Citrus Connection Adds New Routes, Seeks Feedback Via Public Input Survey

The Citrus Connection is moving ahead with a new program to connect Florida Southern College with downtown Lakeland. They also have a survey open until November 30 to get input to help the mass transit system move forward with services the community desires. 

New Services

The Squeeze is a free golf cart shuttle service that operates in downtown Lakeland from 4 to 11 p.m. Fridays and 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays, that began serving FSC on Nov. 15, 2024. It “provides service to students wishing to travel to downtown Lakeland,” David Walters, Citrus Connection’s Manager of Marketing and Communications, wrote in a press release. 

“The move to add a stop to FSC was spurred by a partnership between Citrus Connection and the college’s administration team,” he wrote. “The Squeeze will assist in bringing the great students of FSC to enjoy the vitality and variety of local businesses and events in downtown Lakeland.” 

The FSC Squeeze will pick students up at the existing shuttle stop in front of the ROTC building. In turn “providing safe and easy access to the route,” Walters wrote. 

The Squeeze is the first Public Transit Golf Cart program in the U.S. It uses eight-person, street legal golf carts to provide free transit to downtown Lakeland and the RP Funding Center. The transit agency also has weekday service in Lakeland and Lake Wales from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and in Bartow from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Full routes can be found at www.ridecitrus.com. 

“On behalf of the entire Citrus Connection team, we are thrilled to partner with Florida Southern College to provide safe, fun and free golf cart transportation to all that Lakeland has to offer downtown on the weekend,” said Citrus Connection General Manager Tom Phillips. 

Citrus Connection Collaboration

The Lakeland Area Mass Transit District provides public transit in Polk County under the Citrus Connection umbrella. That includes all public transportation within the county, including Winter Haven Area Transit, rural routes serving Bartow, Fort Meade and Frostproof, as well as all paratransit service. 

For years, each agency operated independently. Now, they are working together to bring riders a seamless experience as part of a top-rate transit system. That includes adding new services like the Florida Southern stop. 

“We’ve been working on a partnership with Florida Southern that would be meaningful to both parties,” said Erin Killebrew Kinlaw, Citrus Connection’s Director of External Affairs. 

With the new program, everyone benefits, including economic development, Killebrew Kinlaw said. 

“Citrus Connection is vastly supported by the community we serve,” she said. “In order to give back to our customer base, we try to tie in fast, frequent and fun services to draw citizens into markets that benefit local businesses. In this case, downtown Lakeland. It exposes students who may not be from our community, or students who have not utilized public transportation before, to all we have to offer without relying on a car or friend.” 

Public Input Survey

Always looking for ways to improve, Citrus Connection is also seeking community input. Until Nov. 30, residents can participate in a survey at https://survey123.arcgis.com/share/070e1d53a57c440f8a57fbcebc065611 

“The survey provides the public and stakeholders with the opportunity to give us feedback on improvements they would like to see to the service Citrus Connection provides,” Killebrew Kinlaw said. “These will be incorporated into recommendations for proposed and priority projects in the 10-year Major Transit Development Plan.”  

The survey asks residents whether they use the public mass transit system. And, if they do, where they go – work, shopping, medical centers, religious institutions, etc. It also seeks information for the future, asking what riders think the top improvements should be for the next 10 years. Among the options: 

• More frequent bus service 
• Regional express 
• SunRail to Polk County 
• Brightline service through Polk County 
• Direct connections/feeder services to future rail stations 
• More weekend service, and more. 

As part of the survey, it also asked what the top capital investments/technology improvements should be added in the next 10 years. Among the options:  

• Adding Wi-Fi on buses 
• Adding “stop” announcements on buses 
• Improving bus stop amenities (shelters, bike storage, etc.) 
• Replacing diesel-powered buses with electric and other alternate-fuel vehicles. 

Public Workshop

Citrus Connection also held a Nov. 6 workshop to get feedback for the 10-year Transit Development Plan that is under review. 

The Florida Legislature approved the Florida Public Transit Block Grant Program to provide a stable source of state funding for public transportation, “The Block Grant Program requires public transit service providers to develop and adopt a 10-year Transportation Development Plan, … (which is) a strategic guide for public transportation in the community over the next decade and represents the transit agency’s vision for public transportation in its service area during this period,” Killebrew Kinlaw said.

Citrus Connection is working with the Transportation Planning Organization to update the 10-year plan. Their goal is to align with the work the regional board is doing. It expects the plan to be finished in March 2026.  

Before then, Citrus Connection will continue to serve its ridership, adding new programs and routes as needed. “While we have not yet fully recovered from COVID ridership has been steadily increasing in the past three years,” Killebrew Kinlaw said.