Figure 1: Route 56B Hazelwood

Transcription

1 ROUTE 56B HAZELWOOD Route 56B is a radial route that operates on weekdays between Homestead and downtown Pittsburgh. Traveling inbound, the route begins in Homestead at the Waterfront shopping center, crosses the Monongahela River on the Homestead Grays Bridge to Brown s Hill Road, and follows Imogene Road, Desdemona Road, Johnston Avenue and the Second Avenue corridor through Hazelwood to downtown Pittsburgh (see Figure 1). Key destinations along the route include the Pittsburgh Technology Center, the Kane Center in Glen Hazen, the Waterfront shopping center in Homestead, and downtown Pittsburgh. Figure 1: Route 56B Hazelwood Similar Routes Route 56B is most similar to Route 56C McKeesport - Lincoln Place (which is also shown in Figure 1). The two routes share a common alignment in the Second Avenue corridor between Glenwood and downtown Pittsburgh. In total, Route 56B overlaps five routes: Page 1

2 Route 53F Homestead - Lincoln Place operates on Brown s Hill Road south of Imogene Road to downtown Homestead via the Homestead Grays Bridge, and also serves downtown Pittsburgh via an alternative routing. Route 53H Homestead - Duquesne via Homeville operates on Brown s Hill Road south of Imogene Road to downtown Homestead via the Homestead Grays Bridge, and also serves downtown Pittsburgh via alternative routing. Route 56C McKeesport - Lincoln Place operates in the Second Avenue corridor as discussed above. Route 56E Greenfield operates on Second Avenue between Greenfield Avenue and downtown Pittsburgh, and also operates on Brown s Hill Road south of Imogene Road to the Waterfront via the Homestead Gray s Bridge. Route 56U Oakland Greenfield operates on Second Avenue between Glen Caladh Street and Hazelwood Avenue in Glenwood. Alignment/Service Patterns Route 56B operates mostly on a single alignment with one mid-route variation by selected weekday trips serving the Kane Center on Rivermont Drive. To provide these services, Route 56B uses four variants: Inbound 56B-I: Nine weekday westbound trips originate at Waterfront Terminal in Homestead and operate via Rear Drive, Amity Street, Storefront Drive, Waterfront Drive, Amity Street, 8 th Street, Homestead Grays Bridge to Browns Hill Road, Imogene Road, Desdemona Avenue, Johnston Avenue, 2 nd Avenue, Irvine Street, Greenfield Avenue, 2 nd Avenue to downtown Pittsburgh. This variant bypasses the Kane Center on Rivermont Drive. 56B-IK: Thirty-one daily westbound trips originate at Waterfront Terminal in Homestead and operate via Rear Drive, Amity Street, Storefront Drive, Waterfront Drive, Amity Street, 8 th Street, Homestead Grays Bridge to Browns Hill Road, Imogene Road, Desdemona Avenue, Johnston Avenue, Rivermont Drive, Main Circle Drive to the Kane Center; and then continue on Main Circle Drive back to Rivermont Drive, Johnston Avenue, 2 nd Avenue, Irvine Street, Greenfield Avenue, 2 nd Avenue to downtown Pittsburgh. This is the prevailing inbound alignment. Outbound 56B-O: Seven weekday eastbound trips depart from Stanwix Street at Boulevard of the Allies and operate via 4 th Avenue, Ross Street, 2 nd Avenue, Greenfield Avenue, Irvine Street, 2 nd Avenue, Johnston Avenue, Desdemona Avenue, Imogene Street, Browns Hill Road to the Homestead Grays Bridge,8 th Street, Amity Street, Storefront Drive and Waterfront Drive to Waterfront Terminal. This is the outbound counterpart to the 56B-I inbound variant. 56B-OK: Thirty-three daily eastbound trips depart from Stanwix Street at Boulevard of the Allies and operate via 4 th Avenue, Ross Street, 2 nd Avenue, Greenfield Avenue, Irvine Street, 2 nd Avenue, Johnston Avenue, Rivermont Drive, Main Circle Drive to the Kane Center; and then continuing on Main Circle Drive back to Rivermont Drive, Johnston Avenue, Desdemona Avenue, Imogene Street, Browns Hill Road to the Homestead Grays Bridge,8 th Street, Amity Street, Storefront Drive and Waterfront Drive Page 2

3 to Waterfront Terminal. This is the prevailing inbound alignment, and the outbound counterpart to the 56B-IK inbound variant. Schedule Route 56B operates seven days per week. The weekday schedule contains 80 one way trips, and the Saturday and Sunday schedules each contain 50 trips (see Table 1). During peak periods, headways in both directions range from 16 to 32 minutes. Midday headways range from 20 to 36 minutes, and evening headways transition to an average 45 minutes after 8:00 pm. Saturday and Sunday headways are an even 45 minutes. Weekdays Early AM AM Peak Base PM peak Evening All Day Table 1: Route 56B Schedule Statistics One-Way Trips Headways Span of Service Inbound Outbound (minutes) 4:41 am 5:59 am 6:00 am 8:59 am 9:00 am 3:29 pm 3:30 pm 5:59 pm 6:00 pm 1:28 am 4:41 am 1:28 am Saturday 5:53 am 12:41 am Sunday 5:54 am 12:40 am Route 56B s schedule is most closely related to Route 56C McKeesport-Lincoln Place. The two routes overlap on Second Avenue through Greenfield, Hazelwood and Glenwood neighborhoods before diverging at Johnston Avenue in Glenwood. Cumulative inbound weekday headways are reasonable at times, but excessive during the fringe AM peak period after 8:00 am (see Table 2). Ridership Route 56B currently carries 1,381 passengers per weekday, which is down from 1,868 passengers per day in FY 2006 and 1,822 in The decline is attributed to headway reductions and truncation of service south of the Homestead Waterfront implemented in June The route carries 1,081 passengers per Saturday, basically unchanged from 1,132 passengers per day in 2006 and 1,079 per day in On Sundays, Route 56B carries 664 passengers per day, down from 717 passengers per day in 2006 and 793 in Page 3

4 Table 2: Routes 56B & 56C: Weekday AM Peak Combined Segment Schedule INBOUND OUTBOUND Route Time at 2 nd / Johnston Headway Route Time at 2 nd / Johnston Headway B 4:58 am -- B 5:33 am -- C 5:23 am 25 C 5:58 am 25 B 5:33 am 10 B 6:08 am 10 C 5:43 am 10 C 6:18 am 10 B 5:56 am 13 B 6:31 am 13 C 6:09 am 13 C 6:44 am 13 B 6:19 am 10 B 6:54 am 10 C 6:33 am 14 C 7:08 am 14 B 6:46 am 13 B 7:23 am 15 C 6:54 am 8 C 7:36 am 13 B 7:04 am 10 B 7:41 am 5 C 7:04 am 10 C 7:56 am 15 C 7:14 am 10 B 8:01 am 5 B 7:22 am 8 C 8:06 am 5 C 7:24 am 2 C 8:16 am 10 B 7:42 am 18 B 8:21 am 5 C 7:44 am 2 C 8:26 am 5 C 7:54 am 10 C 8:36 am 10 B 8:05 am 11 B 8:44 am 8 C 8:10 am 5 C 8:52 am 8 B 8:21 am 11 C 8:26 am 5 B 8:45 am 19 Ridership on Route 56B is split into four distinct markets, all of which largely consist of travel to and from downtown Pittsburgh (see Figure 2): 1. Riders from Hazelwood boarding along Second Avenue and Irvine Street between Johnston Avenue and Greenfield Street comprise 36% of total inbound passengers. These passengers will board buses on either Routes 56B and 56C, whichever comes first. 2. Riders from Glen Hazel boarding on Imogene Road and Johnston Avenue between Browns Hill Road and Second Avenue comprise 29% of total inbound trips. These include 23 boardings (4%) at the Kane Center. 3. Riders boarding south of the Monongahela River in downtown Homestead and the Waterfront comprise 29% of total inbound passengers. 4. Riders boarding along Second Avenue between Greenfield Street and downtown Pittsburgh comprise six percent of total inbound passengers. These passengers will use buses on Routes 56B, 56C and 56E, whichever comes first. In summary, Route 56B s major ridership markets are downtown and the Pittsburgh Technology Center on Second Avenue. Page 4

5 Figure 2: Route 56B Ridership by Stop: All Day Inbound Ridership is balanced across line segments and strongly oriented to commuters traveling to and from downtown Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Technology Center (see Figure 3). Relatively few peak trips operate above 75% capacity, and fringe peak trips operate in the 40% to 60% range. Reverse direction trips and evening service in both directions operate at or below 25% of seated capacity. Page 5

6 Figure 3: Route 56B Peak Loads by Time of Day (All Sampled Trips) Productivity Route 56B productivity is below average for radial routes (see Table 2). Table 2: Route 56B Weekday Productivity Radial Route 56B Average Operating Cost / Passenger $3.98 $2.81 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 Operating Cost/Passenger: Route 56B s operating cost per passenger is $3.98, which is 42% above the radial route category average. The key contributing factor to the high cost is low ridership overall, particularly on reverse direction trips and nighttime trips Page 6

7 Ridership per Unit of Service: Overall, Route 56B operates at 30.6 passengers per revenue hour, which is 29% below the category average. The 80 one-way trips in the daily schedule carry an average 17 passengers per trip, equivalent to 44% of seated capacity. Competition with Route 56C for riders along Second Avenue and Irvine Street is a key contributing factor to this lower level of performance. A declining population in this area is also likely a factor. Total Vehicle Hours Versus Revenue Vehicle Hours: Based on Winter 2007 schedules, the ratio of total vehicle hours to revenue vehicle hours is 1.3, which is virtually equivalent to the radial route category average. Average Speed: Route 56B scheduled service operates at an average speed of 15.8 mph, which is 13% faster than the category average. This reflects favorable running conditions on Second Avenue and Irvine Street, non-stop running over the Homestead Grays Bridge, and lower densities along Imogene Road, Desdemona Road and most of Johnston Avenue. Bus Stops/Mile: Route 56B serves an average of 5.1 bus stops per mile, or one every 1,035 feet. This is 14% fewer bus stops per mile than the average for radial routes. The lower number reflects lower densities along Imogene Road, Desdemona Road and most of Johnston Avenue, underutilized industrial land along Second Avenue and Irvine Street from Hazelwood Avenue to Hot Metal Street, and non-stop running over the Homestead Grays Bridge. Number of Variations: Route 56B is relatively straightforward with just one variation from the basic alignment to provide direct service to the Kane Center on Rivermont Drive, 0.2 mile north of Johnston Drive. Service Design Route 56B provides basic local service in established areas of Pittsburgh and Homestead. However, the route includes several areas that are lightly populated or have lost trip generators over the years, and consequently the present level of service may be higher than warranted by demand. Adjustments should be considered in context of neighboring routes. Service Improvement Opportunities Potential changes include: Coordinate Headways on Second Avenue: Routes 56B, 56C and 56E use Second Avenue to access downtown Pittsburgh. Route 56E turns at Greenfield Street, but Routes 56B and 56C share a common alignment on Second Avenue and Irvine Street between Johnston Avenue and Stanwix Street in downtown Pittsburgh, a distance of approximately 4.6 miles. Schedules should be rewritten to adjust weekday headways to an even 15 minutes during peak periods, and 30 minutes during midday and evening hours south of Greenfield Street, and to avoid occurrences of nose-to-tail operations north of Greenfield Street. Page 7

8 Adjust Service Levels to Better Match Demand: As described above, Route 56B service is underutilized, with most trips operating at 40% to 60% of seated capacity. This indicates that service levels are too high and could be reduced. Page 8