More temporary service cutbacks are coming to public transportation locally as the Centre Area Transportation Authority continues to face “severe staffing shortages.”
CATA announced on Friday that beginning on Oct. 25 changes will include suspension of several more routes and all Sunday service, as well as an across-the-board reduction in frequencies on Saturdays and an earlier end time for all service on weekdays.
The Downtown Game Day Shuttle for Penn State football home Saturdays also is suspended for the rest fo the season effective immediately. The South Atherton Game Day Shuttle will continue to operate.
The changes come after CATA already suspended three routes, ended service early on two others and reduced frequencies for five more this fall.
Since those initial reductions, the authority also has had to make last minute cancelations on some routes. The changes taking effect later this month are intended to avoid having to make those sudden cancelations and “assure published service is more reliable,” according to a CATA news release.
The upcoming service reductions are expected to remain in place through the end of the calendar year and possibly longer, though CATA officials said they will be revisited as hiring continues.
“Similar to transit agencies throughout the country, CATA continues to experience unprecedented staffing shortages, and this has resulted over the past several weeks in the cancellation of a number of daily trips having to be announced the evening before,” CATA Executive Director Louwana Oliva said in a statement.
“While we expect these temporary service changes to help eliminate last minute service cancellations after October 25, we will unfortunately continue to experience these issues, particularly Thursday through Sunday between now and when the changes take effect. CATA has chosen to implement these temporary service cutbacks in an effort to make the remaining service more reliable.”
Here’s a look at the planned temporary service changes, according to CATA.
• Service schedule
– All bus routes — except for Loop and Link campus service — will cease service at 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday. CATARIDE paratransit service will begin at its current times but will also cease operation at 11 p.m.
– All Sunday CATABUS and CATARIDE service will be suspended.
– All Saturday routes will run at a frequency of every 60 minutes instead of every 40 minutes.
• A Route (Park Forest) will be suspended.
• K Route (Cato Park) will be modified to provide two trips in the morning and two trips in the afternoon around peak commute times.
• HM Route (Toftrees/Nittany Mall) weekday frequency will be adjusted from every 30 minutes to every 40 minutes. As with other routes, Saturday frequency will be adjusted from every 40 minutes to every 60 minutes.
• P Route (Boalsburg)
– Weekday service will cease operation at 8 p.m. CATAGO microtransit service will continue to operate as it does currently, also ending at 8 p.m.
– Saturday service will be suspended. CATAGO service will continue to be available from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m on Saturdays in the Boalsburg zone.
• XP Route (Scenery Park) weekday frequency will be adjusted from every 30 minutes to every 60 minutes. As with other routes, Saturday frequency will be adjusted from every 40 minutes to every 60 minutes. Connections to CATAGO service will continue to access Boalsburg from the XP.
• XG Route (Pleasant Gap) service will be suspended. Those using the XG route can use CATAGO to access the XB route, or the HM route near the Walmart on Benner Pike.
• Campus Service (Loops and Links)
– Early morning service on the Loops and Links will be suspended. Service will begin at 7 a.m.
– The Green Link will be temporarily suspended.
– Penn State Transportation Services will provide information next week on alternative options for those impacted by campus service changes.
• Game Day Shuttles
– The Downtown Game Day Shuttle will be suspended for the remainder of the football season effective
immediately. The South Atherton Game Day Shuttle will continue to operate as usual. Those who would have used the Downtown Game Day Shuttle can access the South Atherton Game Day shuttle near Easterly Parkway, or can take the White Loop service to the Natatorium and walk from there to the stadium.
Those affected by these service changes are encouraged to contact CATA’s Customer Service Center at (814) 238-CATA(2282) to discuss transportation needs and possible alternatives.
Information and applications for bus operator and other open positions at CATA are available at catabus.com/careers.
