New BPL Bookmobile to Be Revealed on Tuesday, January 10
When: Tuesday, January 10, 2023, 3:30 p.m.
Where: Central Library, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, AL 35203
Details: The public and media are invited to join us as the Birmingham Public Library (BPL) executive team and BPL Board of Trustees reveal the BPL Bookmobile. The vehicle is a result of a collaboration between BPL and the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority (BJCTA), and local developer Ed Ticheli. In 2021, the BJCTA donated a para-transit bus to BPL, allowing the library system to provide mobile library services by bookmobile to the 99 neighborhoods of the City of Birmingham. This valuable service is an innovative approach to bridging the digital divide and expanding citizen services to underserved communities.
Birmingham, Ala. – The Birmingham Public Library (BPL) Board of Trustees invites the public, journalists and elected officials to attend the reveal of the new BPL bookmobile on Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at the Central Library, 2100 Park Place in downtown Birmingham.
The vehicle, called BPL Mobile, is far more than a traditional bookmobile, offering a variety of library services beyond having books and DVDs on board. On BPL Mobile, patrons will be able to take advantage of many services available in libraries across Birmingham – use computers, get access to free Wi-Fi, and obtain Citizen services such as notarizing and printing. In addition, BPL Mobile will take programs on the road such as library story times and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).
This project was made possible by a donation of a para-transit bus from the
Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority (BJCTA) and a partnership with a local developer, Ed Ticheli (American Life Lofts).
"We are excited to share BPL Mobile with everyone. This library on wheels will allow the Birmingham Public Library to continue putting people first by expanding our high-quality services and programs outside our physical walls to neighborhoods across Birmingham." said Janine Langston, Executive Director of the Birmingham Public Library. "We appreciate the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority for donating the decommissioned para-transit bus and Mr. Ed Ticheli for partnering with BPL to make this project possible."
This is the first time BJCTA has donated one of its paratransit vehicles to BPL, and the first such donation of its kind in BPL history.
History of Bookmobiles
For more than a century, bookmobiles have been a popular outreach method used by public libraries across the United States.
Bookmobiles are mobile libraries designed to carry books, DVDs, and other libraries materials to neighborhoods throughout the cities they serve. Merriam-Webster Dictionary describes bookmobiles as simply “a traveling library.”
According to The News Wheel, bookmobiles got their start over a century ago when librarian Mary Titcomb used her horse-drawn library wagon to serve rural areas in Washington County, Maryland. The first motorized bookmobile began in 1912 and soon helped spread literary across the country.
BPL Bookmobile History
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| BPL Bookmobile from the 1950s. |
The donated paratransit vehicle from BJCTA was fabricated into BPL’s first bookmobile in decades.
BPL’s Archives department has historic photos of a bookmobile, called the Birmingham Public Library Traveling Branch, from the 1950s that shows a line of children waiting to get books.
During this year’s American Library Association’s 2023 National Library Week, which is April 23-29, National Library Outreach Day (formerly National Bookmobile Day) will be observed on Wednesday, April 26, as a day to celebrate library outreach and the dedicated library professionals who meet patrons where they are.
ABOUT BPL
For additional information about the programs and services of the Birmingham Public Library, visit our website at www.cobpl.org and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn @BPL. The mission of Birmingham Public Library is to provide the highest quality experience to our community for life-long learning, cultural enrichment, and enjoyment. This system—with 18 locations and serving the community for over 130 years—is one of the largest library systems in the Southeast.
ABOUT BJCTA
The Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority is the public transportation leader in Central Alabama. The Authority averages three million riders per year and has close to 300 employees. For more information, visit www.maxtransit.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
Photo below of BJCTA para-transit bus donated to BPL before it was fabricated into the BPL Mobile.
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