Port Authority Plans To Upgrade Nearly 25 Percent Of Bus Fleet
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The Port Authority plans to replace more than 23 percent of its buses over the next year. Some say the change is much-needed.
"You can tell the older ones too, they overheat during the summer. You can't even sit on the back seats. It's like the engine is running so hot," said Alicia Kaylor from Castle Shannon.
"They still can have the single buses, but they need more longer buses," said Dejonne Parks from West End.
The Port Authority board is expected to spend more than $70 million to replace the buses. On Friday the board is expected to approve a contract with Gillig LLC for $34.1 million for 70 new 40-foot buses that will be delivered starting in October.
The board previously approved spending $32.9 million on 75 new 40-foot buses that will also start arriving in the fall.
The plan also calls for the Port Authority to order another 25 new buses for delivery next year.
Overall, the Port Authority will replace 170 of its 726 buses. Jim Ritchie with the Port Authority said the difference will be noticeable.
"Of course they're cleaner and nicer and new and they come with different seat designs and things of that nature," he said. "The lower we keep the average age of our fleet, the less we spend in maintenance cost."
Also, any remaining routes without TrueTime will be equipped with GPS tracking by January 2017.
The new buses are helping to modernize the fleet. The Port Authority says they're improving overall emissions and once the new buses are in use, the average age of the buses in the fleet will drop to 5.87 years.
Some of the features in the new buses include safety cars in front forward-facing seats, GPS tracking, heightened temperature control, and added cameras.
The service adjustments may affect bus routes, click here for information.
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