Rest in power, Paul O’Hanlon. February 9, 1954 – November 30, 2025

Today, our Pittsburghers for Public Transit family mourns the recent passing of our Board member and founder, Paul O’Hanlon. 

Paul was a powerful organizer for human rights, with a clear understanding of how our movements for disability justice, transit justice, housing justice and voting rights are connected and necessary. He was courageous, smart, committed and supportive, and he has mentored so many in bringing their power to the light. 

We will miss Paul deeply, and we offer PPT’s love and community to his family in this difficult time. 

Rest in power, Paul. Your memory will fuel our fight with love and inspiration, forever.

Information about services and condolences can be found at Paul’s obituary.

Pittsburghers for Public Transit was founded with the fire of Paul O’Hanlon and the inspiration he brought to the community. Over the years, he inspired us. He challenged us. He joined us in the protests, and he joined us at the parties. He taught us how to fight and love. We’ll remember him forever.

The PPT family is invited to leave your words of remembrance here, and we’ll add them to this page.

Read remembrances from PPT Members:

• Dean Mougianis
• Alisa Grishman
• Share a remembrance of your own

From Dean Mougianis

It’s a cloudy Pittsburgh day in 2011 and I am on a bicycle in the back alleys of the strip district. I’m panting and wheezing, pedaling as fast as I can, dodging potholes that I hope won’t upend me. Partly, this is because I’m running late, trying to get to a protest of Governor Tom Corbett’s education cuts. But mostly, it’s because I am trying my damnedest to keep up with Paul O’Hanlon, who is making his motorized wheelchair bounce and rattle atop the broken pavement at a dizzying speed. We were both at a meeting of Occupy Pittsburgh, and I had decided I should accompany Paul on the trip. You know, look after him a bit. Silly me. He’s leaving me far behind and it’s all I can do to try to match his pace.

I think that’s all any of us could ever do. Try our feeble best to keep up with him.

I first met Paul on election day in 2008, in the “escalation room” of Election Protection – lawyers who volunteer their services to safeguard our vote. I was there as the dispatcher for “Video the Vote” a group trying to do the same thing with video cameras. (This was before everybody had cellphone cameras in their pockets.) There were a few dozen attorneys around a big conference table at a downtown law firm. They took calls from an 800 number. If the call seemed like it represented serious skullduggery, then it was escalated to a smaller group of more expert lawyers. Alpha lawyers you might say. Paul was without doubt an alpha lawyer, and so there he was – ready to battle electoral evil.

Mercifully, there was less skullduggery than anticipated that election. That left a lot of down time to sit and talk and get to know the person working next to you. The Paul I got to know that day was passionate, whip-smart, warm and sincere. The kind of person who leaves an impression on you – a serious Atticus Finch vibe.

As I indicated, our paths crossed again in the muddy confines of the Occupy Pittsburgh encampment. Well, actually, just before. He was there at a planning meeting, laying out the legal case for taking over the public space of Mellon Green downtown. When it came to Occupy, Paul seemed to be everywhere. Dispensing legal information, yes. But more importantly, movement wisdom. Paul had seen a lot advocating for disability rights, housing rights, education rights, etc and learned from every bit of it.

It was in the area of public transit where I came to know, and appreciate, Paul the most. He was part of the founding group of Pittsburghers for Public Transit. That same year of 2011 transit in Pittsburgh was facing a 40% cut. Cuts had been foisted on the public for years and this one would be devastating. Paul understood, along with others, that the public needed to be aware of a trend that was happening in darkness. And thus the Transit Twelve was born – a dozen activists who sat mid-road and stopped traffic in downtown Pittsburgh to raise awareness of the damage those cuts would do.

The Twelve were arrested for their civil disobedience and carted off to be arraigned of course. Well, eleven of them. The police did not know what do to with the erudite and self-assured attorney in the wheelchair. They couldn’t just toss him in a squad car. The picture you see above is of Paul next to a police officer – a Paul miffed because he isn’t being arrested along with the others. The story I heard is that shortly after this picture was taken, Paul got impatient and just motored over in his chair to the public safety building, driving himself to his own arrest. I haven’t been able to confirm the story’s veracity – but it’s true to the Paul that I knew. That’s exactly the kind of thing he would have done.

Paul was on Pittsburghers for Public Transit’s coordinating committee (the precursor to the board of directors) for years. I watched him consistently guide legal and organizing policy with his careful and wise counsel. He was everything a great movement lawyer should be – thorough, precise, compassionate. And with all that brainpower, with all that experience, I never once saw him be condescending or less than completely open to the contribution of others. As is true with such a long list of issues – transit in Pittsburgh would be severely diminished without the efforts of Paul O’Hanlon.

Earlier this year, Paul had a medical setback that sent him to the hospital. The condition made it difficult for him to speak and even breathe. When I went to visit, he wanted so badly to hear about what everyone was doing in the movement space. And he had a take on all of it, spoken in his same measured and complete way, even though he struggled with every word. Because he labored so hard to speak, it was all I could do to stop myself from trying to finish his sentences. Paul, though, was going to say it the way he felt it should be said – no matter what that took.

Amazingly he bounced back from it. There he was out in the world again, buzzing around in his chair, making sure he didn’t miss anything. Sadly, so very sadly, that was short-lived. Last week illness and infection caught up to him. As quick and as mobile as he was, mortality still caught up to him – in the way it will overtake all of us. He passed away last weekend. This passing hits me hard, as it hits dozens, maybe hundreds, of others.

I’m going to conclude with a quote I think Paul would have approved of. It’s from Mother Jones, who said:

“Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living”

I will miss you – my comrade, my friend.

Alisa Grishman

When I was 14 years old, my dad had a conference in Denmark, and I tagged along. It wasn’t safe to let naive little me wander the streets of Copenhagen by myself, though. Thankfully Lori Levin brought her husband, Paul O’Hanlon, and their 10-month-old son Sam along with her. My dad somehow conspired with them that I thought that I was being Daddy’s Helper by pushing Paul around town in his manual wheelchair and playing with Sam in various playgrounds, when really Paul was babysitting me.

A few years later when I’d moved to Pittsburgh to attend Carnegie Mellon, I ran into Paul. He remembered me and we exchanged some pleasantries, and then I didn’t really see him again for about a decade.

In 2015, however, all of that changed. I’d become more and more disabled myself at that point, and after meeting my dearest, beloved friend Richard Meritzer, he brought me to my very first City-County Task Force on Disabilities and introduced me to such powerful voices as Jeff Parker, who I miss dearly. There with everyone else… was Paul. And Paul welcomed me with open arms.

The following year, I’d already started up Access Mob Pittsburgh and I was eager to prove myself and get involved in absofuckinglutely everything. Paul came to me and told me about his big project he’d been working on for many years, Pittsburgh Ballots for Patients, and asked if I would be interested in helping out. That was the first year I was in charge of volunteers for Ballots for Patients, and I’ve done so every two years since then. We had at our height (before UPMC decided to be helpful and provide some of their own aides) upwards of 70 volunteers in nine area hospitals collecting emergency absentee ballots from hospitalized patients who couldn’t go to the polls. This has been some of my proudest work.

There are so many other projects we worked on together as well. He got me involved with the Committee for Accessible Transportation, and we fought HARD to make them allow paratransit vehicles to pull over in bus lanes. We advocated loudly about the need to make the Department of Permits, Licensing, and Inspection prioritize accessible entrances when businesses were making ADA-related infrastructure improvements, to the point that we got a hearing with City Council and the City’s legal team to plea our case.

I cannot say that I agreed with Paul on everything. He could be super pig-headed and obstinate, especially at the end. We had an on-going dispute about whether or not it’s OK to force riders without mobility devices to get up for those who do (it absolutely isn’t – invisible disabilities are still real disabilities).

What I can say, though, is that I would not be the amazing human I am without Paul. And for that I will hold him close in my heart for the rest of my life. Thank you, Paul, for everything you’ve taught me, and for the strength you’ve given me. I promise to keep Ballots for Patients going, and to continue your legacy of advocacy in this City. I love you forever.

We welcome anyone in the PPT community to leave your words of remembrance below, and we’ll add them to this page:

Image Description: a red PRT bus under a dark overpass at night, with its headlights on and ramp extended. To the right is white text reading “We need service that serves us: PRT’s annual service report fails to acknowledge ridership, reliability crises”, decorated with a red starburst.

We deserve a transit system worth fighting for. PRT’s ridership recovery post-COVID lags far behind its peers, and buses frequently don’t show up as scheduled. 

Pittsburgh riders have proved they’re ready to go to bat for PRT. Now PRT needs to grow ridership and to improve service reliability—and implementing the Bus Line Redesign now isn’t the answer.

Last month, Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT) published its 2025 annual service report, laying out data about ridership levels, operating costs per rider, and transit service reliability. From the tone of the report, one might assume that our transit system is doing fine, with any service reliability or ridership hiccups due to unique issues like construction, worker shortfalls or commuter changes post-pandemic. 

However, this report actually shows that Pittsburgh Regional Transit is doing worse on ridership recovery and service reliability compared to transit agencies across the country. The 2025 annual service report disclosed that PRT ridership has plateaued and declined this year from last, for the second year in a row. 

PRT ridership is now only about 60% of pre-COVID levels, a national anomaly. 

On average, US transit systems have recovered 85% of 2019 ridership, and are continuing to climb every year. Some agencies have even surpassed pre-pandemic ridership by making targeted service improvements, and/or advancing new fare programs like their employer passes or low-income and zero fare programs. Notably, over the past two years, PRT has conspicuously removed all comparative data with other peer transit systems, which was a staple of the report in years prior. 

PRT service reliability has also plateaued, with an average of only 66% of buses arriving on time. We’ve said many times, and will continue to say, that this is because of unrealistic written schedules and not due to transit worker shortcomings. 

On top of this, schedules show far fewer bus stop arrival times (“time points”) on the printed schedule than in years prior, so the evaluation of whether buses are “on-time” is happening only at a handful of stops on any given route. The lack of time points—and PRT’s minimal accountability to this metric—make it additionally hard for riders to anticipate arrival times for the majority of bus stops, and to plan transfers between routes. 

PRT’s service reports have failed to register the gravity of our ridership and reliability crisis, excusing them as the result of various one-off issues. There is no reason identified in the 2025 report for our low, plateauing on-time-performance average this year, and therefore no presumed mechanism for improving it. (Last year, the 2024 PRT annual service report did note the short-turning of 71 buses and the 61D in Oakland as a major contributor to our region’s precipitous transit ridership drop and bus crowding, but  then proceeded to do nothing about it.)

Despite this, thousands of riders proved this year that they are willing to stand up and fight for PRT.  We need our efforts to be matched with efforts from PRT. They must improve its service to ensure that we have a system worth fighting for. 

Riders need action from PRT, but implementing the Busline Redesign Draft 2.0 is not the solution to our ridership and reliability crisis.

We agree that change is needed. It’s vital that Pittsburgh Regional Transit make changes to address their concurrent ridership, service reliability and funding crises. However, implementing the Busline Redesign before fixing the basics will only make these problems worse.

When you ask PRT why we are lagging so far behind our peers, they will say that the Bus Line Redesign will solve our issues. But that is avoiding the core of the problem – service reliability has been far below its goals for years, and our ridership has declined while others have bounced back. Many agencies have successfully recovered ridership since the pandemic, but not by upending their existing bus network. 

Moreover, we are deeply concerned that implementing a “cost-neutral” bus network redesign will lock in the 20% service cuts that we’ve endured these last 5 years—and may not even be fully implemented, given the lack of any sustainable state funding solution.

We’ll have a more in-depth blog published in the next few weeks that gets deeper into the issues we see with the Bus Line Redesign. 

Instead of a complete redesign, transit riders and workers and our region need PRT to put forward goals and a vision for increasing ridership, increasing access to transit, restoring service, and for improving service reliability. 

As a starting point, Pittsburgh Regional Transit should set goals around ridership recovery, report monthly on their progress, and leverage all the tools at their disposal to grow ridership. In particular, PRT should be capitalizing on the fare programs Allegheny Go (which gives them 100% of fare revenue for every trip!) and the PRTner pass. We have also been calling on PRT and the County to fund free fare days using resources from the Regional Asset District or the County’s Clean Air Fund. Imagine if PRT supported new riders to take the system for one day with transit ambassadors, without the cost or process burden of learning the fare payment system!

Around service reliability, Pittsburgh Regional Transit needs to implement best practices around scheduling. Namely, they need to ensure that service frequencies and times are:

• Consistent between schedule changes
• Realistic for transit operators to drive
• Legibly communicated to everyday people
• Accurate across the printed timetable, apps, and bus stops

The lag and decline of our ridership recovery has likely been due to a combination of self-inflicted wounds: years of unreliable service, PRT’s thrice yearly schedule changes that regularly upend dozens of routes, misaligned communications about stop and service changes, the on-going bus stop eliminations, and the ongoing service cuts. Because these are the results of PRT’s existing practices, these same tools are also available for them to fix our ridership woes, now.

Thousands of riders have shown they are willing to support our agency. Now it’s time for PRT to give riders a system that our region can be proud of.

Transit for All PA Coalition Denounces State Budget that Fails to Address Mobility Needs for Pennsylvania Residents

Today transit riders, workers and advocates denounce the legislature’s abject failure to raise new revenue and pass a budget to meet the mobility needs of communities across all 67 counties in the Commonwealth. No budget is complete without addressing freedom of mobility, particularly for our older adults, people with disabilities and other vulnerable populations. Instead, this budget deal increases transportation spending by more than $100 million, none of which will be allocated towards public transit: this is an insult to the more than a million Pennsylvanians who take some form of transit to go to work, school, and medical appointments every day.

Confronted with the catastrophic costs of transit funding inaction on the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh area transit systems, the Governor, Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate had all agreed that public transit funding was a top priority in this year’s state budget negotiations. The Pennsylvania House passed five bipartisan bills that would have made meaningful progress towards funding transit. Instead, Senate Republican leadership derailed these bipartisan efforts, and SEPTA and Pittsburgh Regional Transit were forced to use their limited capital resources to fund transit operations, which delays critical accessibility and safety improvements. Almost immediately, SEPTA faced the consequences of this decision: the Federal Transportation Administration declared SEPTA’s 50-year-old Regional Rail cars an imminent fire hazard. And while legislators were dithering even on this inadequate action, 800,000 transit riders in the Philly area had to weather a month of service cuts and chaotic commutes.  

The forced transfer of capital funds to operations also did not address the mobility crisis facing smaller communities across the state. Within the next 18 months, the already austere transit system budgets in the Lehigh Valley, Lancaster, Westmoreland County, State College and more will hit their fiscal cliffs and begin cuts, harming Pennsylvania’s workers and vulnerable populations. Pennsylvania’s legislature and Governor have also entirely ignored the crisis facing our statewide shared-ride services, serving disabled and elderly populations in our most rural communities; in 2021, shared-ride programs operated at a $60 million loss in the 2020-21 fiscal year, the most recent year PennDOT’s report on the programs looked at. Costs have increased even as federal subsidies have waned, which means significant service cuts and fare increases are imminent for those with no other transportation options.

The Transit for All PA coalition has grown exponentially since the beginning of this year; we have built a movement of over 45,000 transit advocates who hail from all 253 legislative districts in Pennsylvania. We held more than 175 rallies, canvass events, and public meetings across the Commonwealth in the last 10 months, culminating in a 350 person rally and transit advocacy day in Harrisburg in June. And our coalition has proposed a commonsense transit funding solution – now the Transit for All PA legislative package championed by Senators Nikil Saval and Lindsey Williams, Representatives Jessica Benham and Aerion Abney (HB1523, HB1524, SB795, SB796) – that would raise sufficient, dedicated revenue to restore and expand mobility options for every community in Pennsylvania. 

The Pennsylvania budget has passed 135 days late; there are now only 230 days until our next state budget is due. Over the next 7 months, Transit for All PA will amplify the voices of transit riders across our Commonwealth in support of sustainable, expanded transit funding. The coalition’s message: our legislators must get back to their jobs so that PA workers can get to ours. Moreover, in 357 days, many of the leaders who negotiated today’s budget will be on the ballot, including Governor Shapiro. We intend to educate transit riders to hold the Governor and legislators accountable in their roles and at the ballot box, as we continue to work towards passing a budget that will finally move all Pennsylvanians.

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The budget is passed, but our fight for transit continues. Tell your elected officials that public transit moves their constituents and they must step up as champions:

Image Description: an illustrated Pittsburgh skyline at night, in deep purple and blue with yellow lights. The night sky is deep purple with a lighter purple illustration of Pittsburgh’s three rivers. Above the skyline is handwritten light yellow text reading “PPT’s 2025 Year End Member Drive: Building new constellations of power”, decorated with yellow and light yellow stars.

Here at PPT, we’re building new constellations of power. We’ve faced bigger threats to our system, and grown our movement more, than ever before.

There’s never been a better time to join our fight. Will you join our movement by supporting us with a donation?

PPT’s Year End Member Drive is here!

Membership dues help PPT pay for direct actions, advocacy, and everything else we do to fight for affordable, reliable, dignified transit across our region. Our annual Year-End membership drive is our most important fundraiser of the year.

But this year, there’s a special twist:

Every contribution to our 2025 Year End Membership Drive will be matched up to $20,000 by a local foundation.

If you donate $5, it’ll magically become $10. $500 will become $1,000!

In a year of such fantastic growth, your donation has never been more important—and now it will go even further! Can you help us make our dreams a reality by donating to become a member?

PPT members build their skills to win campaigns. Don’t take our word for it—let our member, Kristen, tell you why you should join her!

Everything changed this summer, when I found out that the Waterfront mall wanted to remove bus stops from its stores. I had just finished PPT’s transit organizing fellowship for Mon Valley residents, so I knew just how many people rely on transit to get their groceries there. I had to do something. I told PPT about the cuts, and they asked me to speak about them on the news.

Here’s the thing: I do not like public speaking. But this was important, so I stepped out of my comfort zone and did an on-camera interview with WPXI. After my interview aired, over 1,400 people signed a petition to stop the cuts–and 5 days later, the Waterfront announced that it would keep bus stops on the property!

It is such a good feeling knowing that I made a difference! PPT helped me step out of my comfort zone, and then we actually won our campaign. When I think about everything we’ve accomplished–whoa! I’m so proud of myself, and I’m so proud of us. PPT helped me make our transit system better for everyone. They showed me that when we fight together, we build our power–and we win! We can’t do it without you. Can you join me in this fight?

In Solidarity, 
Kristen Greene

Donate now to become a dues-paying PPT member and strengthen our movement!

Image Description: white text on a dark purple background reads “PPT’s Year End Transit Justice Victory Party”, with the PPT logo below. The graphic is illustrated with yellow star-shaped lights strung across the top of the frame

We’ve accomplished so much this year, all in service of new transit rider and worker power. Party down with us as we celebrate and build our visions for next year!

From Pittsburgh to Harrisburg and all across PA, 2025 has been a year of stunning growth for our movement for Transit Justice. It’s time to celebrate the love-filled community that makes it all possible—with yummy food, music, dancing, and the best company around.

Tickets to this party are offered on a sliding scale pricing basis. We suggest a $20 donation, but no one will be turned around for lack of funds.

What to expect

What, When, & Where

Friday, December 12, 2025, 6:00-9:00 PM
Hosanna House’s Wallace Event Center
805 Wallace Ace, Pittsburgh, PA, 15221

We’ll be inside at the Wallace Event Center at Wilkinsburg’s Hosanna House. We’ll have a DJ playing music, space to dance, and tables and chairs serving dinner for all those who reserve a ticket. We’ll have a brief speaking program where PPT members talk about our wins from the year, and what it means to build power with this community.

Attendees should not feel obligated to attend the entire event, so feel free to arrive and leave at times that work best for you.

Food

We will be providing a catered meal from Aladdin’s to all those who pre-register for this event. We will clearly label all major allergens on the food.

Our menu will be:

• Falafel (GF, Vegan, contains nuts), Tabouli (vegan), Hummus (GF, vegan), Baba Ghannouj (GF, vegan), Loubie Bzeit (GF, vegan)
• Hot rolled pitas with a choice of Chicken Shawarma, Chicken Curry, Aladdin’s Beef Kabob, Arayiss (Beef), or Cauliflower (vegan, contains nuts)
• Fresh salad (GF, vegan, may contain nuts)

Guests are welcome to bring a dessert to share if they wish! We just ask that they label ingredients or major allergens of anything they bring to share, so that folks can assess what is safe to eat for them.

Accessibility

The space is on the second floor, with an elevator running between floors. All spaces are accessible, including restrooms near the event space. There is consistent lighting throughout the space, which may be turned down a bit for dancing and speeches. There will likely be some loud portions of the evening, as we dance to music and have lively conversations with our neighbors.

We will be providing childcare at this event. Please indicate on your ticket form if you would like childcare for someone in your party.

Getting there

Please enter the building through the Wallace Ave. entrance, and head up to the second floor.

There is a bus stop right in front of the main entrance, serving the 67, 69, 79, P17, and P67 buses. There is also a stop 3 blocks away, which serves the 71D, 86, and P71. The venue is about a mile away from the Wilkinsburg East Busway stop.

There will be street parking available, as well as 3 parking lots at Wallace and Mill St., Wallace and Center St., and Mill St. and North Ave. All of these lots are within a block of the venue.

Volunteering

If you’re interested in volunteering, check the box at the end of the RSVP form, and an organizer will reach out to you to confirm details.

This is a community event, and we need help to make it a success! We have several volunteer shifts available for those interested in helping out. Don’t worry, you’ll still get a chance to eat, drink, and relax if you volunteer!

Volunteers may help out with:

• Set up crew: meet at the PPT office in Shadyside before the event to help pack and transport materials to the venue. Requires a vehicle and some ability to lift/move supplies using stairs.
• Check-in and welcome table: reference a spreadsheet to check guests in; record information of unregistered guests; take donations via cash/card
• Strategic plan table: explain our draft 2026 Strategic Plan to guests, and help them vote on the draft
• Food station: help guests place their desserts on the table, replace cups/utensils, check on other volunteers and bartender to make sure they’ve eaten
• Floater: check in with childcare professionals to see if they need a break; assist with miscellaneous needed tasks, such as cleaning up spills and assisting PPT staff
• Wayfinding: on standby to meet PPT members at nearby bus stops if they need someone to show them to the venue
• Photographer: take fun, engaging pictures of people at our event! Requires some mobility to move around the event space.
• Clean up crew: take down decorations, collect trash, and pack up vehicles after the party concludes

RSVP to Join Us

PPT’s new Organizing Fellowship in the South Hilltop Communities is building new leaders to grow our movement and win better transit service. Every few weeks we’re publishing interviews with our fellows with our takeaways. Here’s our first publication in the series!

In October, PPT launched a new organizing fellowship in the South Hilltop. With generous help from multiple organizations including the Hilltop Alliance, Brashear Association, Ms. Charlene Saner and Councilman Anthony Coghill’s office, PPT recruited 7 fellows from across the South Hilltop area to explore public transit access, infrastructure, financial barriers, and equitable development.

Examples of these topics include:

• Canvassing in your community to meet riders and build your base,
• Learning about bus shelter and sidewalk expansion and improvement,
• Winning improved service through Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT’s) Bus Line redesign process,
• Enrolling South Hilltop residents into the half-fare program, Allegheny Go, and advocating for a fully free program,
• Zoning/land use relationship connecting access to housing and quality transit.

So far, we have met our 7 amazing fellows in two classroom sessions. The first was an introduction to past and present PPT campaigns with special guest Teaira Collins speaking to winning weekend service on the 93, followed by a brief training on powermapping. Our second classroom session covered transit service, exploring what visionary service could look like with buses that run frequently, are accessible to all riders in the county, and run late and on weekends when we need it. We were able to compare maps of service past and present with former Program Manager of Service Planning and Schedules, Fred Mergner. We talked about the connections that people wish were easier to get to by transit from the Hilltop, including to grocery stores, church service in the Hill District, and family in Hazelwood.

Interview with our first fellow

Key Takeaways from the Hilltop Fellowship so far:

• Our newly launched fellowship in the South Hilltop aims to build transit rider power and find ways to advocate for safer, more accessible, and more reliable transit
• Our fellows identified the disconnect between PRT’s planning of service with riders’ lived experiences
• Effective rider advocacy requires overcoming feelings of powerlessness to change civic infrastructure

PPT: What are one or two things you feel like you’ve learned from the fellowship so far?

Fellow: I’ve learned more just about some of the struggles and the fights just to maintain and provide the service. Learning about the campaigns and the actions that have been taken, I didn’t really realize how many people have been involved. It’s like what we saw in the video today – neighbors just really coming together and fighting for their service. 

I grew up riding buses. Even now relying on the car a bit more, I think I have lost some of the perspective of transit issues. But I will say for myself, I would use transit more if it was more available. I honestly don’t like feeling like I have to drive a car everywhere.

It can be convenient, but it’s also a hassle, having a car. Maintaining it, getting the gas. I mean, I’d rather sit on a bus and read a book.

If I could drive a car less – and I understand a lot of people don’t have that option – but If we could get back to where we had more service I would be able to use [transit] every day. 

PPT: Earlier you said, you used to ride the bus a lot more. How has your ability to get to the places that you need to get to changed in the past few years completely? 

Fellow: Like I was saying earlier, one of the buses that I used all the time ran every 10 minutes and I’m not sure what it is now but now it’s maybe every 17-18. I was still riding it and it was definitely more like 20 minutes, which isn’t huge but that is double the time. When you’re trying to get to work or any little thing that happens if it’s late, then you’re late.

The service used to be so constant and it ran early and late. The routes were more plentiful and the service was just more frequent. It’s a lot harder now because it’s not going everywhere it used to go. It’s just taking more time, and stops have been eliminated. You used to walk a certain distance that’s even greater now. I’m fairly healthy, but I just had a medical incident recently. Another two blocks and  I’m not making it. That was one that I wasn’t even thinking about earlier, but all the stops that have been eliminated just makes it harder for people, especially if you’re limited in your ability or in any way.

PPT: What do you think PRT is missing or underestimating when they are planning reliable and safe service in the South Hilltop?

Fellow: I honestly wonder if they’re really thinking of the actual human beings that are using the service, how they’re using it. Are they thinking of actual people or just this broad idea of bus service or transit service?

I’m not sure they’re thinking about this mom with her young child that she has to get to daycare and then she has to get to work and then when she comes home, she’s stopping at the store and how that looks and where she needs. I don’t think they’re looking at the human aspect with the time frames.

I’m newer to this area but I do get the sense, the Hilltop is kind of a forgotten area a little bit. I live in Bon Air, which I know it’s very car centric. We have a bus that comes through the neighborhood and a T-stop. The bus that comes through the neighborhood is limited service – it doesn’t go downtown. The T-stop is down the hill down steps. So it’s one thing if you can get down there, but coming back up… oh my gosh.

I don’t know exactly how much ridership is within the neighborhood, but I do see people using the service. I think that was talked about being eliminated, the 54D. So I feel like we maybe are not a high priority compared to some other areas. 

PPT: If you and your neighbors wanted to come together to advocate for better transit, what do you think is an important first step and what would people need to get started to feel like they can speak up too an agency like PRT?

Fellow: I don’t know, I think it would probably be good to get out and talk to neighbors, just to gauge and see if people are happy with how it is. What are things that people would like to see happen? And then maybe, you know, if we could get a group of people together and then go figure out the next step.

Once we have a group of people and some thoughts of what the needs are then figure out who we go to from there.

PPT: You’re doing this already. You’re here!

Fellow: I’d like to actually go and meet people and talk, like to people waiting for the bus.

PPT: Foreshadowing what we have planned already! We’re gonna be doing some canvassing later. In thinking about getting folks involved, what do you feel is actually the biggest barrier to that? 

Fellow: I think for me prior to coming to this it was just not knowing where to go, who to talk to about it. I think other people may just not know what to do. A lot of us feel powerless – this is a big bureaucracy and we’re just little people and is anybody going to listen? Does anybody really care what we have to say? So we need to find that empowerment and some direction on knowing where you can be heard. 

PPT: Great. We’ll end there, but do you have anything else you want to say?

Fellow: The one thing here where you talked about safety. It ties into all the other things. When the service is more sporadic or when the stops are further apart, I think that’s a safety issue. The hours that the bus starts and stops –  if you miss that last 10 o’clock bus, where there used to be one at, you know, midnight, then you’re stranded somewhere at night. I think just reliable service, frequent service, and easy to get to stop that are lit at night are important for safety.

Community organizing gets the goods!! When a corporate property owner tried to remove important bus stops, more than 1500 riders spoke up to demand better – and won!

Besides Downtown Pittsburgh and Oakland, two of the busiest bus stops in our system are out front of the Giant Eagle and Target in Homestead. It was announced late-Summer that the corporation that owns the Waterfront (M&J Wilkow) wanted to remove those stops because of unsubstantiated claims about “safety”. When the announcement came, transit riders in the Mon Valley snapped into action. Within a week we had collected 1,500 signatures on a petition, we’d gotten the County Executive and Congressperson involved, and a solution was reached that maintained access for transit riders (and may even improve it in the future)!

On Monday, October 20th, PPT membrers and elected officials celebrated our win in style. We showed that this decision doesn’t just impact riders, but employees, transit workers, neighbors with disabilities, children, people who live in City of Pittsburgh and the Boroughs throughout the Mon Valley.

The issue of bus stop access is particularly important in the Mon Valley region because it is an area that has experienced disinvestment. Many communities in the Mon Valley face food and healthcare apartheid, and pedestrian infrastructure is often nonexistent or inaccessible. In this region, bus lines serve as crucial lifelines, connecting residents to jobs and essential needs.These problems would have been obvious if the people actually impacted had been involved in these talks and decisions from the very beginning.

While the decision to not remove the stops is a win, riders will not be pushed to the margins. We will not stand for our basic needs being cut due to deep prejudice. We want to recognize once again the incredible power of Black Women who have demonstrated longstand leadership and stood at the forefront of mobilizing (and spreading the riders petition) retail workers, neighbors, operators, elected officials, and so many to take action. We thank Rep. Summer Lee, Homestead Borough Vice President Mary Nesby, Homestead Resident Kristen Greene, Hazelwood Resident Tameeka Jones-Cuff, and Community Organizing Manager Cheryl Stephens.

See the news coverage:

• From Ed Blazina at the Pittsburgh Union Progress: Transit riders celebrate keeping bus stops at The Waterfront
• From WPXI: PRT riders celebrate decision to keep bus stops on Waterfront

Stay tuned as PPT continues to insist the Waterfront developers do right by transit riders. We belong here!

PPT’s recent Organizing Fellowship in the Mon Valley shows that when advocates skill up, they can organize their communities and win!

This year, Pittsburghers for Public Transit launched it’s first fellowship program for transit advocates in Mon Valley communities, led by staff and PPT Board facilitators. Why now, and why focus on these areas? PPT members voted as a part of our 2025 strategic plan to place additional time and resource into supporting transit riders in Mon Valley communities by sharing our learned experiences in working to win improvements to transit infrastructure (finding ways to get our sidewalks repairs, extended, restore bus shelters, and preserve stops) by educating elected officials and department leaders in the City of Pittsburgh on how they can make using transit an easier and more dignified experience. Through this program, we aimed to equip transit riders with ways to educate and activate municipal leaders to support robust policies that foster more connected communities.

PPT has worked along residents in the Mon Valley to stop service reduction on routes that are some of the highest for commuters in the state of Pennsylvania and riders have turned out to community meetings, rallies, and have made strides to not only stop changes to routes that would slash service, but make gains for weekend service and projects that would make traveling between communities and the City of Pittsburgh faster. Unfortunately, many places have not seen significant economic investments for residents over time. As a result, riders often travel far to access full-service grocery options, pharmacies, medical facilities, recreation centers, and more. Transit is more than the bus, but an essential lifeline. 

Fellows met weekly for 4 months to learn about community organizing and transit advocacy

For this program, fellows focused most of their time in Homestead, McKeesport, Duquesne, and Rankin, where they reside. Each week, we dove into a specific aspect of transit access in relation to PPT campaigns through both in-person and virtual discussions. During our in-person days in the field, we compiled a list of bus stops with high ridership numbers that would be eligible for a bus shelter. We also conducted a citizens’ audit of stops in each borough, speaking with people waiting to gather their transit service needs. Related to service, we rode the well-loved 59 Mon Valley route and chatted with riders waiting at the bus stop in North Versailles about their travel destinations and how the service frequency affected their experience. Fellows meet with a representative from the Steel Valley COG to explore how local-level policies influence street design and planning by elected officials. Additionally, we discuss the potential for equitable transit-oriented development on county-owned land in collaboration with Pittsburgh Regional Transit staff. Fellows learned about fare equity and the Allegheny Go program. We monitored the county’s enrollment progress, identifying opportunities to boost enrollment through discussions of benefits and facilitating on-the-spot enrollments. 

During our short time, our fellows and facilitators cover tremendous ground in learning about how we can make the kinds of connections we want to see for more people-focused, transit-grounded decision-making to create thriving places and spaces.

Our Mon Valley Organizing Fellowship set us up for victory on the Waterfront Bus Stop campaign – join our next Organizing Fellowship to win better transit in your community! 

When we organize, we win! – and our Mon Valley Organizing Fellowship proved that. Almost immediately after our Fellowship ended, it was announced that the property owners at the Waterfront wanted to remove the two bus stops in front of the Giant Eagle and Target. This move was a disgrace to transit riders. These two stops are some of the most used stops in the Mon Valley – serving more than 2500 riders every week! 

Organizers from the Mon Valley Organizing Fellowship snapped into action and began circulating a petition to keep the stops at the Waterfront. Their work in the fellowship helped establish a network to get the word out about opportunities to fight for improved transit. In less than a week our petition had collected 1400 signatures, and won the endorsement of US Congressperson Summer Lee! Our Organizing Fellows made the news speaking up for the bus stop. And within a week more, it was announced that County Executive Sara Innamorato had reached a deal with local leaders and the property owners to keep these bus stops!

You can be part of this Organizing Fellowship success story! Join us at our Press Conference Parade on October 20th to declare that transit riders have power. We’re here to stay at the Waterfront – and all throughout Allegheny County! RSVP here

We’ll be launching new PPT Organizing Fellowships in communities around our County (and state!) in 2026, so be sure to stay tuned for the next opportunity to sign up!

Image Description: A group of advocates stands with Pittsburgh City Councilmembers inside council chambers. They smile and hold Transit for All PA! and Week Without Driving PGH signs, as well as a large proclamation bearing the City seal.

On Sept 30th, Mayor Ed Gainey announced his proposed 2026 budget for the City of Pittsburgh, in which he has included funding for the purchase of transit passes of all downtown City employees through Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s PRTner pass.

This is a huge deal, enabling hundreds of municipal workers to be given free transit passes as an employment benefit, and making the City of Pittsburgh a leader in modeling the benefits of the program for other regional employers and institutions. Mayor Ed Gainey and City Councilwoman Barb Warwick deserve major kudos for their tireless efforts in advocating for this program!

Send a letter to your City Councilmember to show your support for this program and to ensure that this benefit is preserved and solidified in this year’s budget vote in December, 2025!

What is the PRTner Pass?

At the end of last year, Pittsburgh Regional Transit rolled out the new PRTner pass program after receiving overwhelming support through its public comment period. It enables the bulk purchase of transit fares for employers, developers and school districts to pay for passes for their constituencies at the deeply discounted rate of $28/per person monthly. 

The PRTner pass has the potential to provide low-income and working class people (renters, students, employees) across Allegheny County unlimited transit access—freedom of movement—that will both save money on their existing transit trips and incentivize more travel by transit. Moreover, it will increase the amount of dedicated operating revenue for PRT, through new transit fare payments by corporations and developers, large non-profits, school systems and now municipalities like the City of Pittsburgh.

 In our challenging political climate, it’s hard to win new revenue for restoring and expanding transit service, particularly through progressive means. The PRTner pass is a unicorn funding opportunity- growing transit equity, transit ridership, transit revenue, and sourced from corporations and major institutions! Win win win win!

And there’s massive potential for growth – at SOUND transit in Seattle, where a similar program has existed for years, more than half of the transit agency’s total revenue is generated from a bulk discount fare program like the PRTner pass.

Send a letter to your City Councilmember to show your support for the City’s purchase of transit passes for Pittsburgh City workers, and to ensure that this benefit is preserved and solidified in this year’s budget vote in December, 2025!

Send a letter in support of the PRTner Pass

To affordable fares—and beyond!

Now, the PRTner pass purchase for City employees is only the first step. It’s important that more employers and developers are incentivized to participate. That is one piece of why we have been organizing in support of the Mayor’s Housing and Zoning Code Package, which include incentives for developers and employers to mitigate their commuter impacts through PRTner pass purchases. 

This program has long been an organizing goal of riders! There is a big demand by employers, schools and developers to provide a benefit similar to the student pass programs at CMU, Pitt and Pittsburgh Public Schools. Since 2019 and the launch of our Fair Fares Platform, PPT has called for Pittsburgh Regional Transit to offer common-sense fare products (we called them “fare incentive programs”) that would increase both revenue and ridership for the agency. 

We have envisioned opportunities for large employers like UPMC to purchase passes for their workers, helping ease some of the transportation costs on our region’s healthcare staff and reducing the need for shuttles and parking lots that increase congestion and disallow more housing or commercial developments in the city. For service employees like those at Giant Eagle or janitors in the downtown office buildings, monthly transit passes could be a substantial commuter benefit, but it could also be used for all sorts of necessary trips outside of the workplace- for recreation and childcare, for grocery shopping and healthcare appointments. 

At the Giant Eagle Shakespeare site at Shady and Penn, we have organized since 2018 for bulk passes to be purchased for all renters in the future housing development, to reduce the demand for structured parking, and to increase transit usage in one of the most transit-rich corridors in the County. This demand was included in our 100 Days Transit Platform for Mayor Gainey in 2021 and our Riders Demands for the Next County Executive in 2023. And in February 2024, we made bulk discount employer fares- like this PRTner Pass proposal- a cornerstone of our goal to have elected officials play their part to fund transit at all levels, by calling on the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County to purchase passes for their employees. 

We’re now seeing the fruits of that organizing- and we’re just getting started.