Port Authority alters routes, talks budget woes

Students and commuters in Oakland might have to wait longer or pay more at city bus stops this… Students and commuters in Oakland might have to wait longer or pay more at city bus stops this fall.

This summer the Port Authority altered route services as part of its 2009 Transit Development Plan.

Port Authority officials stressed that the service changes enacted this summer were not a result of the $47 million-budget shortfall projected for next year.

The budget shortfall was because of a variety of factors, including the rising cost of fuel and the failure of Act 44, a Pennsylvania legislation intended to provide funding for transportation, Heather Pharo, a Port Authority spokeswoman, said. The Act 44 funding was not keeping up the pace with the rising inflation.

The $330 million 2010-11 budget will likely cause its own major shuffling and reduction of service, with a number of cuts slated for next year.

The original Transit Development Plan was implemented in order to update the route system, Pharo said.

“Some routes had not been changed since the 1960s, and, of course, Allegheny County has,” she said. “A change was needed to maintain efficiency and reflect the changing demographics and commuting patterns of residents.”

Oakland represents the second largest employment area in Allegheny County and enjoys one of the highest levels of service currently, Pharo said.

“We recognize how important service in Oakland is, and that’s something we took into account when planning these efficiency changes and route changes,” Pharo said.

A noticeable change to Oakland students is the fragmentation of the 59U, a bus that once ran from the Waterfront to South Side Works, passing through Oakland and Squirrel Hill. It has been split into the 75, which runs from Bakery Square in East Liberty to the South Side Works, and the 61D, which now has service through the Waterfront.

Allegheny County towns and Pittsburgh neighborhoods might experience a 35 percent reduction in service and an increase in cash fares, according to the Port Authority website and the Authority’s most recent proposal.

“The Board [of Directors] will have to vote on authorizing these [proposals] in the fall, and they would take effect in January,” Pharo said.

Many bus riders will pay at least 25 cents more for each trip, while those on the Port Authority’s Light Rail Transit line will pay $4 each way.

Pitt student Sidra Chavla, who works Downtown, said that the new bus routes increased her commuting time, adding that the change has forced her to walk farther to catch a bus back into Oakland.

“The bus stops and buses are always really crowded, and I usually end up having to stand on my way home,” she said.

Students are not the only, nor the most numerous, users of Pittsburgh public transportation. Bloomfield resident Sandy Miller rides the bus daily, now having to make two bus changes as a result of the route changes.

“Riding the bus to work is the easiest option for me,” Miller said, “but I cannot afford to spend over two hours in commuting time per day.”

Pitt graduate student Carey Kotulski — who is studying special eduction — said she has benefited from the changes.

The addition of the 75, according to Kotulski, goes to her two choice neighborhoods: Shadyside and South Side.

“The changes to the routes are annoying because I was used to the old routes, but the 75 is much more efficient,” she said.

Since Pitt has a contract with Port Authority for the transit pass program through June 2012, an increase in fares would not immediately affect students and staff on campus.

For an up-to-date list of changes and a hearing schedule, see the Port Authority website at www.portauthority.org/PAAC/Home/tabid/171/Default.aspx.