The Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority (LANTA) is restructuring its routes at the end of June this year. Some interesting changes within Easton:
- West Ward / College Hill: Route 106, which currently runs from downtown Easton north to the Palmer Industrial Park via PA 248, is being extended from Easton up Cattell and Sullivan Trail to Forks Plaza. In addition, it’s frequency is increasing to half-hourly between Easton Hospital and Forks. Route 214, currently running from dowtown Easton to the Forks Industrial Park on an hourly schedule, goes down every three hours and meanders around in Forks.
- Downtown / Northampton Crossings: Route 216 was running on a not-quite-hourly schedule from downtown up PA 248 to Northampton Crossings and making local stops on Northampton Street. It loops on Greenwood now and doesn’t go up 248, with a reduced schedule.
The big change here is the vastly improved access between the West Ward and College Hill. In theory you could make a connection with the 216 downtown but (a) buses weren’t held for it and (b) it was hourly. Now the bus becomes a viable option for reaching campus. Losing some local service on Northampton is offset by the more frequent service on Lehigh/Washington, and I was already using it more often anyway.