New Tulsa Transit Route Offered For Free To Help Provide Access To Jobs

As many businesses across Green Country struggle to find employees, Tulsa Transit is hoping to make transportation to some jobs a little easier.

"There's a lot of people who are transit-reliant who need the bus to get to and from,” said Drew Myers, marketing coordinator for Tulsa Transit. “That could be their only hold up for not getting a job is just they can't get there on time."

Starting this week, people in Tulsa can take their Workforce Express Network Route 969 for free.

Myers said their goal is to help people get good jobs who may not have access to transportation.

"They're hiring like $15 an hour, $16 an hour,” said Myers. “These are well paying jobs."

The route is completely paid for by CARES act funding and Myers said its important especially as businesses struggle to hire people because of the labor shortage.

Running twice a day during peak business hours, it picks riders up along Pine and Peoria, and takes them to 76th Street North and the 169 corridor. It drops them off at businesses and warehouses like Macy's, Milo's Tea, Amazon, Whirlpool and others.

"It actually goes out in the morning and it doesn't run all day,” said Myers. “Just runs the two shift times in the morning and then it comes back in the afternoon."

Myers said they're keeping the route free until the end of the year since they expect ridership to pick up even more during the fall, as people take seasonal jobs for the holidays.

The route starts at Quaker and North 65th at 4 a.m. and again at 5:45 a.m. It returns at 3:32 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.

You can find more information here.