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Buying Bee-Line tickets and passes is twice as easy as it was two years ago, thanks to some smart thinking on the part of Westchester County. "In 1996 we had 70 vendors selling our transit passes," said Edith Donenfeld, Program Administrator at Westchester County Department of Transportation. "Now we have about 135!"

The boom in Bee-Line fare media vendors came when the County began outsourcing mail order fulfillment and transit pass distribution to a private company in April 1996. The outsourcing move increased the County's capacity to respond to fare media demand, and enabled more efficient distribution to a larger number of vendors. Using an outside company also allowed the County to sell ticket books through vendors, in addition to the monthly passes.

"The near doubling in the number of vendors selling Bee-Line fare media is great for commuters. It means twice the choices about what fare media they can buy and where to buy them. Nearly every vendor (except for two) sells both Bee-Line passes and ticket books," said Barney Peters, Director of Passenger Services for the County.

Monthly Passes

A regular Bee-Line Passport is $50, and it's good on buses within Westchester County, while an Express Pass usable on all buses, including the route serving Manhattan, is $160. Monthly passes do expire, however, at the end of each month, so they offer the best value for commuters who typically use transit daily.

Discount Ticket Books

Ticket books have no expiration date, so they are especially good for commuters who don't take the bus every day. They can only be purchased in a book, however, not as singles. A book of 22 tickets, good for all buses within Westchester County, costs only $25. (A rider paying full fare for those 22 trips would spend $30.80, so the ticket book offers a $5.80 break.) A separate ticket book for the express bus into Manhattan has 10 tickets, and sells for $42.50. (The regular fare on the Manhattan express bus is $5, which means savings of $7.50 for ticket book holders.) Commuters can get the ticket books by mail order or through vendors.

Where to Go

Westchester County publishes a brochure describing available fare media, offering both English and Spanish language versions. Each brochure includes an insert that lists every fare media vendor in the county. Inserts are updated every six to eight weeks. Commuters can get the brochure by calling Westchester County Bee-Line at 914/682-2020. Copies are also available in libraries, on buses, and other public areas. The County also sends a copy of the vendor list out with every mail order. (Internet access to the list is in the works, but is not ready yet.)

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