Travels With The Post

With Grant, Suburban Transit Helps Riders and Cleans Air
A state grant will allow Suburban Transit to improve its fleet and also eliminate pollution

With Grant, Suburban Transit Helps Riders and Cleans Air

With Grant, Suburban Transit Helps Riders and Cleans Air

BLUE BELL PA – Suburban Transit Network Inc. of Blue Bell has won a $221,516 state grant to support specialized public transportation. It’s expected to improve public travel for residents of western Montgomery, eastern Berks, and northern Chester counties.

Suburban Transit‘s award is part of $2.3 million distributed to 27 transportation projects statewide. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) offered funds to upgrade the company’s fleet to rely on cleaner fuels. The intent: to improve service for passengers while also creating healthier air.

With the money, Suburban is scheduled to buy eight Class 3 propane-powered transit vans. The network says it will deploy the vehicles in locations recognized by Pennsylvania as “environmental justice areas.” The department defines them as geographic areas that suffer from an “increased pollution burden,” and are home to “sensitive or vulnerable populations.”

The agency covers a wide territory that includes parts of Montgomery, Berks, Chester, Lehigh, Delaware, and Philadelphia counties. Three partners that offer most local service are:

  • Tri County Transit in Sanatoga, covering areas in and around Pottstown, Limerick, Collegeville, Phoenixville, South Coventry, Union and Amity;
  • Valley Transit in Red Hill, covering in and around Boyertown, Washington, Hereford, Upper Milford, Milford, Marlborough, and Lower Frederick; and
  • Easton Coach (Mid-County and Norristown divisions) covering in and around Skippack, Lansdale, Souderton, Sellersville, Norristown, and Conshohocken.

Transporting passengers, cleaning the air

With Grant, Suburban Transit Helps Riders and Cleans Air
Fleets of varied vehicles allow Suburban Transit partners to ensure they best meet passenger needs

Overall, Suburban serves portions of a six-county area. It works with a total of six partners to provide passenger transportation for the disabled, those needing medical assistance, schools and camps, shared ride programs, and organizations needing shuttle programs.

Department Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley explains that a “substantial amount of air pollution comes from cars and trucks on the road.” Moving transit services toward “sustainable and renewable” fuels like propane and other alternatives can lower greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality, she adds.

Overall, the projects will save an estimated 895,231 gallons of gasoline annually, the department claims in the awards announcement it issued Tuesday (July 31, 2024).

Also receiving DEP grants were:

  • In Montgomery County, John S. Posen Inc., $11,010, for the purchase of one Class 5 propane truck; and
  • In Chester County, East Pikeland Township, $5,625, for the purchase of one electric pickup truck; and the East Pikeland Township police department, $49,585, to install a DC Fast charger for use by the police fleet.

Photos provided by Suburban Transit Network Inc.
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