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BRTA Routes Will Do Loops Around TownsBy Tammy Daniels
iBerkshires Staff
07:01PM / Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Chris Greenman, general manager of Berkshire Transit Management, explains proposed bus route changes for South County. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Berkshire Regional Transit Authority is looking at the elimination of several routes in favor of loops, or circular routes, to provide more frequent service within the county's three regions.
The changes will primarily affect routes in Central and South Berkshire, said Chris Greenman, general manager for Berkshire Transit Management Inc., the entity that runs the public bus line. The BRTA served 5,500 riders last year.
Greenman discussed the proposed changes on Tuesday afternoon at the Mary Spitzer Center, the first of three public hearings seeking input from residents. The next two hearings will be held from 2:30 to 4 tomorrow, Aug. 26, in the Stockbridge Town Offices and on Thursday at the BRTA office in the Intermodal Transportation Center in Pittsfield.
The recommendations are based in part on a study by the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, which looked at changes in ridership and destinations over the past three decades, and input from Greenman.
Phase 1 of the bus-route revamp will discontinue runs with limited passengers, ensure popular shopping areas are reached and provide service to employers such as Cranwell Resort and Kripalu. It will also attempt to better regulate bus stops to the same time every hour to make it easier for passengers.
"It's designed for more frequent service to the Berkshire Mall and Walmart (in Pittsfield)," said Greenman of one route. "The ultimate goal is to make Allendale Shopping Center a hub for service down the road when we have more money."
Top, a loop around Pittsfield; below, between the Intermodal Center and Allendale.
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City Councilor Lisa Blackmer asked about the possibility of an express bus to Berkshire Community College. The current schedule means a two-hour trip from North Adams, she said. "It's a disincentive for people to use it."
She wondered if the BRTA had spoken with the other colleges to promote the system for students. Robert Malnati, assistant administrator for the BRTA, said the organization had been in talks with BCC as well as Williams College, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Simon's Rock College of Bard.
"I've been talking for a year. You may think it's an easy process but it's bureaucracy at it's best," he said, referring to how each colleges' administration was handling the issue. Plus, he noted, the college were running their own vans for students.
Among the runs up for elimination: Saturday service east past Walmart in Pittsfield; a stop at Downing Industrial Park on the first run south from North Adams; the evening express bus from Great Barrington to Pittsfield; Route 21 between Great Barrington and Lee; the Route 5 turnaround past the post office in Lanesborough; Route 12 to Elm and Williams streets in Pittsfield; Route 14 to East Street and Downing Industrial Park in Pittsfield; and Route 16 to Crane Avenue in Pittsfield.
The runs were targed for cuts because of low passenger numbers, because they duplicate other routes or because they are being incorporated into new circular routes.
The problem with the circular routes, said Greenman, is that the one-way service may mean a long haul to get to destination so the BRTA is looking at service in two directions.
Expanding the service — and moving to Phase 2, which will put smaller "feeder" buses in communities — will take more funding than the authority currently has. The BRTA is seeking federal grants and more American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money. It recently received some $2 million total in stimulus funding to partially offset state cuts and to invest in new infrastructure, including five new smaller buses for up to 20 passengers that should be on the road by September.
Lenox to Great Barrington. |
A Williamstown resident at the sparsely attended meeting complained that the authority consistently used the excuse of not enough money to put off riders' suggestions. It has done little to expand its evening service or accommodate riders who would like to attend the region's many cultural and community events, said the woman, who refused to give her name.
"If I take a bus to South County, I better get a room because I'm not going to get back," she said. "I should be able to get to where I want to go in a reasonable amount of time for a reasonable amount of money."
BRTA officials agreed there were frustrated riders, but without capital the system can't expand. "The BRTA services an area as big as Rhode Island," said Malnati.
The BRTA's 23-member advisory board will review the plans and hearing comments on Sept. 10 and decide on any changes by mid-October. Greenman said the new routes could be in place by Nov. 1.
Comments may also be submitted in writing to the BRTA, 1 Columbus Ave., Pittsfield, MA 01201 |
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