JTA begins service on First Coast Flyer Orange Line

Sept. 29, 2021

The 13-mile BRT route now brings JTA’s BRT system to 58 miles, which is the largest in the Southeast U.S.

Officials cut the ribbon at a bus stop to mark the opening of JTA's First Coast Flyer Orange Line.

Jacksonville, Fla., transit users can now connect to downtown Jacksonville to Orange Park on the Jacksonville Transportation Authority’s (JTA) newest bus rapid transit (BRT) service: the First Coast Flyer Orange Line, which opened Sept. 27.

The ribbon cutting was attended by officials from the Jacksonville City Council, Clay County Board of Commissioners, Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Region IV Administrator Dr. Yvette Taylor, JTA officials and Dr. John Avendano, president of Florida State College at Jacksonville.

With the opening of the First Coast Flyer's 13 miles of BRT; JTA's total BRT system has grown to 58 miles.

“After more than 10 years of planning, building and opening new routes, the First Coast Flyer Orange Line is finally open, completing our BRT program in Jacksonville,” said JTA Chief Executive Officer Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. during the ribbon cutting. “The Orange Line gives our customers direct access to shopping, college campuses, medical facilities and our entire transportation network at the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla.”

JTA’s BRT system is now the largest in the Southeast United States, spanning 58 miles. The First Coast Flyer Orange Line features 13 branded stops and stations in both directions with real-time passenger information, premium amenities, onboard Wi-Fi, traffic signal priority at busy intersections and segments of bus only lanes.

The inaugural line of the First Coast Flyer service, the Green Line, opened in 2015, followed by the Blue Line in 2016 and the Red Line in 2018.

The $33 million Orange Line project is part of a $138 million BRT program that began in 2014 with the ground breaking of the First Coast Flyer Green Line. FTA provided $90 million in grant funding, along with the Florida Department of Transportation, which provided $24 million in state match to JTA’s local investment.