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WILKES-BARRE — Thursday was a good day to ditch the keys for commuters in Northeastern Pennsylvania and across America.
The Luzerne County Transportation Authority participated in the 13th Annual Dump the Pump Day, offering free rides to all passengers.
Sponsored by American Public Transportation Association and public transit systems across the country, Dump the Pump Day encourages individuals to give up their vehicles and try transit for the day.
“We do it so we can encourage folks who might not otherwise try riding the bus to try it,” LCTA Executive Director Norm Gavlick said. “We make it simple, easy and free. It’s not complicated.”
Among those folks on Thursday were officials representing local business and civic groups, as well as the city of Nanticoke, who boarded an LCTA bus near the transit system’s Kingston headquarters for a ride to the intermodal transit center in downtown Wilkes-Barre.
When they arrived, they joined Gavlick and Lorri Vandermark, LCTA public relations manager, for a celebration commemorating Dump the Pump Day and the launch of a new promotion designed to encourage more bus passengers to explore downtown businesses and attractions.
Under LCTA’s Explore and Win contest, riders can pick up a punch card with seven different downtown destinations. Between now and July 16, they must visit each location and have the card stamped — no purchase is necessary.
The cards are available at a number of locations, including the LCTA offices in Kingston, the intermodal center, the Wilkes-Barre Family YMCA, City Market & Cafe and others. Completed punch cards must be delivered to the LCTA window at the Intermodal Center no later than 4 p.m. July 16.
First prize is a full year of travel on LCTA, second prize is a six-month family membership to the YMCA and third prize is a downtown gift certificate package.
Full rules can be found at www.lctabus.com/sweepstakes.html, and the drawing will be held on July 18.
“We’ve been adding our own things to the national Dump the Pump Day each year,” Gavlick said of the contest.
“We’re bringing thousands of people a day into the intermodal. We’re trying to get more of those people to go out into the downtown to visit the business and festivals and events on the square,” he said.
Diamond City Partnership Executive Director Larry Newman, who rode the bus in from Kingston with other officials, agreed.
“It was just a great trip on the bus,” Newman said. “I think one of the things were hoping people do is take the bus into downtown, visit our stores and restaurants and realize just how easy it is to come to downtown.”
How will LCTA measure the success of Dump the Pump Day?
Gavlick said the system typically carries between 4,000 and 5,000 riders each day. He said it could take a few days to know how many extra passengers climbed aboard on Thursday, but “we generally see a decent uptick of people.”
More than that, he believes the exposure can help promote bus use.
“It’s all about elevating the visibility of public transit — how easy it is to use, the accessibility, just getting more people to know about it,” Gavlick added.
