PITTSBURGH – Though the Port Authority of Allegheny County has appealed
an injunction granted in January to enjoin a ban on its employees wearing face masks emblazoned with “Black Lives Matter” at work to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the trial judge ruled the injunction must stay in place for now.
In a Feb. 24
opinion, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan ordered the preliminary injunction to prevent enforcement of the “Black Lives Matter” mask policy would remain active, finding to do otherwise would violate the First Amendment rights of the defendant’s employees.
Tribune-Review
A masked patron waits to board a Port Authority bus along Freeport Road April 20 in Harmar.
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Concrete steps must be taken to reduce the Port Authority’s costs but also to find a better dedicated funding stream for the mass-transit agency, concludes an analysis by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy.
“Whatever the Legislature comes up with, the egregiously high costs at the Port Authority of Allegheny County (PAAC) must be taken into consideration,” says Jake Haulk, president-emeritus of the Pittsburgh think tank.
Screenshot from Port Authority video Today, the Port Authority of Allegheny County announced it is seeking participants for a pilot program to test a touchless mobile ticketing system, as a means to provide transit riders the option to pay fares without cash or a ConnectCard. The pilot will use the Ready2Ride app which allows riders to purchase a variety of fare cards, like single trip, as well as monthly and weekly passes on their smartphones. Masabi, the company that owns the app, has facilitated similar ticketing systems in other cities including Los Angeles and Denver. Those interested in participating can sign up on Port Authority s mobile pilot site by providing information about how you use Port Authority transit services. The pilot will take a few hundred participants on a first come, first serve basis. Riders must have a smartphone to participate.
Port Authority of Allegheny County adds 6 more battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE buses from New Flyer
The Port Authority of Allegheny County (PAAC), headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has converted options to order six more forty-foot battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE heavy-duty transit buses from New Flyer.
The purchase, supported by Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Low or No Emission (Low-No) Grant Program funds, will replace end-of-life diesel vehicles with efficient, sustainable battery-electric buses. In 2019, PAAC ordered its first two New Flyer electric buses, with the contract including options to buy eight more buses over the next five years.
The additional six will bring PAAC’s zero-emission fleet to eight Xcelsior CHARGE buses.