Passengers carrying excessive personal items or shopping bags on the bus now have the option to purchase transit carts, thanks to an amendment made to the Butler Transit Authority code of conduct at a meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 14.

“It makes it a violation of our code of conduct if you enter the bus with more than two large bags,” solicitor Rebecca Black said. “So we’ve had a lot of issues with this provision, specifically over the last couple of years; people bringing suitcases, and shopping carts and garbage bags full of stuff. It blocks the aisles, it impedes traffic and could potentially create a safety hazard.”

Board directors approved amending the code of conduct. Moving forward, passengers are limited to either one transit authority metal cart or two bags or articles that do not exceed 15-by-18-by-12 inches.

Passengers will be able to purchase carts at a rate of $15 from the terminal on West New Castle Street. The cost to the authority is about $15.

Board directors also approved permanently extending Saturday’s Route 5 schedule to six runs as opposed to four.

“This will not necessitate an additional driver,” executive director John Paul said. “That driver who runs that route on Saturday will be able to perform that and complete all six runs. So that’s what we’re trying to do is to bring a little bit of better service and expansion on Saturday.”

Route 5 runs in the reverse direction of Route 1, and there are several points where both routes intersect, Paul said.

“If (passengers) want to transfer from one bus or pick up the other bus to come back into town, they wouldn’t have to wait a whole hour for it,” he said.

On Nov. 11, two stops were temporarily added to the Route 5 schedule after the administrators of the pop-up Remote Area Medical clinic made the request.

Board directors also agreed to reject all proposals received for contactless fare collection system provider Modeshift and instead pursue a joint procurement with a consortium of other transit agencies.

Pursuing a joint procurement could cut costs for the Butler Transit Authority, Black said.

At this time, the authority uses mobile ticketing software company Token Transit. The agreement with the company expires June 30, 2024, Paul said.

Implementation is planned for the coming spring, he said, and depends on state approval. More details will be shared at the December meeting.

This story was updated Nov. 15 to reflect the price of carts is $15 . A previous version of this story said $10. The authority clarified this Nov. 15 following a Nov. 14 meeting where the cost was said to be $10.