The Lehigh Valley Library System van will soon be a familiar sight as it delivers books to patrons at the Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton public libraries. Patrons at the Easton Library, for example, will be able to request an item from Allentown or Bethlehem and have it delivered the next day for a $.50 fee.
How did this come about? For 13 years, the libraries have shared an automation system. Patrons could see an item in the catalog but couldn’t have it sent from the other libraries for their use. While the libraries shared a catalog of items, they maintained separate patron databases and separate loan rules for their collections.
Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton public libraries are now the Lehigh Valley Library System and are pleased to announce that they have opened their collections to each other. To make this new system work, they had to adopt standard policies and procedures including fines, fees, and borrowing policies. That wasn’t easy because each library had its own way of doing things that had worked for it and for its patrons. After much discussion and lots of compromise, fines, fees, and borrowing policies are all the same.
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The other obstacle that needed to be addressed was moving requested items to each location. The three libraries weren’t in a position to buy a vehicle, so they applied for and were awarded a grant from the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation.
In a time of severe cuts to library budgets, the partnership allows our local libraries to share resources more efficiently by coordinating purchases and avoiding duplication of materials. Cost savings should also result from fewer interlibrary loan (ILL) transactions. Having a book delivered from a local library costs much less than having it mailed from another city. The $.50 charge for an ILL request barely covers the cost of a first class stamp much less shipping charges.