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In his return to Happy Valley, Bill O’Brien isn’t surprised by Penn State’s success

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Forty Fort, Swoyersville announce tax information

<p>This year is shaping up to be a good one for the Luzerne County Transportation Authority, for at least three reasons.</p><p>First, the Kingston-based agency will once again have night service, starting later this month. The new evening routes will serve several regional industrial parks as well as the Luzerne County Community College campus, shopping areas and Mohegan Sun Pocono casino.</p><p>Second, LCTA is on track to receive seven new buses by year&#8217;s end, thanks to various grant programs. The new vehicles will replace five old buses and expand the fleet by two, bringing the total to 40.</p><p>And, Executive Director Norm Gavlick said during Friday&#8217;s meeting of the Downtown Wilkes-Barre Business Association, there could be a groundbreaking ceremony for the authority&#8217;s new headquarters by early summer. It will see the transformation of the long-neglected 14-acre Murray complex on Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilkes-Barre into an expanded garage and administrative complex.</p><p>Not so many years ago, LCTA was in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. A 2014 grand jury investigation led to charges that former executives directed drivers to inflate ridership numbers to gain increased state funding for the system.</p><p>The years since have been much more positive.</p><p>In the wake of the &#8220;Ghost Riders&#8221; debacle, LCTA has realigned its management structure and instituted non-union employee performance reviews, among other internal changes, and created a community advisory panel made up of local business and non-profit leaders that meets quarterly.</p><p>In 2016 alone, the agency underwent seven outside audits, all being completed with few or no negative findings.</p><p>Aside from big-picture changes, LCTA has instituted a wide range of smaller improvements, including creation of a &#8220;travel training program&#8221; for students and adults with disabilities, providing service to the Luzerne County Fair and the annual air show, and an aggressive marketing program that won praise from PennDOT.</p><p>Even if you never take the bus, these improvements matter. Many of our elderly and disabled residents who don&#8217;t drive enjoy increased freedom and access to important services thanks to the bus system. Students who are not old enough to drive, can&#8217;t afford cars or are not eligible for school bus transportation rely on LCTA to get to classes, including college courses at LCCC.</p><p>And there are many working adults in our region who likewise do not have access to a car, and vitally need affordable access to the region&#8217;s key employment engines, including business parks, hospitals, colleges and the casino. LCTA makes that access possible. The new night routes will help expand that access for the increasing number of people who work later shifts at many of those sites.</p><p>Each year, LCTA estimates, more than a million riders pass through the Wilkes-Barre intermodal terminal on its buses.</p><p>Given the past, we think it&#8217;s important to keep tabs on how agencies such as LCTA are spending public money. At the present time, it seems to us the local bus system is doing so reasonably and to the public&#8217;s benefit.</p><p style="text-align: right;"><em> &#8212; Times Leader</em></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Bus riders wait to board a Luzerne County Transportation Authority bus at the intermodal terminal in Wilkes-Barre. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/web1_dumpthepump03.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bus riders wait to board a Luzerne County Transportation Authority bus at the intermodal terminal in Wilkes-Barre. </caption0><photoCredit0>Times Leader file </photoCredit0></div></div>

Our View: LCTA deserves credit for improvements