Park Place Blog

Hello Park Place People!

As many of you have likely heard already, more badness is coming from Port Authority. Some grim service cuts are on the horizon, including the elimination of the 61A line and reductions in both weekday and weekend service on the 61B line, in addition to the previous changes to the 63B line. On the other end of the neighborhood--service on the 67 lines will be reduced (67 Monroeville) and eliminated (67C Laketon Road; 67E Greensburg Pike; 67J Lincoln Highway). 

While it won't help anyone get to work in Oakland or downtown, today's Groupon is for $35 for a one year membership to Zipcar. I debated joining for a long time, and this offer finally convinced me to give it a try. If you sign up, or if you just generally support the idea of car sharing, please email them and ask for a car in the Park Place/Regent Square area.

• Proposed semi-replacement of 63B line with P71, which then will have service reduced, and does not appear to run on the the weekends.
• Elimination of the 61A line.
• Reduction in both weekday and weekend service on 61B line.
• To add to the fun for those of us trying to get out of town and Oakland, there will also be service cuts on the 61C and 61D lines, thus adding to the congestion.
• Service reduction on 67 Monroeville, elimination of all other 67 lines.
• Service reduction on 71C Point Breeze (71C renamed and rerouted, effective Sept 2010)

Info on Park Place Blog about how to participate in the public comment period:

http://www.parkplaceblog.com/2010/07/port-authority-service-cuts-and-fare-hikes/

Post-Gazette coverage:

Pittsburgh public transit riders brace for a rough ride
Thursday, July 22, 2010
By Meredith Skrzypczak and Jon Schmitz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10203/1074481-455.stm

In particular, see the .pdf document that outlines the proposed service reductions/elimination.

From RSCA (Regent Square Civic Assn) e-mail list:

PAT BUS CHANGES

As many of you are aware, the Port Authority plans to make significant route changes to the 63B bus route serving our community. Specifically the current proposed plan cuts service and forces current riders to take alternate routes later in the evening.  There are also concerns that these later buses will be seriously overcrowded as they present the only option for riders.  We are asking your support to maintain the 63B Bus Route.  Please copy and paste the letter below into your email and send to both Scott Vetere, Port Authority Operations Analyst at svetere@portauthority.org  and Steve Bland, Port Authority CEO at sb land@portauthority.org .  Thank you for your support on this very important issue!
 

Dear Mr. Vetere,

In September the Port Authority has plans to combine the 63B with the 68G to create the P71 route. The 63B is a wonderful route with many loyal riders who helped prevent its elimination in 2007. With over 550 daily riders, it is a great asset to Regent Square, Swissvale and Rankin.

With strong support and backing from the residents of our neighborhood and the Regent Square Civic Association, I am writing to strongly oppose the merger of the 63B with the 68G.  Specifically we are concerned with a decrease in service during peak times to the highly populated Braddock Avenue corridor and overcrowding on the remaining buses. 

The P71 will use the 68G schedule, minus the runs that terminate at the busway. No additional runs will be added to accommodate the 63B riders. The Port Authority claim the new route will work because it will no longer serve the Edgewood/Swissvale Ave corridor. This reasoning is flawed. Only a handful of riders from the corridor ride the 68G, hardly enough to make space for the 63B ridership, which is usually high on rush-hour runs. We are highly dubious that the P71 will be able to accommodate the 40-50 riders of the rush-hour runs of the 63B.  By our reckoning, 25 riders, plus or minus, would have to be removed from the most crowded rush-hour runs to create space for the 63B riders. There are hardly that amount of bus riders on the Swissvale/Edgewood Ave corridor to make room for the influx of 63B riders.

Supporters of the merger point out that the P71 will have two runs after 6pm that aren’t currently offered on the 63B. While this is true, both leave Downtown after 6pm and will likely be crowded as well with former 68G riders forced to take later buses because of overcrowding on earlier runs of the P71 and riders who currently ride the 61A and B.  More importantly, the P71 will have the same number of afternoon runs as the 63B. Its first runs may be hit with a double-whammy: former 63B riders not just from the corresponding runs of the 63B but from even more riders who formerly rode the 3:05 and 3:45 63B runs.  Morning rush-hour runs on the proposed P71 will be just as crowded, perhaps more so, than evening ones. The 68G schedule actually has fewer morning rush-hour runs, seven compared to eight for the 63B.

Since there appears to be significant doubt as to whether this merger is feasible, we urge to Port Authority to first postpone its decision to implement the merger by 3-6 months. During that time, we urge you to consider scrapping the proposed P71, or, at the very least, adding rush-hour runs to address the likelihood of intense overcrowding.

ZIPCAR GROUPON

Zipcar is a car-sharing program that has cars located around the city that you can use for as little as a half an hour at a time or for up to four days.  Gas and insurance is included in the fees. 

For $35, today's Groupon gets you a one-year Zipcar membership and a $50 driving credit (a $125 total value).

LOCAL THEFTS (From RSCA)

At the RSCA Board Meeting last month, we heard a report from residents about copper pipe thefts.  Apparently, during the day, thieves are posing as contractors, entering homes, cutting copper pipes into manageable 12” sections and carrying them out. 

There has also been an increase in vehicle ransackings and theft of porch items. 

Please alert your neighbors and be aware of what’s happening on your street.  Call the police immediately if you suspect any illegal activity.  DO not approach anyone yourself. 

MAYOR'S CIVIC LEADERSHIP ACADEMY from Mayor Luke Ravenstahl

As one of my top priorities for the City of Pittsburgh, I have worked to reform government through transparency and civic involvement.  I believe that residents of the City of Pittsburgh deserve to know and understand how the City functions, how it serves their community and how they can work with local government to make their neighborhood a better place to live and work. 

Too many times information on how City Departments function is relayed by word of mouth from one City resident to another.  As a result, in many instances, it is often inaccurate or misinterpreted.  In an effort to provide our residents the opportunity to accurately understand the workings of our City government I am pleased to announce the formation of the first-ever Civic Leadership Academy in the City of Pittsburgh. 

The Civic Leadership Academy is a free, 10-week course about local government in the City of Pittsburgh. It includes tours, hands-on demonstrations and fun activities that give an up-close and personal view of how the City is operated and governed. In each two-hour class, participants will learn about a different City department and the services that it provides to make for a safer, more livable City.

As announced in my press release on July 12th, the deadline for application to the Academy was July 30, 2010. Twenty residents and business owners from neighborhoods throughout the City will be chosen to participate in the academy.  The first full 10-week session will begin on September 14th and continue through November 16, 2010. 

We hope that at the end of the course participants will be able to share with you information that they learned at your community meetings.  If you missed this announcement, please be alerted that future 10-week sessions will continue as community interest grows. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Initiatives at 412-255-4773 or send an e-mail to civicleaders@city.pittsburgh.pa.us.