Travel for passengers using Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s Red Line, which is under construction, will get a little easier beginning Tuesday.
The agency announced Monday that work has been completed at the Alfred Street grade crossing in Mt. Lebanon, which will allow a rail shuttle to run twice as often, every 15 minutes during weekday rush hours instead of every 30 minutes and every 30 minutes during other parts of the day and weekends. With that work finished, light rail vehicles can use the inbound and outbound sides of the track instead of all trains using one side.
Alfred Street itself will remain closed until Wednesday afternoon while crews complete paving and striping the street.
Tracks on the Red Line closed June 16 through the end of August for rail replacement between Overbrook Junction and South Hills Junction.
The shuttle takes riders from Dormont Junction to Overbrook Junction, near where they can board the Blue Line at Willow Station to travel inbound to Downtown Pittsburgh or outbound to South Hills Village.
PRT also created temporary bus routes: the 42 Potomac that runs from Potomac Station and the 37 Castle Shannon that starts at Castle Shannon Station. Those buses take riders to Station Square, where they can board another light rail vehicle into the business district.
The track work is one of seven projects over the next five years as part of a $150 million worth of improvements to the light rail system.
Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.