Paducah Area Transit System - An Underused Resource

When you drive around Paducah and surrounding areas you will soon discover multiple vehicles marked with the giant PATS logo. These are the representatives of the Paducah Area Transit System, an incredibly affordable way to get around the Paducah Kentucky area.

Several buses travel to multiple points in Paducah, including the McCracken County Library, the court house, the Senior Citizens Center, main Post Office, the Social Security Administration office, Kentucky Oaks Mall, various residential areas and other places too numerous to mention. There are even InterCity bus routes serving such places as Mayfield, Calvert City, Wickliffe, Benton, and other local provinces!

They have Dial-A-Ride service for door-to-door transportation, and even transport Medicaid members to and from doctor's appointments with a reservation!

Rates are very reasonable, especially in this age of high fuel prices and bumper-to-bumper traffic. An adult one-way ticket costs a single dollar, and a book of ten tickets can be purchased for a mere $6. Students and seniors ride for the low fare of $0.50 - that's right - fifty cents. Inter-city and Dial-A-Ride cost a bit more, but still much less than the cost of renting a car or hiring a taxi, and the downtown trolley is totally free!

The main office for the Paducah Area Transit System is located on 850 Harrison Street in Paducah, KY. Their phone numbers are (270) 444-8700 or toll free (877) 828-7287. Call them and they will be happy to provide you with bus routes, schedules and rate information.

One special thing to note about the Paducah Area Transit System is the fact that there are very few "official" bus stops, which gives the rider an incredible benefit! The drivers are constantly on the lookout for passengers, so if you want to ride just head to their bus route and flag them down! They are happy to pull over and take you wherever you want to go!

For instance just today I had to pick up my van from Paducah Ford. I initally planned to take the Green Line from the SouthSide WalMart to the bus station on Harrison Street to transfer to the Yellow Line which runs right past Paducah Ford. However I miscalculated the arrival time of the Green line and the first bus to arrive was the Express to the Mall. Looking on my map I saw that the Express intercepted the Yellow Line near the mall, and asked the driver for advice! She immediately radioed the Yellow Line driver and made arrangements to coordinate the transfer with NO wait time, and the driver of the Yellow Line bus was kind enough to drop me off as close to the service department as he could get on his route! That is service, and thanks to those drivers it took less time than if I had followed my initial plan!

However, the Paducah Area Transit System needs your help. As the drivers explained to me, if it were not for State and Federal funding they would not be able to provide the invaluable service that they do, and they do not have enough of a passenger load to enable them to have bus routes later than 6:30 in the evenings. With more ridership they would be able to expand their schedules, enabling even more to use their wonderful service.

If you live in Paducah or the surrounding areas, why not give the Paducah Area Transit System a try? You will be able to rest easy, leave the driving in the hands of experts, save wear and tear on any vehicles you own, reduce traffic and congestion while helping keep this priceless resource alive!

Sources:

http://www.paducahtransit.com/index.html

Personal experience