ROUTE 18B AVALON-SHADELAND EXPRESS

Transcription

1 ROUTE 18B AVALON-SHADELAND EXPRESS Route 18B Avalon-Shadeland Express is the weekday-only commute hour version of Route 17B that provides slightly streamlined service between Avalon and downtown Pittsburgh (see Figure 1). The route passes through a number of residential neighborhoods and is designed to provide single-bus access to downtown for commuters. Figure 1: Route 18B Avalon-Shadeland Express Similar Routes Route 18B is most similar to Route 17B Avalon-Shadeland, which provides local service along the same alignment except at the northern end of the route, through the North Shore, and in downtown Pittsburgh: Page 1

2 North End of Route: Route 18B operates from Ben Avon Heights Road along New Brighton Road and Perrysville Road, whereas Route 17B operates via Ohio Township and Emsworth. North Shore: Route 18B operates express through the North Shore along Route 65, whereas Route 17B serves Allegheny Center and the Allegheny General Hospital area. Downtown Pittsburgh: Route 18B operates in downtown operates via Fort Duquesne Boulevard, 7 th Street, Penn Avenue, and Stanwix Street, whereas Route 17B operates via 7 th Street, Liberty Avenue, and 6 th Street. A number of other routes also parallel Route 18B: Route 16B Brighton, which serves essentially the same area, but follows Brighton Road and Lincoln Avenue. Route B Bellevue Flyer, which travels along Ohio River Boulevard south of Kendall Avenue. Route 18C Bellevue-Union Avenue Express, that follows Lincoln Avenue, California Avenue, and Ohio River Boulevard. Route 500 Highland Park-Bellevue, that travels along California Avenue. Route 16A Ohio River Boulevard, from downtown to Marshall Avenue Alignment/Service Patterns Route 18B has two different service patterns: inbound and outbound. The route follows a single alignment without variation between either inbound or outbound runs. Schedule For this commuter route, service operates Monday through Friday. Service is not operated on weekends. Three trips are provided inbound in the morning beginning at 6:52 AM, and three outbound trips depart downtown beginning at 4:18 PM. These runs effectively replace Route 17B runs during these time periods. Table 1: Route 18B Schedule Statistics One-Way Trips Headways Span of Service Inbound Outbound (minutes) Weekdays AM Peak 6:52 AM 8:36 AM PM Peak 4:18 PM 6:08 PM All Day 3 3 N/A Ridership Ridership on Route 18B has varied since Average weekday ridership in FY2008 is 156 passengers, nearly 44% higher than FY2006 ridership (108). The route experienced a drop in ridership between 2002 and Page 2

3 Ridership is significantly higher inbound than outbound (sample data shows 110 passengers inbound and 63 passengers outbound). This may reflect the schedule (the last outbound trip leaves downtown at 5:27 PM) and that passengers may have several options for the outbound trip from downtown. Inbound, only one or two passengers board during the first ten minutes that the route is in service (before Jackman Avenue). More than 20% of passengers board along Lincoln Avenue, and about 50% of the passengers board after the bus reaches Shadeland Avenue. Only a handful of passengers alight before the bus reaches downtown. Figure 2: Route 18B Ridership by Stop: All Day Inbound Passengers Total Ons Total Offs Load Out From Stop Load Out from Stop CAMP HORNE GIANT ENTRANCE FS PERRYSVILLE WILSON PERRYSVILLE OPP #6933 PERRYSVILLE BREADING CHURCH DICKSON CHURCH WALNUT DIVISION OPP MARIE FLORENCE FISK ORCHARD HARRISON ORCHARD BIRMINGHAM JACKMAN CHESTNUT FS JACKMAN OPP MCKINLEY HOME QUEENSBURY APTS HOME CALIFORNIA LINCOLN OPP JACKSON LINCOLN BALPH-NO STOP LINCOLN WADLOW PLAZA LINCOLN BRYANT FS LINCOLN BURNSIDE CALIFORNIA #3941 CALIFORNIA MARMADUKE TERMON FLEMING FS SHADELAND DAVIS FS SHADELAND #3453 SHADELAND GEYER SHADELAND OAKHILL FS SHADELAND WOODLAND WOODLAND BRIGHTON BRIGHTON MARSHALL NS MARSHALL NEW HAMPSHIRE 7TH PENN 0 Outbound alightings mirror inbound boardings for much of the route, except that fewer people ride the bus to the outer end. More than 85% of riders alight before the bus reaches Lincoln Avenue, and only six percent of riders disembark along Lincoln Avenue (compared with 20% who board there inbound). Maximum loads on most inbound trips average 35 passengers (see Figure 3), and only one of eight observed trips exceeded seated capacity. Maximum loads on outbound trips are very light, at only 17 passengers per trip. Page 3

4 Figure 3: Route 18B Maximum Loads by Time of Day (All Sampled Trips) Inbound Outbound 30 Peak Load ` :54 AM 6:55 AM 6:55 AM 7:29 AM 7:29 AM 7:29 AM 7:30 AM 7:31 AM 4:19 PM 4:21 PM 5:31 PM Productivity Although total ridership is low, Route 18B performs above average for express routes (see Table 2. Operating Cost/Passenger: Operating cost per passenger on Route 18B is $3.96, significantly below the Port Authority s average of $5.07 for express and flyer buses (and on Route 17B Avalon-Shadeland, which is the local version, the operating cost per passenger is higher at $4.38.) Ridership per Unit of Service: With only three trips in each direction, the route is well used, carrying an average of 41 passengers per revenue vehicle hour. However, the number of passengers per total vehicle hour is 27% lower, at 30.1 (see discussion below on total vehicle hours versus revenue hours). Page 4

5 Table 2: Route 18B Productivity Express/ Flyer Route 18B Average Operating Cost/Passenger $3.96 $5.07 Passengers/Revenue Vehicle Hour Passengers/Total Vehicle Hour Passengers/ Revenue Vehicle Mile Total Vehicle Hours/Revenue Vehicle Hour Average Speed Bus Stops/Mile Directness Number of Variations Total Vehicle Hours Versus Revenue Vehicle Hours: The ratio of total vehicle hours to revenue vehicle hours is 1.35, above the average for Port Authority bus routes in general but below average for express and flyer routes, and reflects the peak-only nature of the route. Each vehicle deployed on the route makes only three peak direction trips and service operates only 4.1 hours. A significant amount of time involves garage pull-ins and pull-outs that increase total vehicle hours to 5.5 per weekday. Average Speed: The average speed is 15.2 miles per hour, making this route nearly 25% slower than most express and flyer routes. The fact that this route does not operate via a busway or limited access highway contributes to the slower speed. Bus Stops/Mile: Route 18B has a bus stop about every 910 feet, with 5.8 bus stops per mile. Route 18B has nearly three times as many bus stops per mile as the average express or flyer route. Number of Variations: Route 18B operates along essentially the same alignment, both inbound and outbound, with only minor road shifts in the downtown area and at the northern end of the route. The two variations, 18A-I and 18A-O reflect the separate inbound and outbound runs. Service Design Although Route 18B is an express route, it replaces Route 17B on three morning and afternoon peak runs and results in gaps in service on that route. Route 17B serves primarily residential areas north of the Ohio River, with other parallel routes (noted above) sometimes providing more direct service than Route 18B between the outlying communities and downtown Pittsburgh. The time savings that the express route offers over the regular Route 17B is about 10 minutes in each direction, by accessing the Fort Duquesne Bridge and Ohio River Blvd. instead of serving Pennsylvania, North and Cedar Avenues. Page 5

6 Other Ridership Imbalance Between AM and PM Peak The low ridership in the afternoon suggests riders are eager to get to work via the express service, but may be more flexible with regard to which route they use to return home, and may make stops en route. It is unclear whether the slightly longer PM headways or other factors impact an individual s decision to ride Route 18B in the afternoon. Service Improvement Opportunities Route 18B is a fairly effective express route in terms of ridership, but degrades Route 17B service. The strong AM ridership points to the need for direct service from Avalon to downtown Pittsburgh, but that the service north of Avalon could be eliminated. As an express route, it has additional operational costs because the vehicle has extensive deadhead hours. Potential improvements could include the following: Shorten Route: The fact that almost no riders board between the beginning of the route and Lincoln Avenue suggests the route could be truncated to further improve productivity and reduce travel time. Consolidate with Route 17B: Route 18B is an express version of Route 17B, replacing three inbound and three outbound Route 17B runs. If some of Route 17B s deviations are reduced or eliminated, the time savings advantage of Route 18B would be very small compared with Route 17B. Convert to Feeder Route: The northernmost portion of the route, before it runs on to Lincoln, could be modified to operate as a feeder to 17B, Route 16A Ohio River Boulevard or another frequent, direct route that operates to and from downtown Pittsburgh. Coordinate Route 17B and 18B Schedules: The Port Authority could better coordinate schedules between Routes17B and 18B to reduce the deadheading required for this route. Operate all Routes Serving the Ohio River Boulevard Corridor Around the Same Downtown Loop: As described above, the riders of Route 18B, as well as other routes, have multiple options to return home in the afternoon/evening. The operation of all available routes around the same downtown loop and via the same stops could make these options easier to access. Page 6