Burlington County Library System enters agreements to let cardholders borrow directly from libraries in three South Jersey counties

Burlington County Library System cardholders will be able to borrow books from libraries in Camden, Atlantic and Gloucester counties next year under new reciprocal borrowing agreements between all four South Jersey counties.

The borrowing agreements will take effect on Thursday, Jan. 1, and will allow library cardholders from each of the four South Jersey counties to borrow books and other materials from any of the libraries in those county systems directly without waiting for materials to be transferred via interlibrary loans.

“We believe this exciting new regional partnership with our neighboring library systems will encourage residents in all four counties to sign up a library card and take advantage of the services all our libraries offer,” said Burlington County Library System Director Ranjna Das. “Burlington County is the largest county in New Jersey and many of our residents live close to the border or work in the other counties. Reciprocal borrowing is a way to enhance BCLS cardholders’ access and make it easy for them to borrow materials from locations that are the most convenient for them.”

Cardholders from all four counties will be able to access the collections from 40 libraries, including all 15 branch and member libraries in the Burlington County Library System. These libraries include the Main Branch Library in Westampton, Beverly Free Library, Bordentown Library, Cinnaminson Library, Crosswicks Library Company in Chesterfield, Delanco Public Library, Evesham Library, Florence Library, Library Company of Burlington in Burlington City, Maple Shade Library, Pemberton Community Library, Pinelands Branch Library in Medford, Riverside Library, Riverton Free Library and Vincentown Library in Southampton.

Cardholders will be able to access the collections in Camden County’s eight libraries: Bellmawr, Downtown Camden, Ferry Avenue (Camden City), Gloucester Township, Haddon Township, Merchantville, South County (Atco) and Voorhees.

Gloucester County’s six libraries: Mullica Hill, Glassboro, Greenwich Township, Logan Township, Newfield (association library) and Swedesboro.

Atlantic County’s 11 libraries: Absecon, Brigantine, Buena Community Reading Center (inside Buena High School), Egg Harbor City, Egg Harbor Township, Galloway, Hammonton, Mays Landing, Pleasantville, Somers Point and Ventnor.

In addition, Burlington County Library System cardholders can also use their membership to borrow materials from 22 libraries in neighboring Ocean County under a separate borrowing arrangement with the Ocean County Library.

The reciprocal borrowing agreements do not extend to eBooks, and other digital, streaming and other online resources available to BCLS cardholders. Cardholders outside Burlington County will also not be permitted to access WiFi hotspots, Chrome books, museum passes, games, and other technology items.

Those who borrow books or other materials from other county systems will be subject to that county system’s rules, including loan periods, borrowing limits, overdue fines or fees for lost or damaged items.

Burlington County eliminated its overdue fines for books and most other materials in its collection in July 2024. Borrowers are still responsible for paying replacement fees of lost or unreturned materials.

Burlington County and Camden County previously participated in a borrowing agreement in 2024 as part of a pilot program that also included the North Jersey counties of Hunterdon, Somerset, Sussex and Warren.

“There wasn’t much interest in extending the pilot with the four North Jersey counties, but we think reciprocal borrowing with neighboring county library systems in South Jersey can be beneficial,” Das said. ”It’s another way our library system is seeking to remove barriers and make it easy for residents to access libraries and library services.”

Learn more about the Burlington County Library System resources and services at https://bcls.lib.nj.us/.