Seymour is expanding its public transit bus service to two locations outside city limits.
As of today, city buses now will take passengers to and from appointments at the new Family Medical Center on North State Road 11 in Rockford and travel to Sycamore Springs Apartments off of U.S. 31 just south of the city.
Mayor Matt Nicholson made the announcement Monday evening during the Seymour City Council meeting.
The city has worked out special exceptions for the two locations with the Indiana Department of Transportation, which funds 70% of the operation of Seymour’s transit service with federal and state transit money. The remaining 30% comes from the city.
“We’ve been going back and forth trying to find a solution to the problem because historically, we’ve always been told we can’t go outside of town,” Nicholson said.
Both locations are just 2,400 feet from where the buses have had to stop in the past, he said.
“So it’s not a huge change, but it does allow us to be able to serve more people,” he said.
Councilman Bret Cunningham said it was “good news” for the city.
The bus service is available to anyone in Seymour and is most used by senior citizens, physically challenged residents who are in wheelchairs and those without transportation.
Buses travel back and forth across the city on a regular route and will pick up people at home or at work. The service is available to those who need a ride to the store, to a doctor’s appointment, to get to work or just to go visit a friend.
There are three ways to pay for rides, either with exact change, tokens or a monthly pass. The cost is $2 per ride one way, tokens are 10 for $16 or a monthly pass can be purchased for $25.
The buses operate from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday. Riders must call 812-522-7433 to schedule a pickup. Rides must be scheduled before 4 p.m. for the next day.
Those wishing to ride every day or once every week can make a standing reservation.
Also during Monday’s meeting, the council voted 6-0 to file a grant application to INDOT for transit operating funds for the year, which includes a federal allocation of $264,642 and $71,763 in state funding, which helps make up the city’s match so Seymour is only paying for 30% of the transit operations.
Councilman Chad Hubbard was absent from the meeting.
Eric Frey with Administrative Resources association helped the city write the grant application.
“It’s a pretty amazing deal when you realize you only have to come up with about 30% of the funding to operate this transit system,” he said.
The city also receives revenue from those who use the buses; however, that revenue was down last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Obviously, ridership was down because of COVID, but I get the impression that it’s trending back up,” he said. “Transit is starting to pick up as people are starting to get out again, and it’s nice to see that.”
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To schedule a ride with Seymour Transit, call 812-522-7433. Rides must be scheduled by 4 p.m. for the following day.
Operating hours are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday. There is no service available on the weekends.
Standing reservations can be made for people wanting to ride every day or once every week.
The cost is $2 per one-way ride. Passengers must have exact change.
Rider tokens are available at a price of $16 for 10 tokens.
A monthly pass may be purchased for $25 at Seymour City Hall, 301-309 N. Chestnut St. Passes can be used as many times during the month as the rider needs. They are available one week prior to the end of the month for the following month.
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