WILKES-BARRE -- The buses riding around Wilkes-Barre were a little bit more crowded than usual on Thursday. People that may not take the bus regularly were able to ride for free as part of the Luzerne County Transportation Authority's “Dump The Pump.”
This is not a problem for Coleen Horst. As a bus driver for 13 years, Horst was happy to see some old and some new faces accompany her on her bus route.
“I like to see new faces on the bus. We have our regular riders that go to work and everything like that, but what you see the new faces on the bus and they are asking questions like how to do it, it helps out,” said Horst.
The 12th annual “Dump The Pump: Ride Public Transit” urges people to ride buses to take them where they need to go, instead of driving a car. It originally started in 2006 to provide an option meant to help people save money.
“It just bodes well for the environment getting cars off the road, fewer accidents, less fuel being use,d fewer particle releases in the atmosphere; there`s a lot of good things about it,” says Norm Gavlick, Luzerne County Transportation Authority.
Whether going shopping or to the VA Medical Center, veteran Mike Glasson uses public transportation frequently. He says the free transportation provides ways for him to travel on and off the bus despite his handicap.
“It cleans up the environment, it gives the people a chance to test the bus system to see how it is. It is more economical and you save bucks,” Mike Glasson Wilkes-Barre Township
Luzerne County Transportation Authority plans to convert their bus fleet into a natural gas fleet in the near future.