San Joaquin Regional Transit District (RTD) has received a major donation from The Housing Authority of the County of San Joaquin (HACSJ). HACSJ delivered 780 books for the RTD “Books on Buses” program. All the books are brand-new and are for readers from age 3 on up to teenagers.

In 2017, the Housing Authority participated in the Book-Rich Environment (BRE) initiative. The program focuses on book distribution, partnership building, and library engagement. As part of the initiative, national book distributors donated free books for children ranging from birth to age 17 to be distributed to low-income families including the Housing Authority’s Public Housing sites.

“We are extremely grateful to our friends at the Housing Authority for this donation,” said RTD CEO Donna DeMartino. “The Books on Buses program at RTD especially benefits young children from families that rely on public transportation. Now, more of those little ones will be able to enjoy a book while traveling to school or shopping with their parents.”

HACSJ has distributed 2,000 books at Resident Fairs, Resident Council Events, the Creative Child Care Resource Fair, and National Night Out.

RTD launched “Books on Buses” in 2015 to help promote literacy in the community. Book crates are installed on 15 RTD buses. The crates are stocked with children’s books for RTD’s youngest passengers via donations and sponsorships. Children are encouraged to read these books on the bus, take them home, and then bring them back or exchange them for another book. Books can also be returned to the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library, one of RTD’s partners.

RTD received San Joaquin A+’s Public Organization, Spirit of Literacy Award for the “Books on Buses” Program in 2015.