BRT in Pittsburgh: Martin Luther King, Jr. East

Busway

David E. Wohlwill, AICPPort Authority of Allegheny County

Priority Bus Transit ConferenceWashington, DCJune 24, 2009

Pittsburgh BRT Facilities

Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway

Martin Luther King, Jr. East Busway

• Links CBD and Oakland with Pittsburgh’s eastern neighborhoods and suburbs

• 9.1 miles, 9 stations and 1 stop

• Proposed in Port Authority’s 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.

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 Pittsburgh’s eastern communities

• Built along active railroad line

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 (Pittsburgh’s educational, medical & cultural center)

Service Design

• Other 29 routes operate on busway and exit at various locations to serve City of Pittsburgh neighborhoods and Allegheny County’s 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

Express buses can pass local buses stopped at stations

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

Performance: Operating Costs

• Port Authority’s 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

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

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)

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.

Examples of Development along the East Busway

ResidentialComplexHomewood

Professional Offices:Shadyside

Mixed Retail:East Liberty

PennsylvanianApartments:Downtown

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 (Pittsburgh’s cultural,

educational and medical center)– Corridor’s function as a key conduit for access

to and within Pittsburgh’s East End communities

– Presence of the East Busway

Baum - Centre Corridor

City of Pittsburgh Plan for the Corridor

Maturing Corridor Dominated by Automobile-Oriented Uses

Three Nodes in Corridor

New Development in Corridor

UPMC Hillman Cancer CenterNegley Station withCentre Professional

Building in background

Development at Negley Station in Shadyside

Expansion of Supermarket andNew Condos at Negley Station

Eastside Development – East Liberty

East Side Mixed Use Development(almost completed)

and East Liberty Station

First Whole FoodsStore in City of Pittsburgh

Proposal for New Station Serving the Corridor

Site for station servingUPMC Hospital

Area of potential sites fornew station

Proposed BRT Improvements

• On-street BRT between Downtown and Oakland

• BRT treatments in Downtown Pittsburgh

• Extension of the East Busway to Turtle Creek area

Author Contact Information

David E. Wohlwill, AICPManager of Extended Range Planning

Port Authority of Allegheny County 412.566.5110

dwohlwill@portauthority.org