DART bus in downtown Des Moines. — Courtney Guein/Little Village

If you don’t already have a library card, Central Iowa library locations are partnering up with DART to give you another reason to get one.

The Read and Ride program returns this week, offering free DART services to people who show their library cards while boarding a DART bus. The free rides are available for library cardholders Sept. 11-17 and are valid for local and express routes. Patrons can also access free On-Call services.

According to Aaron Gernes of the Des Moines Public Library, the program has been successful in the past and the library is looking forward to partnering with DART again this year.

“If people want to take advantage of it, they can go to any of the participating libraries — be sure you sign up for a library card,” he said. “It’s pretty simple.”

The participating libraries include: Clive Public Library, Johnston Public Library, Urbandale Public Library, Des Moines Public Library and West Des Moines Public Library.