URGENT UPDATE: Major changes to the BARTA bus schedule will take effect on January 5, impacting riders across the region. The South Central Transit Authority has confirmed several adjustments aimed at improving service reliability and better serving the community’s needs.
Route 1 will see significant modifications. The time point at Fifth Street Highway and Crescent Avenue will be eliminated for both outbound and inbound trips, with adjustments made to enhance on-time performance.
In a bid to accommodate local workers, Route 8 will add four additional trips to Birdsboro between 12:50 p.m. and 5 p.m. Notably, the 5:15 a.m. trip will no longer serve the Boscov’s Distribution Center, shifting this service to the 7:15 a.m. trip instead.
Route 9 will now include service to Berks Nature, located at 575 St. Bernardine St., for both inbound and outbound trips. Meanwhile, Route 10 will extend its service to Shillington Plaza after 6:30 p.m. inbound only.
For those using Route 14, please note it will no longer serve the Wernersville State Hospital from Womelsdorf on trips marked with an “A” on the schedule.
Additionally, Route 15 is adjusting its schedule to improve on-time performance and will now take a safer route at Park Road and Hill Avenue. This route will travel to Reading Avenue and then to Penn Avenue.
Safety improvements are also being implemented on Route 16, which will follow the same adjusted route as Route 15 and will add service to R.M. Palmer Company on its last trip at 11:05 p.m.
Route 17 will now serve Tower Behavioral Health on inbound trips only, reflecting a commitment to supporting mental health services in the area. Lastly, Route 22 will extend its route from East Penn Manufacturing to Kutztown University for all trips, enhancing access to education for local students.
For full details on the schedule changes, passengers can visit bartabus.com. Stay tuned for further updates as BARTA aims to improve transit service for the community.
