Residents of Baldwin Borough have been quite vocal in their desire to see mass transit service restored to their community, most recently with a letter to the editor (read here) and a letter from an advocacy group (read here) that is “…for public transit”.  Of course, Allegheny County has public transit, in that public dollars help fund transit operations.  It also has a private component, in that the public transit agency, the Port Authority, contracts with a private operator to drive shared ride service.  The Authority also turned over two routes that it had abandoned in 2011 to a private operator.

So, since it appears that the Authority does not want to extend service at this time, what a perfect opportunity it would be for a private operator that would be interested to make a case.  And, unlike the 2011 occurrence where the Authority board had to grant approval, changes to the law in 2012 moved this responsibility to the Public Utility Commission, which is the same entity that just approved experimental service for ridesharing in Allegheny County.  Perhaps residents and advocates need to redirect their frustration.