Manatee bus service will expand from Saturday

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) — Manatee County Area Transit is adding more buses to two busy routes, starting Saturday, Dec. 4, officials said Friday.

Route 99, which connects Manatee and Sarasota counties via US 41, will increase frequency of service during peak hours between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. MCAT and SCAT buses will operate on the new schedule, with buses arriving every 20 minutes during these hours. peak periods instead of every 30 minutes.

Route 2, which serves eastern Bradenton and Samoset, will double service on weekdays, with buses arriving every 30 minutes instead of once an hour, between 5:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

The modifications are made possible by a grant from the Florida Department of Transportation and seed funding from the Manatee County Department of Redevelopment and Economic Opportunity.

Additional changes to two other routes will come into effect on Saturday.

For Route 3, which serves the Manatee Avenue corridor between I-75 and the Manatee County public beach, late-night buses will now depart from the downtown station at 8:15 p.m. and 8:50 p.m. Eastbound trips from Manatee Beach will now depart at 8:35 p.m. and 9:10 p.m.

Route 12, serving State Road 70, will push the last departure from DeSoto Station to 6:35 p.m. on weekdays.

Any changes to MCAT route schedules will be available on each bus and online at //www.mymanatee.org/MCAT. Passengers can also call the MCAT Rider Information Line at 941-749-7116 for more information.

department transportation