More people choosing mass transit as gas prices remain high – By Paul Guggenheimer (Triblive) / June 18, 2022
More people are turning to public transit as gasoline costs settle in the $5 per gallon range across the region.
Westmoreland County Transit Authority has experienced a 30% increase in bus ridership since gas prices started climbing, said Ashley Cooper-Brounce, the authority’s deputy director.
“We just recently looked at the last three months — March, April and May — compared to the same months in 2021. We really noticed the uptick around the beginning of March when gas prices really started increasing,” she said, adding that WCTA expects ridership to continue to go up.
“We were holding steady on ridership for months and months. (Recently), our Route 9, Latrobe-Derry Area, had 35 passengers on the bus, and that’s been unheard of. So we’re definitely connecting that to high gas prices.”
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