BUTLER TWP — The Butler Township Board of Commissioners is not pleased with Butler Transit Authority's decision to make route changes.

The authority stated in a news release in June that changes to bus route 5 will be put into effect Sept. 5.

These changes include a stop at the new VA Butler Healthcare in Center Township, as well as one at Thompson Greene Apartments, both located on Duffy Road.

Other changes will include rerouting stops from Byre Mor Court Apartments to New Castle Road by Wendy's and from Park Manor Apartments to the Alameda Plaza entrance on New Castle Road.

Butler Township Commissioner Dave Zarnick confirmed Tuesday that a letter had been sent from the board of commissioners to the authority outlining its concerns, which include matters of safety, particularly during winter.

“We're concerned with residents walking from Byre Mor Court to New Castle Road,” Zarnick said. “We're concerned with the residents walking from Park Manor behind (Tractor Supply) up to New Castle Road in inclement weather. (There are) no bus stations or stops for them to get out of inclement weather. (For) elderly people, we're concerned about that.”

Other route changes include a reroute of the Butler Commons stop to service only Panera and Wal-Mart. The Benbrook Medical Center cul-de-sac stop and service to Butler Crossings will be removed from the route.

The authority stated in the release that these changes were chosen following analysis of data from on-bus technology which tracks the amount of passengers using each stop.

Authority executive director John Paul addressed the township's safety concerns Tuesday, echoing the news release, which said that “passengers that are not able to use BTA stops due to physical limitations may be eligible for paratransit service by the Butler Area Rural Transit.”

He also stressed that the rerouted stops will be in walking distance from the old stops.

The stop at the VA was another sticking point for the township.

“We're not against servicing the VA,” Zarnick said. “We're all for that. The VA does have a nice, big bus, so why can't they run the route through the township or city?”

Paul said the authority found that adding another route for the VA would cost $150,000. He also said the authority lacks the equipment to add another route.

He added that the authority does not plan to retract its alterations to route 5.

“The bottom line is we're not changing anything,” he said.