Chautauqua Area Regional Transit System

The Chautauqua Area Regional Transit System, also known previously as the Chautauqua Area Rural Transit System is a public transport carrier, with services focused on Chautauqua County in the state of New York. Service has been provided for since 1977. In the fall of 2017, CARTS celebrated 40 years of transportation coverage to Chautauqua County.

Originally, services were provided to the rural areas of Chautauqua County, with Mayville, Jamestown and Dunkirk/Fredonia as connecting points between routes. Today, service is still comprised of regional routes, servicing most areas of Chautauqua County, but city bus services for the cities of Jamestown, and Dunkirk, NY began being offered, since the discontinuation and dissolving of the Jamestown Area Regional Transit System in 1996. There was a brief period of no city bus services in Jamestown, while the county worked on negotiations with the driver's union of the past JARTS drivers. This was not a new idea...in 1992, a panel studied merging the two systems into the CARTS system.

Jamestown originated services from the Jamestown Gateway Train Station (formerly Erie Railroad Station or Lackawanna-Erie Railroad Station), however, moved the downtown transfer center to 215 E Third Street (formerly the Ray Nelson service station) since 2018. Since the CARTS system has been operating out of 215 E Third Street, they are working on building a new transfer center on the same site. Dunkirk originating services operate from Dunkirk City Hall on Central Avenue.

In July 2023, the County of Chautauqua will begin the launch of a rebranded system, named CHQ Transit. The launch of the newly branded system will also debut a riders' app, cashless fare system and the introduction of three trolleys to the present fleet.

Routes

• City of Dunkirk -

Red Route

Green Route

• City of Jamestown

Baker (Red)

Falconer (Orange)

Lakewood via Fairmount (Blue)

Lakewood via Jones & Gifford (Teal)

North Main Route (Lavender)

South-West Express (Pink)

Willard (Green)

• Regional routes

East/Southeast County

North County

Northwest County

South County to North County

South County via Rte. 394

South County via Rte. 430

Southwest County

Fares

CARTS operates on an exact fare zone system, in which passengers pay a boarding fare, for the township they have boarded in, and a zone surcharge for each additional town they pass through, to reach their destination. The maximum number of zones to be charged, per trip, is six.

Also, there are four different classifications or fare types. The first (and simplest) fare is the "City/Rural On Route" fare. This is the cheapest, due to the passenger using the services, as scheduled.

The second fare type, "Rural Route-Off Route" is similar to the previous, with the exception that the bus will deviate up to 3/4 of a mile from its normal route to get a passenger closer to their destination.

The third and fourth types, "Dial-a-Ride Curb to Curb", and "Dial-a-Ride Door to Door" are demand-response services, usually involving passengers with mobility issues, or persons unable to use conventional services. "Curb to Curb" would drop off the passenger at their destination without assistance, while the "Door to Door" requires assistance to their door. The most expensive is "Door to Door", approximately five-times the cost of conventional service.

Roster

The CARTS system operates with approximately 33 ADA accessible buses.

Active

Fleet Number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer	Model	Engine	Transmission	Notes
C-317		?	Ford	E-450
C-321		?	Ford	?
C-322		2009	Ford	E-450			VIN # 1FDXE45P76DA53689
C-328		?	Ford	?			Assigned to Jamestown terminal. Internet sighting as of August 2013.
C-329		2007	Ford Coach and Equipment	E-450 Phoenix			VIN 1FDXE45P47DA65025. Assigned to Jamestown terminal Internet sighting as of August 2013.
C-330 to C-335		2009	Ford ElDorado National	E-450 Aerotech			Used on conventional transit routes.
C-336 to C-339		2009	Ford Starcraft Bus	E-450 Allstar
C-340 to C-356 (assumed)		2010	Ford Coach and Equipment	E-450 Phoenix			Used on conventional transit routes.
C-359 to C-364?		2011	Ford	E-Series			VIN 1FDFE4FS2BDB22572
C-365 to C-371?		2016	Ford	E-Series			369 is an E-350 model. 365, 371 are E-450 models.
C-378		2017	Ford	E-Series
min-2		20??					Trolley-styled buses used on seasonal tourist-related routes.

Retired

Fleet Number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer	Model	Engine	Transmission	Notes
101-104		1967	GMC	TDH-3501
122-124		1964	GMC	TDH-3501
125-128		1967	GMC	TDH-4519
134		1966	MCI	MC-5A
394-400		1977	Flxible	35096-6-1	Detroit Diesel 6V71N	Allison V730	Ex-Jamestown Area Regional Transit System 394-400.
500-501		1985	OBI	Orion I (01.507)	Detroit Diesel 6V92TA		Ex-Jamestown Area Regional Transit System 500-501. 501 to Gloversville Transit System 4.

External links

Official Site