The Communities that would Benefit Most from the Bus Line Refresh Draft 2.0

Bus Line Refresh: These communities will gain service

Whether you live in McKeesport or McKees Rocks, the Hill District or the South Hills, our public transit system needs to work for everyone.

Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT) will soon close their community engagement period for the second draft of their Bus Line Redesign (BLR). The redesign proposes a completely redrawn map of where transit routes will run. It includes new schedules for how frequently and how late at night buses and trains operate, and renames all the routes in the system.

Tens of thousands of people who use the system every day will be affected. Allegheny County Transit riders, transit workers, businesses, social service providers—we all have a stake in a Bus Line Redesign that works for all.

The Bus Line Refresh plan is complicated and will affect everyone differently. That’s why it’s very important that transit riders and transit workers review your routes and give feedback now! You can check out how your routes will be impacted and give feedback online, by phone, or at an upcoming PRT community event here. 

This is the last opportunity for the public to weigh in before PRT finalizes and ratifies this transit plan—one that will impact our transit service for generations! 

Notable Improvements Under the Proposed Bus Line Refresh Draft 2.0

Under the Bus Line Refresh Draft 2.0, some communities are being proposed for transit service improvements: higher frequency service, or new direct connections to critical destinations. Other communities will see transit service cuts; this is the consequence of Pittsburgh Regional Transit deciding to develop a “cost-neutral” plan rather than a more visionary proposal for service restoration and expansion. 

But riders spoke up about Bus Line Redesign Draft 1.0 and Pittsburgh Regional Transit made important changes based on our feedback! In particular, PRT took our advice to scale back the proposed disruption to our routes. They also provided riders with a commute “calculator”, allowing riders to model proposed changes to our trips, and ensured that the proposed “microtransit zone” communities like McKeesport, the Southern Hilltop and Natrona Heights would be provided with expanded fixed route buses, not irregular on-demand shuttles.

Check the list below to see if your routes/communities would gain significant service under the Refresh Draft 2.0.

Note: Old route numbers are listed where those numbers are continuing to be used, otherwise the new route number is listed here. Routes are listed numerically regardless of alpha-prefix.

Service Restoration 

  • Restoration of service to Arnold 
  • N63 restored Jenny Lind Ave service
  • 71C Restored to downtown and uptown 
  • P78 restoration of weekend service

Service Extensions

  • 6 Spring Hill extension to North Hills Village
  • 12 McKnight extension to Wexford
  • 16 Brighton extension to Emsworth
  • 28X extension to Carnegie
  • 79 extension from Lincoln Park to East Liberty via Larimer
  • N1/N3 Extends and restores service to parts of Allegheny And Natrona Heights

Improvements in Service Span

  • 7 Spring Garden all day service on weekdays
  • D25 Moon/Robinson to Downtown all day, 7 day service ( Also restores 25A connection between Robinson and Moon cut over 15 years ago )
  • N77 all-day weekday service on Universal Rd in Penn Hills

New Connections

  • O9 new connection between the East End to McKnight Rd ( Pseudo 12U restoration )
  • N17 new connection between Bellevue/Avalon/West View to McKnight Rd ( pseudo restoration of 15A / Partial 9/11C restoration )
  • 27 new connection between McKees Rocks to Crafton-Ingram shopping center ( Partial Restoration of 24A )
  • N34 new connection between Carnegie crosstown to Brentwood loop
  • O35 new connection between West Liberty to Oakland 
  • N41 new connection between Bower Hill Rd to Carnegie 
  • O45 new connection between Carrick to Oakland to East Liberty 
  • 54 new connections between Polish Hill to Bloomfield and the Southside Works
  • D58 new connections between Swisshelm Park, Squirrel Hill and Greenfield
  • 64 new connection to Millvale
  • N66 new connection North Braddock to Walmart
  • O73 new connection between Homewood to Bates St to Southside Works to Wharton Square
  • 81 new connection between Lawrenceville to Bloomfield to Hill District to Mercy Hospital
  • N84 new connection between the Hill District and the Strip District
  • 86 new connection between the Strip District and Penn Hills
  • 87 new connection between the Downtown to the Strip District to Garfield Heights
  • D89 new connection between the Lawrenceville to Stanton Heights to East Liberty