The Butler Transit Authority is offering free rides on its commuter bus service to Pittsburgh in an effort to increase ridership to the level needed to ensure continued service after its three-year trial period ends.

Free trips will be available on the third week of each month from May through August — Monday-Friday, June 17-21, July 15-19 and Aug. 12-16. The promotion includes the Route 68 and Route 8 commuter buses that run Monday through Friday to Pittsburgh.

“We need to get butts in seats,” said John Paul, authority executive director. “We need to increase ridership on both lines.”

The fiscal year beginning July 1 marks the second year of a three-year demonstration project funded through state and federal grants, coupled with local match funds. Paul said ridership must meet targeted figures by the end of the third year or the service will be terminated.

“I'm running out of ideas,” Paul said.

He said the revenue loss from the free rides this summer would be offset by the end of the year if ridership increases due to the effort. While an average of 112 people ride commuter service daily, Paul pointed out that number needs to double for the authority to keep the service after the third year of the demonstration project.

“This is a real critical period between now and the end of the year,” Paul said.

Commuter costs versus local costs

Through the third quarter of the 2017-18 fiscal year, the most recent figures available, the average cost per rider on the commuter buses to Pittsburgh was $13.75, but this amount doesn't include the $4 per passenger fares. Ridership for the third quarter totaled 19,832 passengers. The authority receives a subsidy of $9.75 per passenger from federal, state and county funding.

To meet the standard to keep the commuter service after three years, annual ridership must increase to 59,500, which would reduce the per-passenger cost to $6.50 and reduce the subsidy to $2.36.

The fiscal year 2019-20 budget approved recently by the authority for commuter service and local bus service includes an operating deficit of $183,555. The commuter service is a three-year demonstration project funded by a state grant and county match dollars.

Projected revenue for the commuter service is $145,540, and includes $143,040 from fares and $2,500 from advertising.

However, projected expenses for the project are in the range of about $329,096. Costs break down as follows: $168,750 for the contractor that provides the bus drivers; $80,321 for fuel; $30,000 for marketing; $28,325 for park and ride maintenance; $17,700 for park and ride leases; and $4,000 for Wi-Fi service on buses.

On the other hand, the budget for local bus service balances out at $2,080,791, representing direct revenue of $186,612 and grant funds totaling $1,894,179.

Of that amount, officials allocate $893,138 toward administration costs. Expenses include: $324,028 for salaries and wages; $157,899 for benefits; and $220,165 for services such as maintenance, legal and accounting services and advertising. The transit authority recently approved 3 percent pay raises for its 10 full- and part-time employees, which does not include the contracted services for bus drivers. The remaining funds — $928,422 — cover vehicle operation costs.

Local bus fares generate $161,612 in revenue annually for the transit authority. Additional revenue includes: $936,216 in federal grants; $685,527 in state funding; an additional $217,398 state grant for Butler Area Rural Transit, which provides transportation for people with disabilities; and $55,038 from the county.

The budget also includes a $501,478 in reserve being held in case the lawsuit filed by a trucking organization against the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission results in a reduction in Act 44 funding.

The busiest local routes are Routes 1 and 5, which serve Moraine Pointe Plaza and New Castle Road. The average cost per passenger was $9.28 through the end of the 2017-18 fiscal year.

Still a bargain

Teri Downs of Butler said she rode the commuter bus for the first time last week from Pittsburgh back to Butler and enjoyed the experience.

“I needed to get from Pittsburgh to Butler. I looked at Uber. Uber wanted almost $70,” Downs said.

Then she found the transit authority online and decided to give it a try.

“It was awesome. Five dollars to get from Pittsburgh to Butler was a no-brainer. The bus was new. It was extremely clean. It was on time,” Downs said, adding how the driver was polite and courteous.

Downs said she avoids driving to Pittsburgh due to parking and travel costs. She said downtown parking costs $18.

“If I ever have to work down there again I would definitely use that commuter bus to get to work. It would be a shame if Butler lost that bus. If they had it on weekends for events, I would use it,” she said.

Filling the tank

Also calculated into the budget are payments to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation of 60 to 65 cents for every gasoline gallon equivalent of compressed natural gas the authority uses to fuel its 11 CNG buses. Paul said that PennDOT puts the money toward maintaining the CNG fueling stations for transit authority buses.

The CNG station at the authority garage is one of about 30 statewide installed through a 20-year, $84.5 million partnership between PennDOT and Trillium CNG. The local station was built by Trillium at no cost to the authority.

Under the agreement, which started four years ago, Trillium will maintain the stations at no cost to transit authorities across the state for the next 16 years. PennDOT will take over maintenance at the conclusion of the contract with Trillium, according to Paul.