There have been a lot of changes recently at the Butler Transit Authority.
The authority officially switched downtown bus terminals beginning Oct. 1.
The terminal was moved from Cunningham Street (across from the Rite Aid in downtown Butler) to the 100 block of West New Castle Street, which is on the same road as the Butler City Police Station.
On Tuesday, Oct. 9, an official ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to celebrate the new location.
Executive Director John Paul says the close proximity to the police station factored into the authority’s decision to move there.
“It’s safer here,” Paul said Tuesday. “As we get into winter, people will be arriving and waiting here after dusk.”
That’s not the only attribute of the new terminal. Paul says there’s a lot more space and it’s a less-hectic road than Cunningham Street.
“We have a long area here where buses can park. It’s much more convenient than where we were,” he said.
The new terminal still offers an inside waiting area; a live map of the current buses that are on the roads; and both a window where you can buy tickets from a person and a kiosk where you can reload a digital smart card.
Also new this month, commuters can download an app and buy tickets on their smartphone. Riders must first download the app ‘Token Transit’ either through the Apple App store or Google Play store. You can also text TOKEN to 41411 to get a download link.
“We tried to give riders all the modern conveniences,” Paul said.
In addition to mobile ticketing, there is WiFi and outlets on the new commuter buses to Pittsburgh.
“We’re trying to attract the younger riders, especially on the commuter routes,” he said.
The commuter routes to Pittsburgh, and back, are relatively new as well. ‘The Bus’ operates service to Pittsburgh Monday through Friday. Some routes use the Route 8 to Route 28 corridor; others operate on Route 68 to I-79 and I-279.
Paul is urging commuters to look at the schedules and see if they work for their commute. The Pittsburgh routes are being funded temporarily for three years. After that, the authority has to show that people are riding the bus in order for the routes to continue.
“This is a demonstration project. We have to prove that’s it’s effective,” he said.
If the numbers don’t show that people are riding the routes to Pittsburgh, it will go away. On the other hand, Paul says if the week-day routes are successful, there is potential for weekend service in the future.
Schedules, for both local routes and commuter service, click here.
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