The Butler Transit Authority on Tuesday awarded a 36-month contract to a natural gas provider for gas to operate authority buses and heat the authority's facility in Butler Township.

Authority board members unanimously voted to award the contract to Direct Energy for $2.59 per thousand cubic feet (MCF).

The authority also received a $2.75 per MCF price quote from the current contractor Mid-Atlantic Energy Services, which is charging the authority $3.10 per MCF.

In unrelated business, the authority amended its contract with the Port Authority of Allegheny County to allow a second contractor to use the busway.The contract was amended to give the transit authority a back-up plan to use if the current contractor MV Transportation has issues providing enough bus drivers to operate the commuter service between Butler and Pittsburgh, said John Paul, authority executive director.He said the transit authority is negotiating with a contractor to serve as a backup, and the board would have to approve the contract with that vendor.The Port Authority requires training for all bus drivers who use the busway, he added.

The board also approved a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise plan, which is required by the U.S. Department of Transportation, that sets goals for subcontracting with minority and women-owned businesses that contractors hired by the authority are to follow.Paul said the 4.5% goal is lower than it is in Allegheny County because of the smaller number of minority- and women-owned businesses in Butler County.