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Tuesday, July 22, 2003

By Bill Heltzel, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

Port Authority officials recommended approval of construction contracts totaling $32.6 million yesterday, with an eye toward attracting more riders and cutting commute times.

	An overhead view of the proposed parking garage and T Station improvements at South Hills Village. (Port Authority of Allegheny County) Click photo for larger image.

The engineering and construction committee endorsed building a seven-level, 2,200-space parking garage at the South Hills Village T station that would enable more commuters to use light rail vehicles from that end of the line, where parking is in short supply.

It also endorsed construction of ramps to the Wabash Tunnel under Mount Washington that would give motorists and buses another way in and out of Downtown.

The Port Authority board will vote on the contracts tomorrow.

The parking garage would be built by Walsh Construction Co. of Chicago for $21.6 million.

Port Authority now provides spaces for 1,525 cars in lots it owns or leases near its South Hills Village station. On most days the lots fill quickly, discouraging latecomers from using the T. The parking garage and remaining lots together would provide 2,620 spaces, for a net gain of 1,095.

	A ground-level view view of the proposed parking garage at South Hills Village. (Port Authority of Allegheny County) Click photo for larger image.

Commuters who are likely to find parking are more willing to use the T, said Port Authority engineering manager Henry Nutbrown. Furthermore, he said, the walk to the station will be shorter from the garage and commuters will be sheltered against bad weather.

The transit advantage will become even greater when the Overbrook line reopens next summer and cuts 12 minutes off the ride from South Hills Village to Downtown.

The authority does not charge motorists to use its parking lots, but the expensive new garage would be the transit agency's first such structure. Charging a parking fee could affect ridership, however.

The authority hasn't calculated the costs of operating the garage yet, spokeswoman Judi McNeil said, and hasn't surveyed riders on whether they would be willing to pay more.

Construction would start in January and be done by November 2004. The agency must still award contracts for electrical work and plumbing, raising project costs to about $25 million.

	The T stop at South Hills Village would have an improved plaza next to the parking garage in plans shown yesterday. (Port Authority of Allegheny County) Click photo for larger image.

The Wabash Tunnel ramps will be built by Mosites Construction Co. for nearly $11 million.

Port Authority acquired the abandoned railroad tunnel in the early 1960s and fixed it up for cars and buses nearly a decade ago. But the railroad bridge over the Monongahela River was demolished a long time ago and there are no roads connecting the tunnel to city streets. The portal on the Downtown side gapes 100 feet up the side of Mount Washington and has been branded the "tunnel to nowhere."

Mosites would build a ramp from West Carson Street to the north portal and another from Woodruff Street, near Route 51, to the south portal. It would convert an unpaved, 172-space parking lot next to the Monongahela Incline into a park-n-ride lot.

The tunnel has room for only one lane, so traffic would flow in only one direction at a time. It would be used only by buses and cars with at least two occupants.

"It will be a considerable improvement," Nutbrown said. "It will give people an additional way in and out of Downtown."

He estimated that rush-hour buses that now leave town by way of the Fort Pitt Tunnel would shave 12 minutes off their trips.

In other business, the construction committee recommended paying MSM Group an additional $960,000 for the environmental impact statement on the proposed airport-to-Greensburg high-speed magnetic levitation train. The extra work would add 18 percent to the original $5.2 million contract.

Residents and community officials in Robinson and in the Greensburg area objected to the proposed alignment, so MSM will study new locations. Also, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation asked for more analysis of the costs and risks. The Federal Railroad Administration and PennDOT will pay for the work.

The committee also recommended paying AWK Construction Inc. an extra $272,400 for more paving, landscaping and design work on the Airways park-n-ride lot in Moon. The township has imposed restrictions that require the work. The extra fee would increase the original $3.6 million contract by 7.5 percent.