Iowa City buses will start charging fares again on Monday, June 15, Iowa City Transit (ICT) announced in a written statement. Buses will also begin running on a normal summer schedule on Monday.
“Hours of operation will be 6 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. Monday- Friday, and 6 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Saturdays,” ICT said. “The Downtown Shuttle and Eastside Loop, which typically do not run during the summer, will not resume until the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Community School District are in session.”
Iowa City does not provide bus service on Sundays.
The city’s bus service switched to its limited Spring Break schedule on March 30, as ridership dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic. ICT had suspended fares 11 days earlier, and made other changes in response to the spread of the virus, such as asking riders to wear face masks, practice social distancing at bus stops, and to enter and exit buses via the rear door.
ICT is still asking riders to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, but will require them to enter buses at the front of the vehicle.
In its statement, ICT listed three steps it has taken to limit the spread of COVID-19.
1. Transit will continue to perform deep cleaning and sanitization of buses and transit facilities multiple times per day.
2. Plastic barriers have been installed near the driver area to promote social-distancing and better separate the driver area from the rest of the bus.
3. Bus drivers will be wearing masks and/or face shields to protect the public and themselves.
Time and route information for the Iowa City bus schedules starting on June 15 will be available online.
“We expect the Transit App and Bongo to reflect the updated routes as of Monday, June 15; however, Google Maps/Google Transit may take additional time to reflect the updated schedule,” ICT said.
