The service boundaries have expanded six times and grown to 20 routes serving from Duff Road in North Lakeland to Bradley and from Clark Road to John Carroll Road. Paratransit service was started with one Handy Bus in 1985 to provide door-to-door service to persons with disabilities that prevent them from using the fixed route buses, there are now 12 paratransit (Handy Bus) routes. Additionally the Lakeland Area Mass Transit District serves as a contractor to operate services in Winter Haven and express service to Bartow. Today 155 employees are required to operate a fleet of 58 fixed route and paratransit buses, provide bus and facilities maintenance, and accomplish administrative support functions.

The Citrus Connection provides approximately 2,000,000 fixed routes and 106,000 paratransit (Handy Bus) rides annually and the demand is for even more fixed route bus service. The history of public transportation in the Lakeland area during the past 26 years has been a constant stretch to meet the needs of the community.

The Citrus Connection has helped make the Lakeland area a more livable community while cutting back our reliance on foreign oil and minimizing the stress associated with commuting. Public transit, whether you ride the bus or not, is a valuable asset to our community.