take advantage of the new service and is reminding them that using their SmartFare ensures the best fares.

Last July Vaz, during a media briefing in Ocho Rios, St Ann, had committed to extending JUTC service to May Pen in Clarendon; Linstead and Bog Walk in St Catherine; and Albion, St Thomas.

He had said that with the coming into being of the world-class highway system across Jamaica, it is important that the country does not place reliance on route taxis to provide mass transport of citizens on highways, saying “it is both counter-productive and risky”.

“The JUTC must put itself in a position to deliver on this public good, and I intend to see to that,” said Vaz as he underscored his previously stated commitment to improve the public transportation system for students in rural Jamaica.

Last December JUTC began operations in St Thomas with four buses, two each assigned to the Morant Bay-to-Kingston and Yallahs-to-Kingston routes.