On one of the transit development plans being considered over the summer, the 54C Polish Hill route would have been cut. Now Port Authority has released the proposed final draft of their transit development plan, and we are happy to report that the 54C will remain, with some changes. Here is what Port Authority is proposing:
The 54C would become the 54. It would be shortened to operate between the South Side and the North Side. Between those two points, with one exception, the route would operate along its existing predominant alignment. The exception would be between Bloomfield and the Strip District, where some trips operate via Penn Avenue and some operate via Polish Hill, all trips would alternate between the two alignments. More frequent service would also be provided.
Summary of recommended changes:
–Shorten the route to operate between East Carson Street at South 9th Street in the South Side, and Allegheny Center in the North Side. Between those two points, operate along the route’s existing alignment except between Bloomfield and the Strip District, alternate trips between Penn Avenue/Main Street and Polish Hill.
–Provide more frequent service: every 10 minutes during peak periods, every 20 minutes during the midday, and every 30 minutes at night.
You can look at the full final draft here. It’s 230 pages long–the 54C is on page 103.
Resident Patrick Singleton helped publicize this issue and organize a response. A number of residents took the time to attend the public meetings, write a letter, or make a phone call to tell Port Authority how important it is to have a bus going through Polish Hill.
This is good news for Polish Hill. Over a third of our residents don’t own a car, and having few businesses means that a lot of people depend on the bus to do their shopping. Many other rely on it to get to work. Losing our bus service would have had a big impact. So, many thanks to those residents who spoke up to help keep our bus service. We as an organization can only do so much. It helped enormously that so many residents cared enough to also stand up and say, “We need this bus”.
Read the Post-Gazette article.
There will be additional public hearings on Sep. 15 for those who are affected by the proposed changes. Look here for more information.
