Orlando Health, PSTA partner for free employee bus access

For more than 2,000 employees and contractors of Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital, there’s a new way to get to work – or anywhere else, for that matter.

Effective immediately, workers at all Bayfront Hospital locations will have unlimited access to ride all Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) bus routes free of charge, both for work and personal use. This benefit covers both full-time employees and contractors at the main hospital downtown and satellite emergency rooms at Crossroads and Pinellas Park, and includes all PSTA bus routes, including the SunRunner, the popular downtown-to-beach bus rapid transit (BRT) service that rolled out in 2022. 

“We have embraced different opportunities for us to connect with the community, as well as provide a transportation service countywide,” said St. Petersburg Councilmember Deborah Figgs-Sanders, PSTA Chair. “We’re here because we’re grateful to Orlando Health for all the partnerships that we have.”

The new service will be offered under PSTA’s UPass program. UPass allows entities to pay a discounted rate in exchange for unlimited use for their employees, free at the point of service. The 10 year-old UPass adds Orlando Health to a list of partners in the business and non-profit community that includes Pinellas County Schools, HCA Florida, the City of St. Petersburg, and many local universities. 

If you are one of the 2,000 Orlando Health employees – or 153,000 Pinellas County riders – eligible for UPass, there is no process to gain access. Eligible individuals simply present their student or employee ID when boarding a PSTA bus. 

“We’re trying to expand our services to everyone in our community,” said PSTA CEO Brad Miller. 

“This is a powerful way to push back against the affordability crisis.”

Tony Mincey, an OR Aide at Bayfront Hospital, expressed excitement at the new employee benefit. “It’s a benefit for me for going to the doctor, going to work every day, and going to the store.

The new benefit adds to the turnaround experienced by Bayfront Hospital since Orlando Health’s 2020 takeover. The hospital, Pinellas County’s only Level II trauma center, was then rated a D hospital by Leapfrog, a non-profit that assesses hospitals and surgical centers across America semi-annually. By the beginning of 2025 that rating improved to an A.

For PSTA, which now serves more than 10 million riders annually, this is both an expansion of their reach and a further step in the drive for smart growth in Pinellas County. 

Said Figgs-Sanders:“5,000 health care workers in Pinellas County will now be covered by the UPass agreement. We want to embrace that as a service that we have in a multimodal city – and county – for all those who are here. We’re looking at all different ways to improve transportation.”

“It’s going to help people,” agreed Bayfront’s Mincey. “This should be a good opportunity for young people coming to work here.”

The following organizations are eligible for UPass: 

Schools, Universities, and Youth Organizations

• Pinellas County Schools
• University of South Florida St. Pete Campus (USF)
• Pinellas Technical College (PTC)
• Ready For Life
• MYcroSchool
• St. Petersburg College (SPC)
• Clearview Adult Education
• Clearwater Adult Education
• Eckerd College
• Lakewood Community School
• Pinellas County Schools Adult Education Centers

Hotels and Resorts

• Marriott Sand Key
• Opal Sands
• Sandpearl
• Sheraton Sand Key
• Tradewinds Resorts
• Hampton Inn & Suites Clearwater Beach
• Winter the Dolphin’s Beach Club

Employers

• City of St. Petersburg
• United Maintenance Company
• HCA Florida
• Evara Health
• EDGE Business District
• Orlando Health

Neighborhoods (1-Year Pilot Program)

• Historic Kenwood Neighborhood Association