BRT in Pittsburgh: Martin Luther King, Jr' East Busway

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BRT in Pittsburgh Martin Luther King, Jr. East
Busway

• David E. Wohlwill, AICP
• Port Authority of Allegheny County
• Priority Bus Transit Conference
• Washington, DC
• June 24, 2009

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Pittsburgh BRT Facilities
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Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway
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(No Transcript)
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Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway

• Links CBD and Oakland with Pittsburghs eastern
  neighborhoods and suburbs
• 9.1 miles, 9 stations and 1 stop
• Proposed in Port Authoritys Early Action Program
  adopted in 1970
• Initial 6.8-mile Downtown Pittsburgh Oakland
  segment opened in 1983
• Capital cost - 115 million with funding from
  local, state and federal sources
• 2.3-mile extension to Swissvale opened in 2003
• Capital cost - 68 million with funding from
  local, state and federal sources including
  highway funds flexed to transit.

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Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway

• Busiest BRT facility with 25,000 - 28,000 weekday
  riders (2008-09)
• Allows buses to bypass severe congestion on major
  arterials and streets in Pittsburghs eastern
  communities
• Built along active railroad line

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Service Design

• 32 East Busway Routes
• Basic service provided on 3 routes carrying 50
  of riders
• EBA Daily service on entire length of busway to
  Downtown Pittsburgh
• EBS Weekday peak period service from Wilkinsburg
  to Downtown Pittsburgh
• EBO Weekday service from Swissvale to Oakland
  (Pittsburghs educational, medical cultural
  center)

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Service Design

• Other 29 routes operate on busway and exit at
  various locations to serve City of Pittsburgh
  neighborhoods and Allegheny Countys Eastern
  suburbs
• Some routes receive and discharge passengers at
  intermediary stations, others pass through
• Other Service
• 100 through route which also operates on the West
  Busway
• 3 Westmoreland County Transit Authority routes
  operating non-stop on the busway

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Express buses can pass local buses stopped at
stations
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Performance Travel Times

• Swissvale - Oakland
• 61B route using local streets 26 minutes
• EBO route on East Busway 19 minutes
• Wilkinsburg - Downtown
• 71C route using local streets 54 minutes
• EBA route on East Busway 18 minutes

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Performance Operating Costs

• Port Authoritys Non-BRT radial bus routes
  2.81/rider
• Average for busway routes (East West busway
  routes operating length of busways) 1.78/rider
• EBA Route 1.29/rider
• LRT System 4.41/rider

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Performance Energy Consumption

• 2005 Average for all buses 4 mpg
• Hybrid electric buses 5 mpg
• Diesel bus on East Busway
• (EBA route) 7 mpg
• Hybrid electric bus on East Busway
• (EBA route) 8.8 mpg

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New Development along the East Busway

• 740 million worth of development along East
  Busway 1983 2008
• Scale of development comparable that experienced
  by rail lines in other cities
• Comprised of new construction and renovation of
  older structures including vacant industrial
  buildings
• This level of development is remarkable
  considering
• Population loss in the corridor
• Topographical and railroad barriers to
  development
• Traditional absence of local and regional
  policies directing development along rapid
  transit lines (changed in recent years)

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New Development along the East Busway

• Expansion of medical sector from its traditional
  base in Oakland to the Corridor
• Central location of several busway communities
  along made is appealing to retail developers
• Popularity of East End neighborhoods with
  students and young professionals
• Since 2000, the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny
  County and community groups have begun more
  pro-active planning for development in the
  corridor.

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Examples of Development along the East Busway
Residential Complex Homewood
Professional Offices Shadyside
Pennsylvanian Apartments Downtown
Mixed Retail East Liberty
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Baum-Centre Corridor

• 1.6 miles in length interfacing with five East
  End neighborhoods in the City of Pittsburgh
• The Baum Centre Corridor initially developed
  with an automobile orientation
• As the corridor matured, many automobile-
  oriented uses closed, creating opportunities for
  new development
• The corridor is attractive to developers
• Proximity to Oakland (Pittsburghs cultural,
  educational and medical center)
• Corridors function as a key conduit for access
  to and within Pittsburghs East End communities
• Presence of the East Busway

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Baum - Centre Corridor
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City of Pittsburgh Plan for the Corridor
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Maturing Corridor Dominated by Automobile-Oriented
Uses
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Three Nodes in Corridor
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New Development in Corridor
Negley Station with Centre Professional Building
in background
UPMC Hillman Cancer Center
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Development at Negley Station in Shadyside
Expansion of Supermarket and New Condos at Negley
Station
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Eastside Development East Liberty
East Side Mixed Use Development (almost
completed) and East Liberty Station
First Whole Foods Store in City of Pittsburgh
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Proposal for New Station Serving the Corridor
Site for station serving UPMC Hospital
Area of potential sites for new station
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Proposed BRT Improvements

• On-street BRT between Downtown and Oakland
• BRT treatments in Downtown Pittsburgh
• Extension of the East Busway to Turtle Creek area

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Author Contact Information

• David E. Wohlwill, AICP
• Manager of Extended Range Planning
• Port Authority of Allegheny County
• 412.566.5110
• dwohlwill_at_portauthority.org