Final Design for Pittsburgh Regional Transit BRT

Gannett Fleming is performing engineering services for PRT. The scope of work includes final design for the Forbes Avenue Corridor. Earlier involvement in this project included coordination and design work associated with bus garage modifications for electric buses and stakeholder engagement support. Specific tasks accomplished include:

• Provided calculations for charging requirements.
• Selection and specification of chargers for battery electric buses (BEB).
• Roadway design.
• Drainage and stormwater design.
• Utility coordination and design.
• Signing and pavement markings design.
• Maintenance and protection of traffic during construction.
• Construction phasing designs.
• Coordination with many stakeholders along the corridor, including PennDOT, City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Duquesne University, University of Pittsburgh, and several developers.

The new BEBs will operate out of the East Liberty Garage. Early development of this project included:

• Evaluation of the garage organization to confirm that it has floor space to accommodate the new bus fleet.
• Assistance with determining the battery chargers required to charge the fleet of BEBs.
• Selection and specification of battery chargers and location of the chargers in the storage garage.

Gannett Fleming’s specific duties include the final design of the Forbes Avenue BRT Corridor from Shingiss Street to Craig Street, including roadway, drainage, maintenance, and protection of traffic during construction and utility designs, modifications for bus garage systems, and providing stakeholder engagement support.

The East Liberty Garage will house fifteen new 60’ long BEBs. Renovations to the garage include adding fixed charging stations with remote dispensers to charge buses as they return to the garage. Our team worked with PRT to calculate the charging requirements per bus based on:

• The route structure.
• Mileage and time per round trip.
• Charge provided by fast chargers.
• Route schedule.

• Approximately 7.4 miles of reconstructed roadway, primarily along Fifth and Forbes Avenue.
• Dedicated lanes.
• Pedestrian and bus bump outs.
• Enhanced/branded stations.
• Wall-mounted real-time bus arrival information system.
• Traffic signals with dedicated transit priority.
• Intelligent signal technology.
• Fifteen BEBs.
• Dedicated bicycle facilities.

• Faster connections to:
  • Pittsburgh’s two largest commercial employment centers (downtown and Oakland).
  • Universities, including the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, and Duquesne University.
  • Several hospitals, arenas, and cultural venues.
• Upgraded transit buses, stations, and signage.
• Added multimodal alternatives.
• Increased potential for new economic development.