Conflict between PRT, Trafford Borough leaves residents in limbo

TRAFFORD, Pa. — A Trafford man who is blind says Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s proposed Bus Line Refresh could eliminate the service he relies on to get to work and force him to walk in the dark along a road without sidewalks.

Michael Schall relies on PRT service from Trafford to commute to work. Under the proposed plan, the outbound end of the 69 route would move to Haymaker Village Shops in Monroeville and would no longer stop in Trafford.

“That’s the only mode of transportation that I have. I do not drive,” Schall said.

Schall said he would have to walk about a half-mile farther to reach service at Haymaker Village, a trip he said he would make early in the morning in the dark. He said the roadway does not have a sidewalk.

“It would be catastrophic for me,” Schall said. “It could be an injury to my health or death.”

Schall said his concerns extend beyond his own commute to other Trafford residents who rely on public transportation.

“We have a senior high-rise. We have elderly people, handicapped people, veterans,” Schall said. “They’re not going to be able to traverse in and out of the community.”

PRT says buses need a designated layover at the end of a route so bus operators have recovery time and scheduled service can remain on time. PRT said it tried to coordinate with Trafford Borough to find a layover location but the two sides could not reach an agreement.

According to PRT, the borough would not provide a layover unless the transit agency paid for improvements and repairs to local roads.

Trafford Borough said it wants to keep bus service in the community and provided WPXI with a response it said it sent to PRT in June. In that response, the borough said buses should remain on state roads unless PRT agreed to bond a local road or enter into another agreement because Trafford has limited funds and aging infrastructure.

“Trafford would very much like to keep the bus in town, our residents have been vocal about it, but we need it to stay on state roads unless PRT is willing to bond the road or enter into some kind of agreement,” the borough wrote.

The borough said its proposal would have buses lay over at Haymaker Village in Monroeville, then travel through Trafford via Forbes Road and Route 130 before returning across the Fifth Street bridge to Mosside Boulevard.

“We cannot afford to foot the bill for road repairs caused by buses as we have many times in the past,” Trafford Borough officials said.

Borough officials also said they believe PRT intended to cut Trafford service from the beginning of the Bus Line Refresh process. The borough argues that if the route ends and lays over at Haymaker Village, buses could still loop through Trafford using Forbes Road and Route 130.

“This is a decision by PRT to cut service to those in Westmoreland County,” borough officials said.

PRT said its research and community outreach indicate 10 riders in Trafford would be affected by shortening the route to Haymaker Village Shops. The agency said it would reconsider service to Trafford if PRT and the borough reach an agreement on a layover location in the future.

PRT is reviewing more than 20,000 public comments on the proposed Bus Line Refresh. The PRT board is expected to vote on the plan in November.

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