CONNECTIONS

A Guide to Public Transportation in the Metro-Harrisburg Region and Beyond

3. CAPITAL AREA TRANSIT

TCRPC Home

CONNECTIONS Home

1. Introduction

2. Connections

3. Capital Area Transit

4. Paratransit/Handicap

5. Reg/Ntl Pub Transit

6. PA Public Transit

7. Other Options

8. Why Transit?

9. Glossary

10. Acronyms & Abrev.

11. Appendix

Table of Contents

• CAT Personnel

• CAT Fares & Zones

• How to Use the CAT System

• How to Find the Right Bus

  • Bus Destination Signs

  • Schedules

  • Bus Stop Signs

  • Service Changes and Additions

  • Transfers

  • Express

• TransitChek

• CAT Routes

  • CAT System Maps

  • Facilities served by CAT

  • CAT Routes List

• CAT Costs

• Special Services

  • Employer Shuttles & Night Services

  • Free Transit for Seniors

  • Share A Ride Services

[CAT Fares & Zones]

[CAT Schedules]

[CAT System Map]

[CAT System Map Insets]

CAT Routes:

East Shore:

• [1 Market St.]

• [3 Third St.]

  • [3A Med Arts]

  [6 Sixth St.]

  • [3/6 Night Loop]

• [7 Middletown]

  • [7 ROC]

• [8 Derry/Rutherford]

• [12 Colonial Park]

• [13 Paxton St.]

• [14 Union Dep./4 Seas.]

• [15 Union Deposit]

• [16 Union Dep./Penn.]

• [18 Glenside]

• [19 Steelton]

• [20 High Pnt Cmns]

  • [TECPORT]

• [21 DGS Annex]

• [322 Hershey]

  • [322 Summer]

• [CI City Island/HACC]

• [Islander]

West Shore:

• [A New Cumberland]

• [B Highland Park]

• [C Carlisle Local]

  • [CX Carlisle Express]

• [D Shoppers' Special]

• [F Enola]

• [K Erford Rd.]

• [L Lemoyne Stn Shuttle]

• [M Mechanicsburg]

  • [M-AL Arnld Log]

  • [MX Mchsbrg Xprs]

• [Dillsburg]

• 81 Shippensburg

  • [81 Shp-Hbg]

  • [81 Shp-Navy]

Employers:

• [Employer Routes]

CAT is the public transportation provider for the Harrisburg region, serving both Cumberland and Dauphin Counties with fixed-route bus service and door-to-door Share a Ride service in Dauphin County.

CAT fixed-route buses stop at set bus stops along pre-determined routes, according to a fixed schedule. Schedules are available from the CAT offices, on the buses, on CAT's website (http://www.cattransit.com/) and locations throughout the area including the Harrisburg Transportation Center.

To pay for a ride on CAT, either deposit the exact fare into the fare box at the front of the bus (driver does not have change so make sure to have enough bills and change for the ride). If you are using an 11 or 25 punch card, hand the card to the driver and she or he will punch the card for the trip, or if you have a monthly pass, show the driver the pass. When traveling on the bus, you indicate to the driver that you wish to depart the bus by pulling down on the cord which runs along the window line. This will set an indicator on up by the driver to let he or she know to stop at the next bus stop. Upon stopping, the rider may exit from the back door, while new riders enter by the front door.

CAT Fares

Click here for current CAT Ridership Fares, Ticket Purchase Locations and Zones.

How to Use the CAT System

Currently, most CAT routes radiate from downtown Harrisburg to the suburbs. In most cases, a bus heading toward the city (inbound) travels downtown. A bus heading away from the city (outbound) travels to the destination displayed on the front of the bus. In many cases, inbound buses will display their final outbound destinations on the front of the bus. Generally, bus routes serving Dauphin County are numbered while those serving Cumberland County are lettered.

How to Find the Right Bus

CAT uses several aids to help riders find the right bus for their trip.  Some of these include:

• Bus Schedules for each bus route

• Bus Stop Signs along bus route

• Destination signs on front of bus

Bus Destination Signs

The destination of a particular bus is displayed on the destination sign located above the windshield. The sign will display the Route ID (generally numbered for Dauphin County, lettered for Cumberland County) and the name of the route. After the Route ID and name, the final destination of the bus will be displayed. Pay attention to the final destination display as the last stop on a Route can vary depending on the time of day and other factors. The route name is also displayed above the curbside front window of the bus immediately behind the front door. If you are uncertain if a particular bus will stop at the spot where you wish to depart, please ask the bus driver.

Buses displaying the message, “Not in Service” or “Garage Coach” are returning to the CAT garage and will not pick up passengers. Bus signs displaying “Express” provide non-stop service from certain points in the suburbs to Downtown Harrisburg. These buses will neither pick-up nor drop-off passengers enroute. If the message says “Market Square”, it means the last stop will be the Market Square Transfer Center at 2nd and Market Streets. If the bus is marked “Capitol Complex” it will stop at various bus stops serving Walnut, Commonwealth, and 3rd Street surrounding the Capitol.
 

Map 2.1 Sample CAT Schedule

Schedule courtesy of CAT

Schedules

CAT provides a schedule for each bus route in service. The front of each schedule displays the identifying route number and name. The schedule also contains a map of the route, shown with the locations of timed stops. Each schedule is divided into two sections. The first section lists the weekday (Monday-Friday) service and the second lists the Saturday service. If a schedule does not list a Saturday service, CAT does not provide Saturday service on that particular route. CAT does not provide service on Sundays or national holidays. Each section is then divided into inbound (toward downtown) and outbound (away from downtown) runs.

The preceding page contains an example of a CAT Bus Schedule. Major stops along a route are numbered on the map and correspond to the numbers on the time schedule. Read down to identify what times the bus arrives at a certain location. Read across to identify what times a bus will stop at each major location along the route (this is known as a bus trip). If the time is blank at a certain location, it means that the bus will not stop at that location during that particular trip.

If you need to arrive at a location at a certain time, the time at which you need to catch the bus can be easily determined. For example, if you live near 19th and Sycamore Street in Harrisburg and you need to catch an Amtrak train to Philadelphia that leaves at 10 AM. Looking at the schedule provided you would:

1. Identify the time schedule for the direction you are traveling. In this case, you are traveling to downtown (inbound).

2. Identify your final destination. In this case, you are going to the train station.

3. Read downward to a time just before you need to be there. In this case, the Amtrak train departs the station at 10 AM so you want to be on the bus that arrives at 9:27 AM, which gives you sufficient time to purchase a ticket and board the train.

4. Read backward along the row to the column that has the stop that you will get on the bus. In this case, the bus you need arrives at 19th and Sycamore at 9:11 AM

Please note that the times on the bus schedules are approximate. Buses can be delayed due to congestion, construction, weather, and other factors. The street intersections shown on each schedule are known as “Time Points.” They are also shown as blue dots on the route map on the schedules. These checkpoints represent significant locations along the route, but are not the only locations a bus will stop on that route. A CAT bus will stop approximately every two blocks along a designated route in urban areas, greater distances in suburban and rural areas. To ensure being at a bus stop in sufficient time before boarding a bus that is between two time checkpoints, riders should be at the bus stop at the time of the earlier time checkpoint.

Schedules are available at CAT’s main office, the Customer Kiosk at the Market Square Transfer Center, and at several select businesses and local government offices throughout Cumberland and Dauphin Counties. Each bus also often carries schedules for the route being driven. Riders may also contact CAT and request schedules by mail. Schedules are also available on the CAT website at www.cattransit.com. 

Bus Stop Signs

CAT has installed bus stop signs throughout the transit system.  In the metropolitan area, buses will only stop at these designated locations to pick up and drop off passengers.  Some sparsely populated areas do not have bus stop signs.  Riders in these areas should contact CAT about bus service.  Where a bus route is available in the sparsely populated areas, riders may need to walk to the nearest street on the route and wave their hand to signal the driver when a bus comes in sight.  This is known as a “Flag Stop.”

Service Changes and Additions

Local radio and television stations as well as newspapers address any changes or additions made to CAT’s bus service, whether temporary (weather related or accident detour) or permanent.  In addition, when changes are made, new schedules for the affected areas are prepared and distributed prior to the effective date.

Transfers

When travel requires CAT riders to use more than one route, transfers may be purchased to allow for a continuous trip to a particular destination.  Transfers must be used within a 1 ½ -hour time period from the time of issuance or on the next scheduled connecting bus.  They are not valid for a return trip on the same route.  Giving the transfer slip to the driver of the second bus completes a transfer.

Express Buses

Express buses provide non-stop service from certain points in the suburbs to Downtown Harrisburg.  There is an additional 25¢ fee to ride an express bus unless a monthly pass is purchased, in which case there are no additional costs.  Currently Routes 7, 12, 20, and 322 have some morning inbound and afternoon outbound express runs. CX, MX, Dillsburg Express, and Shippensburg/Newville/Harrisburg Express are dedicated Express Routes.

TransitChek (see Chapter 7 for more on TransitChek) is a commuter benefit program that employers can offer to their employees to help pay for commuting on transit. It saves employers and commuters money because the program takes advantage of federal legislation that allows TAX-FREE dollars to pay for transit fares.  The employer provides the employee with special TransitChek checks the employee can use to pay for transit passes.  CAT accepts TransitChek checks for monthly and punchcard passes.

CAT Routes

The CAT fixed-route bus system serves the greater Harrisburg Metropolitan Region including Carlisle. Currently there is no daily service provided into Perry County or to Upper-Dauphin County.

The chart below provides average run frequencies during various times of the day for both weekdays and Saturdays.  The Average Run Frequency is only an average dividing the hours of operation in a time period by the number of runs in that period.  Check schedules for exact times, as time differences between some runs may be less than the average while others may be much greater than the average. 

Routes 3 to upper Harrisburg and 12 to Lower Paxton have the highest average daily ridership.  Other busy routes include Route 1 along Market St., 6 to upper Harrisburg, 7 to Middletown, 13 along Paxton St., and 19 to Steelton.  Higher performing Routes going into Cumberland County include Route B to Highland Park, C to Carlisle, and M to Mechanicsburg.

Table 3.1 CAT Bus Routes and Run Frequencies (as of Dec. 1, 2006)