Christmas Day

Please be advised that WRTA will be closed and there will be no bus service on Wednesday, December 25th in celebration of the holiday.

2019 Holiday Bus Schedule

You can look for the WRTA Holiday Bus now through Christmas Eve. All rides on the Holiday Bus are free and it will travel every Fixed Route in our system at least once.

The bus will make its final appearance on New Year’s Eve at downtown Youngstown’s First Night celebration.

Click below to see the full schedule.

2019 Holiday Bus Schedule

For a printable schedule in PDF format, please click here.

WRTA Kicks Off 2019 Holiday Bus with Kids, Santa

WRTA officially launched its 2019 Holiday Bus on Monday morning, November 25, when the bus pulled into the parking lot of the Newport branch of the Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County.

On board was a special passenger: Santa Claus. Excited children, who are students at Alta Head Start, got on the bus for a visit with Santa, whose “throne” was the seat in the back row. Kids also enjoyed refreshments and activities courtesy of WRTA and the Library.

The festively decorated Holiday Bus is designed to bring cheer to children, adults and everyone who will ride it. It made its debut two years ago and was a tremendous hit with riders in 2017 and 2018. This year’s new and enhanced holiday-themed design is carried out both outside and inside of the bus, and holiday music adds to the fun atmosphere.

This year’s Holiday Bus is co-sponsored by WKBN-TV and First National Bank. Officials of both entities joined WRTA Executive Director Dean Harris and the Library’s Director Aimee Fifarek in presenting the bus to the media and children.

The Holiday Bus will travel every WRTA Fixed Route at least once from Friday, November 29 through Christmas Eve Day, and Santa will be on-board for all runs. (You can view the full bus schedule below.)

All rides on the WRTA Holiday Bus will be free.

2019 Holiday Bus Schedule

For a printable schedule in PDF format, please click here.

EZfare Brings Mobile Ticketing to WRTA

You can now purchase multi-ride passes for WRTA Fixed Route buses on your smartphone with the EZfare app, and then simply show the bar code on your phone to the WRTA driver. No cash or physical pass needed!

Once you’ve downloaded the EZfare app from the App Store or Google Play and set up your account, you can buy Adult Day Passes, Multi-Ride Tickets and Adult 31-day Passes through the EZfare app. Please note that EZfare cannot be used to purchase single, one-ride fares.

Click this link to learn how to download the EZfare app and set up your account.

YOUride Expands Service Area, Offers FREE Rides

Those using WRTA’s new YOUride service now have even more destinations they can be taken to or picked up from. And YOUride is being offered FREE during the introductory period.

The YOUride service area has been expanded; it now encompasses as far as Starrs Corners in Canfield Township to the west, the Poland Giant Eagle in Poland Township to the east, and Western Reserve Road to the south.

YOUride, a shared-ride service, can now take riders not only to destinations that are not a convenient walking distance from a WRTA Fixed Route, but also into areas that aren’t served by any Fixed Route bus.

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Some common ways you might use YOUride

If your job is located a substantial distance from where your WRTA Fixed Route bus stops and you START or LEAVE work between 6:30 and 10:30 pm.

When you’re GOING to work, you can request a YOUride to pick you up where your bus stops and and bring you right to the door of your job. When you LEAVE work between 6:30 and 10:30 pm, request a YOUride to pick you up at your place of employment and bring you to a WRTA Fixed Route. 

When you want to dine, shop or run other errands within the service area between 6:30 and 10:30 pm.

Just take a WRTA Fixed Route Bus to the service area and request a YOUride to pick you up. You’ll be dropped off right at the door of any supermarket, department store, medical center, restaurant or other location in the service area. When you’re done shopping or running errands, request another YOUride to pick you up at your location and bring you to a WRTA Fixed Route.

If you want to travel ANYWHERE within the service area between 6:30 and 10:30 pm.

Whether it’s your home, your job, a store, a restaurant, a hotel or any other location — YOUride will get you there! As long as your pick-up point and destination are within the service area, you can request a YOUride.

 

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Getting started with YOUride

To use YOUride, you must download the TransLoc smartphone app from the App Store (iPhone) or Google Play (Android). The TransLoc app is the only way you can request a YOUride.

A map of the expanded YOUride service area is below. For more information, visit the YOUride page on this website.

YOUride Service Area

 

No Bus Service from 10:00–11:00 am — Friday, October 4

In order to allow our drivers to attend funeral services for former WRTA Executive Director Jim Ferraro, WRTA buses that leave from Federal Station at 10:10 am and 10:40 am will not operate on Friday, October 4.

Please check the WRTA schedule for the bus you plan to ride during this time frame to see how it will be affected.

Normal service will resume with the 11:10 am and 11:40 am buses on that day.

YOUride Service Comes to Boardman

WRTA is testing a new service in Boardman that will make it easier for shoppers and others to get around within the Rte. 224 retail corridor from the West Blvd. Giant Eagle to Tiffany Blvd. and the South Ave. Walmart.

YOUride is an on-demand, rider-scheduled small-bus service that can used to get to several different retail stores within the service area without having to wait for a Fixed Route bus. Or, if you work in Boardman and need to connect with a major Fixed Route hub such as the Southern Park Mall or Walmart in order to get you to your job or home after your shift is complete, YOUride can get you there. And those who are staying at one of the motels south of Rte. 224 can take YOUride to restaurants, stores or any other location within the service area.

Rides can be scheduled only via the TransLoc smartphone app, which you can download from Google Play or the App Store. Once you’ve registered and scheduled your first ride, you’ll see the approximate time when your YOUride bus will arrive, and you’ll be able to follow its progress in real time on a map within the app.

YOUride service is available between 6:30 pm and 10:30 pm Monday through Friday within the service area shown on the map below. The YOUride introductory fare is just $1.00 per ride!

If you’d like more information or have questions about YOUride, call (330) 744-8431 or visit our YOUride page on this website.

 

 

Transfers Will Be Eliminated as of September 3

Effective Tuesday, September 3, transfers will no longer be sold or accepted for WRTA bus rides.

The cost of two regular Adult fares (to and back from a destination) plus two transfers was $3.00, and the transfers were good for a limited time for one ride only.

Now for that same cost ($3.00), riders can purchase an Adult Day Pass and ride as many WRTA buses as they choose within a single day. Seniors and persons with disabilities can purchase a Day Pass at the reduced rate of $1.50.

An Adult Day Pass allows you to take an unlimited number of bus rides on any fixed route bus in the WRTA system on the day you purchase it. Transfers will no longer be needed in order to transfer from one bus route to another. You simply pay one price to get to and back from any destination in the WRTA fixed route system on that day, no matter how many different rides it takes.

Day Passes are only sold by WRTA drivers, and must be requested as soon as riders board the bus. In the near future, Day Passes will be sold at Federal Station.

New Route Added, Two Routes Improved

WRTA has added a new (Route #24 Midlothian Loop) and improved Route #5 South and Route #25 Boardman-Canfield Loop to better serve the community.

Here are the new schedules that are now in effect:

 

 

Effective Aug. 12 – New Drop-off/Pick-up Point at Southern Park Mall

As of Monday, August 12, WRTA buses will pick up and discharge passengers from a new location at the Southern Park Mall. Effective that date, our buses will no longer stop at the curb near the entrance to Sears. The Mall is requiring that WRTA buses now stop at a location opposite PNC Bank, across the north-south access road that runs between the main and Stadium Drive mall entrances (see map).

A shelter will be built at the new bus stop. This action is the result of new construction that will take place at the former Sears location and is being mandated by the Southern Park Mall. WRTA was not involved in this decision.