ROUTE 17B AVALON VIA SHADELAND AVENUE

Transcription

1 ROUTE 17B AVALON VIA SHADELAND AVENUE Route 17B Avalon Shadeland provides weekday service between Giant Eagle in Ohio Township and downtown Pittsburgh via Emsworth, Ben Avon, Avalon, Bellevue, Brighton Heights, Manchester, Allegheny General Hospital and the North Shore (see Figure 1). The route serves residential neighborhoods, the Lincoln Avenue retail corridor in Bellevue, Allegheny General Hospital and other destinations on the North Side, and downtown Pittsburgh. Service is limited in that Route 17B, for the most part, provides reverse peak and mid-day service, but not peak period peak direction service (which is provided, instead, by Route 18B Avalon- Shadeland Express). Figure 1: Route 17B Avalon-Shadeland Page 1

2 Similar Routes Route 17B is most similar to Route 18B Avalon-Shadeland Express, which is an express version of Route 17B that, in effect, provides Route 17B s peak period peak direction service. Route 18B provides three peak direction trips in each peak period on weekdays, and operates along the same alignment as Route 17B except at the northern end of the route, through Manchester and the North Shore, and in downtown Pittsburgh: 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 Manchester, 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. Other routes that provide similar service include: Route 16B Brighton, which also operates between Ben Avon, Avalon, Bellevue, Brighton Heights, the North Shore, and downtown Pittsburgh, in some cases using the same roads and in other cases using parallel roads. Route 18C Bellevue-Union Avenue Express, which also operates along a portion of California Avenue and Lincoln Avenue in Bellevue, and provides express service to downtown Pittsburgh. Route 500 Highland Park-Bellevue, which provides service between Bellevue, the North Shore, and Downtown, via California Avenue and Lincoln Avenue in Bellevue. Route B Bellevue Flyer, which is another express route that serves Lincoln and California Avenues in Bellevue. Alignment/Service Patterns Route 17B operates along a circuitous alignment that includes a loop and deviations off of main roads to serve residential neighborhoods. Beginning at the north end of the route at the Ohio Township Giant Eagle, Route 17B operates southwest on Camp Horne Road. At Ohio River Boulevard, it loops north to Emsworth to Hazelwood Avenue and then back southbound to Center Avenue to Church Avenue. It then deviates to Division Avenue. Then, whereas most other routes in the area continue south on California Avenue to Lincoln Avenue, Route 17B deviates down to Orchard and Jackman Avenue, which are largely residential streets that parallel California Avenue and Lincoln Avenue about 400 to 800 feet to the southwest. It then operates to Lincoln Avenue California Avenue to Brighton Heights. It then uses Shadeland Avenue to serve residential areas that are geographically close to Brighton Road but physically separated by steep terrain. It then operates west to Manchester and then east via Allegheny General Hospital and the North Shore to downtown Pittsburgh. Page 2

3 Route 17B operates with five variants: Inbound 17B-I, which provides AM inbound service and follows the basic alignment described above. Six trips provide service on this variant, all of which depart Giant Eagle at or before 12:41 pm. 17B-IB, which also operates from Giant Eagle to downtown Pittsburgh. This variant follows California Avenue in Avalon instead of Orchard and Jackman Avenues and is used for seven afternoon and early evening trips and serves nearby suburban General Hospital. Outbound 17B-O, which is the primary PM outbound variant, and provides service on seven trips. The bus follows Cedar Avenue past Allegheny General Hospital and follows reverse of the alignment described above. 17B-OB, which provides service on four of the five AM outbound trips. It follows the same alignment as 17B-O, but travels along California Avenue in Avalon instead of Orchard Avenue. 17B-OD, which provides service on the first AM outbound trip, and follows the 17B-O alignment as far north as Perrysville Avenue, but then operates on Perrysville Avenue and New Brighton Road to Ben Avon Heights Road, bypassing Emsworth (which saves eight minutes). Schedule Route 17B has a unique schedule that provides service from the beginning of the AM peak until early evening (see Table 1), but that with exception of two trips, does not provide peak period peak direction service. That service is instead provided by Route 18B Avalon via Shadeland Avenue Express, and there is a gap in Route 17B service when the former service is in operation. Table 1: Route 17B Schedule Statistics One-Way Trips Headways Span of Service Inbound Outbound (minutes) Weekdays Early AM 5:11 am 5:59 am 1 0 N/A AM Peak 6:00 am 8:59 am Midday 9:00 am 3:29 pm PM Peak 3:30 pm 5:59 pm Evening 6:00 pm 7:41 pm 0 1 N/A All Day 5:11 am 7:41 pm * Note: Excludes gaps of up to 210 minutes between runs when Route 18B operates instead of Route 17B. Service operates only on weekdays. In the early morning, there is one inbound trip at 5:11 am. Next, three Route 18B trips operate at 6:52 am, 7:25 am, and 7:55 am. These trips serve all areas served by Route 17B except Emsworth, Manchester, Mexican War Streets or the North Page 3

4 Shore. Following the Route 18B trips, inbound Route 17B service resumes at 8:41 am and operates until 6:43 pm. As shown in Table 1, service operates at irregular headways that, not including the gaps in service when Route 18B runs, range from 30 to 76 minutes. Outbound service operates generally as the reverse of inbound service, except that in addition to the gap in PM peak outbound service when Route 18B runs, there is also a gap in AM peak service of 118 minutes when no service runs. Ridership Ridership averages 650 passengers per weekday. Ridership has fluctuated slightly over the last six years. Between FY 2002 and FY 2006, daily ridership climbed 16%, and then dropped 6% to current levels. Inbound, Route 17B boardings and alightings are very limited before the bus reaches Lincoln Avenue (see Figure 2). The Giant Eagle on Ben Avon Heights Road accounts for only six boardings per day, and then no more than one or two people board at any of the stops along Center Avenue or Church Avenue. Boarding and alighting activity becomes much busier along Lincoln Avenue in Bellevue s business district. Over half of the riders that board inbound at the outer end of the line travel to and from this area, and in total, nearly as many people board at eight stops on Lincoln Avenue in Bellevue as at all of the 45 stops along the first 5.5 miles of the route. A significant number of riders also travel between Shadeland Avenue and Bellevue s business district. From Shadeland Avenue in to downtown Pittsburgh, there are boardings and alightings at almost all stops, and passenger loads are nearly twice as high as they are north of Shadeland Avenue. Forty-five percent of passengers board between Marshall Avenue and downtown Pittsburgh. However, while there is boarding activity at all stops, the total volumes are low. The highest number of total daily boardings at any single stop is 17, and the highest total number of alightings is 18. These figures translate to an average of 2 boardings and alightings or less at each stop per bus trip. Frequent stops for small numbers of passengers slows service and indicates that stop consolidation should be considered. APC ridership data indicates that maximum loads on most trips are between 20 and 30 passengers before 2:00 pm (see Figure 3). Maximum loads are significantly lighter after that time, except on the three early/mid-afternoon outbound trips that were recorded with maximum loads of more than 50 passengers, possibly due to ridership from Oliver High School. These maximum loads are relatively low, but not unreasonably so considering that Route 17B provides reverse commute and off-peak service. Page 4

5 Figure 2: Route 17B Ridership by Stop: All Day Inbound CAMP HORNE GIANT ENTRANCE FS CAMP HORNE RUEHL CAMP HORNE CRAWFORD CAMP HORNE EICHER OHIO RIVER ORCHARD OHIO RIVER ALLEGHENY CENTER WALLISTON CENTER ALLEGHENY CENTER ORCHARD CENTER LOCUST CHURCH OPP VISTA CHURCH ROSTREVOR CHURCH DALZELL NS CHURCH DICKSON CHURCH WALNUT DIVISION OPP MARIE FLORENCE FISK ORCHARD HARRISON ORCHARD BIRMINGHAM JACKMAN CHESTNUT FS JACKMAN OPP MCKINLEY HOME QUEENSBURY APTS HOME CALIFORNIA STARR LINCOLN 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 MARSHALL CALIFORNIA COLUMBUS MANHATTAN MANHATTAN N FRANKLIN MANHATTAN PENNSYLVANIA PENNSYLVANIA FONTELLA PENNSYLVANIA GALVESTON BRIGHTON BROCKETT FS NORTH OPP MONTEREY NORTH ARCH in NORTH OPP BOYLE NORTH CEDAR CEDAR OPP TRIPOLI CEDAR OPP PRESSLEY SANDUSKY ISABELLA Passengers Load Out from Stop Total Ons Total Offs Load Out From Stop Page 5

6 Figure 3: Route 17B Maximum Loads by Time of Day (All Sampled Weekday Trips) Inbound Outbound Maximum Load :01 5:23 5:23 6:09 6:09 8:07 8:08 8:10 8:32 8:45 8:52 9:35 9:36 9:52 9:55 9:58 10:44 10:45 10:47 10:49 10:58 11:44 11:46 11:49 12:38 12:44 13:43 13:50 14:22 14:42 14:50 15:18 15:25 15:34 15:51 16:35 Productivity Route 17B s performance is lower than average, largely due to low ridership at the northern end of the route and the off-peak nature of the service (see Table 2): Table 2: Route 17B Productivity Radial Route 17B Average Operating Cost/Passenger $4.38 $2.81 Passengers/Revenue Vehicle Hour Passengers/Total Vehicle Hour Passengers/Revenue Mile Total Vehicle Hours/Rev Vehicle Hours Average Speed Bus Stops/Mile Directness Number of Variations Operating Cost/Passenger: The operating cost per passenger is $4.38, well above the average cost per passenger for radial routes in general. Low ridership on the northern end of the route, few peak direction runs during peak commute hours result in the higher than average cost per passenger. Page 6

7 Ridership per Unit of Service: Passengers per revenue vehicle hour is 26, or 45% lower than the average radial route. Passengers per total vehicle hour is only slightly lower at 23, but also well below average. At 1.9 passengers per mile, the route is 39% lower than the average. The low number of passengers per mile reflects the relative length of the route (13.7 miles) in combination with limited ridership. Total Vehicle Hours versus Revenue Vehicle Hours: The ratio of total vehicle hours to revenue vehicle hours is low, at 1.14, indicating that the route is scheduled efficiently. Bus Stops/Mile: Route 17B has 108 bus stops in each direction, for an average of 7.9 stops per mile or a stop every 670 feet. According to APC data, there is no passenger activity at nearly 30% of the stops, and very light activity at most others. Stop consolidation could eliminate the need to maintain signage at unused stops and speed service through areas with lightly used stops. Average Speed: Route 17B s average speed is 13.8 mph, which is average for radial routes. Like many Port Authority radial routes, Route 17B makes a number of turns, travels along narrow residential streets, and has a high number of bus stops, all of which impact bus speeds. Directness: Route 17B is one of the least direct routes in the area, with a loop near the northern end, and deviations off of main roads to provide service within isolated residential neighborhoods rather than along major arterials. Number of Variations: Route 17B has five variations: two inbound and three outbound. In many respects, Route 18B s inbound and outbound runs represent two additional variations. Service Design Route 17B serves a number of primarily residential areas north of the Ohio River that are also served by a number of other parallel routes that provide more direct service for many of the area s residents. The route has numerous turns and jogs, and in many respects it acts as a local community route, especially at the northern end. The result of these factors, plus Route 17B s limited schedule, mean that most transit riders opt for Route 16B, which serves many of the same locations but is more direct, faster, and more frequent. In addition, the use of an express route (Route 18B) to provide the only peak period peak direction to most but not all of Route 17B s service area is an unusual approach that complicates service. Typically, express services are used as overlays to frequent, high ridership local routes, and not as a replacement for low frequency local service. Given the similarities between the two routes, this is an approach that complicates services, but does not provide compelling benefits. Page 7

8 Service Improvement Opportunities Route 17B does not perform well, is expensive to operate, and provides limited service. Potential improvements include the following: Reconfigure Ohio River Corridor Services: As described above, a number of routes provide service that is similar to Route 17B. Many provide duplicative service, and in many respects, these routes compete with each other. Also, operating patterns are inconsistent, with one route providing service to certain areas on weekdays and another providing service on weekends (for example, Route 16B provides service to the Giant Eagle in Ohio Township when Route 17B is not operating. A reconfiguration of services in this corridor to reduce duplication, to develop routes that serve clearer markets, and to make service simpler and easier to understand would likely attract more riders. Consolidate with Route 18B: As described above, the use of Route 18B to provide Route 17B s peak period peak direct trips complicates service without compelling benefits. Service could be made simpler and much more understandable by combining the two routes into a single route that operates along a consistent alignment throughout the day. Furthermore, since many Route 17B passengers travel to and from the North Shore, a consolidated route should serve the North Shore. Make Service More Direct: Some sections of the route could be eliminated to improve running times and make the route easy to understand. The low ridership deviation to Suburban General Hospital, service along Orchard Avenue, and portions of the Emsworth service could be discontinued. This would make service more straightforward and to reduce operating costs and/or allow service frequencies to be improved. Operate Service with Regular Headways: Headways are very irregular, and the operation of more regular headways could make service much more convenient and attractive. Consolidate Stops: Route 17B has a very large number of stops (108 in each direction). Nearly 30% of which are not used, and the majority of the remainder are only lightly used. The consolidation of stops could eliminate the need to maintain unused stops and speed service in areas where stops are only lightly utilized. Convert Northern Segment to Feeder Route: The portion of Route 17B north of Bellevue is underutilized, and could be modified to operate as a feeder to and from Bellevue where connections could be made to routes that operate to and from downtown Pittsburgh. Operate all Routes Serving the Ohio River Boulevard Corridor Around the Same Downtown Loop: Riders can use multiple routes to return to many of the areas served by Route 17B. The operation of all available routes around the same Downtown loop and via the same stops could make these options easier to access. Eliminate Route 17B: Much of Route 17B s service area is served by other routes that operate more frequently and have higher ridership. With the development of feeder services between Ben Avon, Ben Avon Heights, Emsworth, Avalon, and Shadeland Avenue, and modifications to parallel routes, it might be possible to discontinue Route 17B. Page 8