Santa Claus is coming to town aboard the RTA’s Holiday Bus

(DAYTON, OHIO) – Oh, what fun it is to ride on the Greater Dayton RTA! The holiday spirit has taken over the RTA and that includes this year’s Holiday Bus, which will debut on Friday, Nov. 24, during the Dayton Holiday Festival’s Grande Illumination and Dayton Children’s Parade.

The 2023 bus is coated in a candy cane theme featuring red, white and green stripes. It also highlights several religious celebrations, including Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, along with New Year’s Eve, the winter solstice and National Hard Candy Day.

Due to street closures, some reroutes will begin at 3 p.m. affecting Routes 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9, 12 and 43. However, buses will still enter Wright Stop Plaza. From 5-9 p.m., Wright Stop Plaza will be closed, and buses will be boarding and dropping off passengers on Third and Jefferson streets. Riders should ask a transit ambassador if they need assistance finding their bus during this time. The following bus routes will experience bus stop closures downtown and will be rerouted during the parade: 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 43.

The Flyer will also be rerouted due to the parade from 5-11 p.m. All northbound and southbound bus stops along Main Street will be closed, as well as southbound stops along Fifth Street between Patterson Road and Jefferson Street. If you plan on taking The Flyer to the parade, the temporary bus stops are as follows: northbound at Jefferson and Fourth streets, northbound at Jefferson and Second streets, southbound at St. Clair and Second streets, southbound at St. Clair and Fourth streets and southbound at St. Clair and Fifth streets.

After the parade, RTA’s Holiday Bus will circulate along different RTA routes throughout the holiday season until Dec. 31. Santa will make special appearances on the bus throughout the season. If you visit with Santa, share photos with the RTA on social media by tagging @iriderta on Facebook and Instagram.

A complete schedule of the daily routes for the Holiday Bus and Santa’s schedule can be found at iriderta.org/holidaybus.

MEDIA CONTACT:  Jessica Olson (937) 425-8352, Director of Communications and Training