Sarasota County Area Transit
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| Founded | 1979 |
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| Headquarters | 5303 Pinkney Ave |
| Locale | Sarasota County, FL |
| Service type | bus service, paratransit |
| Routes | 24 |
| Fuel type | Diesel, Diesel-electric hybrid |
| Chief executive | Rocky Burke |
| Website | SCAT |
Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT) provides public transportation for Sarasota County, Florida and is operated by the county. SCAT maintains 24 fixed-line bus routes plus a dial-a-ride paratransit service (SCAT Plus). Bus service is offered throughout Sarasota County from 5am until midnight 7 days a week. There is no service on most major holidays, with the Longboat Trolley being the only exception. However, trolley service does not run on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day.
Fare Structure
Fixed Route
- Single ride $1.25
- Discounted Single ride 60ยข (Must have a SCAT Gold or Medicare card)
Express Route
- Single ride one way $2.50
- Discounted Single ride one way $1.25 (Must have a SCAT Gold or Medicare card)
Unlimited Ride Passes
- 30-Day Passport $50
- 7-Day Passport $20
- Discounted 30-Day Passport $25 (Must have a SCAT Gold or Medicare card)
- Discounted 7-Day Passport $10 (Must have a SCAT Gold or Medicare card)
- Day Pass $4
- R-Card $60 (Regional 30 day card for use in both Sarasota and Manatee Counties)
- Discounted R-Card $30 (Must have SCAT Gold, Manatee Mobility or Medicare card)
Express Ride Pass
- 30-Day Passport $85
- Discounted 30-day Passport $42.50 (Must have a SCAT Gold or Medicare card)
Transfers
SCAT will offer MCAT transfers ONLY on Route 99 for those boarding at or north of the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport. Transfer fare is subject to the MCAT fare schedule.
SCAT Plus
- Single ride $2.50
SCAT Bus Routes
SCAT operates 24 different local bus routes, servicing as far south as Venice, North Port and Englewood. Additionally, SCAT operates two joint routes with Manatee County Area Transit (MCAT); the Longboat Trolley route 18, and route 99 (Sarasota/Bradenton Connector).
In April 2011, SCAT introduced its first express route between North Port & Downtown Sarasota .
- 1-Fruitville
- 1A-Fruitville via McIntosh
- 2-Coconut Avenue/Airport
- 3-Pinecraft
- 4-Lido
- 5-Osprey-Swift
- 6-Beneva
- 7-Newtown NE Plaza
- 8-Newtown 301
- 9-North Port
- 10-Siesta Village
- 11-Siesta Key
- 12-North Lockwood
- 13-Venice
- 14-Bee Ridge
- 15-Airport-Cattlemen ( Hourly Service Now Monday-Saturday )
- 16-Englewood-Venice
- 17-Trail
- 18-Longboat
- 20-Toledo Blade
- 28-Toledo Blade
- 29-Glenallen ( Price Blvd./Sumter )
- 30-University
- 33-Pinecraft Limited
- 40-Webber
- 99-Palmetto-Sarasota Connector (Together with MCAT)
- 100x-North Port/Downtown Sarasota Express via I-75: 90x North Port/Venice Island/Downtown Sarasota Express via I-75
Late-Night and Sunday Service
Due to growing ridership demand, SCAT introduced late-night and Sunday service on select routes in 2007. Of the 11 routes selected for this service modification, two (6 & 12) run as standalone routes, while the rest are "combined" routes. Route 9S was added in November 2009
- 2/15-Cocoanut - SRQ Airport - University Parkway
- 14/11-Siesta Key -Lake Sarasota- ( New Hourly Service as of Nov. 1st 2009 )
- 17/13-U.S. 41 to Jacaranda Southgate, Sarasota Pavilion, Sarasota Square, Venice Train Depot- ( New Hourly Service as of Nov. 1st. 2009 )
- 8/5/17-Tallevast - Sarasota Memorial Hospital
- 12-North Lockwood Ridge University Parkway to Wal-Mart
- 6-Beneva Westfield Sarasota Square Mall
- 9S-North Port via US 41
Fleet
SCAT maintains a fleet of Gillig buses, including ten hybrid BRT buses that the agency purchased in 2006. SCAT also has a contigency fleet of Orion I and Orion V buses.
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Gillig Phantom 35ft
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Gillig Low Floor 35ft
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Gillig Hybrid BRT 35ft
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Orion I 35ft (Contingency fleet)
Not pictured
- 35 Foot Orion V
- 30 Foot Gillig Low Floor BRT Hybrid
- 40 Foot Gillig Low Floor BRT Coach (used for express routes)
Future plans
SCAT is currently laying out the future of Sarasota County public transit with the following projects.
Bus Rapid Transit
SCAT began planning out bus rapid transit (BRT) service along US 41 from Sarasota/Bradenton International Airport to downtown Sarasota, with possible links south of the area. The project is currently in the early planning stages, with no funding allocated at the moment. However, the agency is seeking federal financial assistance for the project.
References and external links
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