PART Bus System Gets $1.8M from Virus Relief Fund

A PART bus makes a turn off South Hanover Street into the transit center in this file photo.

Blogger's Note: The following was submitted by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration has announced a $1.8 million grant award to the Pottstown Area Rapid Transit system in Pottstown, as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed by President Donald J. Trump on March 27.

PART will use the grant funds for operating, preventive maintenance and administrative expenses, which are necessary to maintain service during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

“This historic $25 billion in grant funding will ensure our nation’s public transportation systems can continue to provide services to the millions of Americans who continue to depend on them,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao said in a press release announcing the grant.

“We know many of our nation’s public transportation systems are facing extraordinary challenges and these funds will go a long way to assisting our transit industry partners in battling COVID-19,” said FTA Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams. 

“These federal funds will support operating assistance to transit agencies of all sizes providing essential travel and supporting transit workers across the country who are unable to work because of the public health emergency.”

In addition to the CARES Act funding, FTA issued a Safety Advisory that prompts transit agencies to develop and implement policies and procedures regarding face coverings and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched surfaces, physical separation, and hand hygiene consistent with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidance. 

CARES Act funding can be used to cover 100 percent of these costs.

In March, the borough declared that all those riding PART buses must wear a mask and on April 2, instituted a policy allowing riders to enter the bus through the rear doors, thus allowing bus drivers to maintain appropriate social distancing from riders.

The borough also suspended fares for the same reason on April 1. Regular fares are set to resume on June 1.

Dump the Pump, Ride PART Free Thursday

THEN:  Pottstown has had a public bus transit
system for 40 years.

Thursday you can ride the PART bus system for free.

It's part of the 10th annual National 'Dump the Pump Day,' which encourages people to ride public transit and save money.

According to the American Public Transportation Association, the latestTransit Savings Report shows that a two person household that downsizes to one car can save – on the average – more than $9,569 a year.

NOW: Most bus routes converge
at the transit center downtown.

Public transportation doesn’t just help people save money, it also helps communities grow and
prosper.

For example, for every $1 invested in public transportation, $4 is returned in economic returns. Communities with public transportation are more competitive.

According to PART, in 2014, Americans took 10.8 billion trips on public transportation -- the highest in 58 years.

Now for one of those "Did you Know?" bullet lists:

• Since 1995, public transit ridership is up 39 percent, outpacing population growth, which is up 21 percent, and vehicle miles traveled (VMT), which is up 25 percent.
• People board public transportation 36 million times each weekday.
• Public transportation is a $61 billion industry that employs more than 400,000 people.
• More than 7,200 organizations provide public transportation in the United States.
  
• Every $1 billion invested in public transportation supports and creates more than 50,000 jobs.
• Every $10 million in capital investment in public transportation yields $30 million in increased business sales.
• Home values performed 42 percent better on average if they were located near public transportation with high-frequency service.
• Public transportation use in the United States saves 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline annually.
• Households near public transit drive an average of 4,400 fewer miles than households with no access to public transit.
• Public transportation use in the United States reduces our nation’s carbon emissions by 37 million metric tons annually. This is equivalent to Washington, DC; New York City; Atlanta; Denver; and Los Angeles combined stopping using electricity. 
• One person with a 20-mile round trip commute who switches from driving to public transit can reduce his or her daily carbon emissions by 20 pounds, or more than 4,800 pounds in a year.
• A single commuter switching his or her commute to public transportation can reduce a household’s carbon emissions by 10 percent and up to 30 percent if he or she eliminates a

  

  Now you can even bring your bike along on the bus ride.

  second car.

Now back to the important part, on Thursday, June 18, in celebration of "Dump the Pump Day," anyone can ride PART for free, all day long.

Who doesn't like free?

This also marks the 40th year that PART has served the greater Pottstown area with bus service, so you might say this is their thank you to their riders as well.

The Magic Bus, and Other Earthy Day Stuff

So come on, admit it. The last thing you expected to see in an Earth Day post was an exhaust -emitting bus!

In case you were wondering how to mark Earth Day today, you could just take the bus.

You can cut your carbon footprint today by riding Pottstown's remarkably extensive bus system for free.

That's right, all rides on Pottstown Area Rapid Transit, which was once called PUT but is now called PART are absolutely Free.

The name change allows on to "Take PART" ... get it?

In so doing, not only will you familiarize yourself with the bus system, but you'll be traveling in a more efficient manner, thus reducing the amount of carbon you are responsible for putting into the atmosphere.

In case you didn't know, its mankind's constant emitting of carbon, along with the destruction of carbon-consuming forests, which are largely responsible for the climate change with which we are all contending these days.

If you're looking for something more conventionally "earthy," there are a few of those too, almost all of them thanks to the folks over at Montgomery County Community College.

I had a fairly extensive round-up in The Mercury, but a lot of it happened over the past two days.

Here are a few that remain.

DEP's office building in Norristown, across from the 

Montgomery County Court House, may be the scene of a protest today.

Seeing as Earth Day was born out of the protest movement, you can protest the use of “fracking” to extract natural gas by gathering in front of the Norristown office of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, 2 E. Main St., Norristown, from 3 to 5 p.m.

The agency regulates natural gas drilling and the protest is organized by a coalition of 60 organizations opposed to this controversial drilling method.

But the most extensive events are at the community college's week of educational programs and activities April 22-29 in observance of Earth Day 2013 are all geared around a theme  "The Face of Climate Change." 

(I have omitted the events at the Blue Bell campus because no one should drive that far on Earth Day.)

On Monday, April 22, the day begins with free tire pressure checking stations from 8-10 a.m. in the South Hall parking lot at the West Campus 101 College Drive, Pottstown. Cars with the proper tire pressure get better gas mileage and, thus, put less carbon into the environment.

MC3's South Hall at 101 College Dr.

Also, from 12:20-1:20 p.m. on April 22, both campuses will host a series of displays in South Hall at 101 College Dr. Exhibits include Environmental Club, RecycleMania, Green Office Initiative, GVF/SEPTA transportation options, Campus Bookstore green items, and Siemens ESCO information, as well as a CulinArt Farmers Market.

Then, at 12:30 p.m. in the South Hall Community Room, entries from the Student Sustainability Film Contest will be screened, and awards will be presented.

On Tuesday, April 23 at 12:45 p.m., the College will screen the film "Thin Ice: The Inside Story of Climate Science" in the South Hall Community Room. 

Here is the film's trailer:

The film is a collaboration between Oxford University, Victoria University of Wellington and London-based DOX Productions. Debuting on Earth Day, the film is being screened globally free of change on April 22 and 23. For more info on the film, visit thiniceclimate.org.

Chari Towne's book

On Wednesday, April 24 from 12:30-1:30 p.m., the College's Dean of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Dr. David Brookstein will offer a presentation on “Alternative Fuel Vehicles – Environmental Opportunities and Challenges” with a video simulcast to South Hall in Pottstown.

On Thursday, author Chari Towne will discuss her book “A River Again,” which focuses on the environmental cleanup of the Schuylkill River in the 1940s and 1950s.

I wrote about Towne's book back in December when it came out.

The discussion will take place at 12:45 p.m. in the South Hall Community Room at the West Campus in Pottstown.

In addition to the above events, cell phone and battery recycling stations will be available all week in South Hall at the West Campus.

All Earth Day activities are free of change and are open to the public. 

For more information, visit the college's Think Green blog at mc3green.wordpress.com.