On April 19, Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT) reopened the 154-year-old Monongahela Incline, which had been closed since March 5 when a pair of resistors failed, causing the brakes to engage when they were not supposed to. PRT engineers and an engineering consultant later determined the resistors were underrated for the function they were supposed to perform.
Once engineers approved a new electrical design, contractors ordered and installed the new parts and PRT began testing the incline. The incline passed inspection by the state Department of Licensing & Inspection before reopening.
The repairs are under contract from the 2022-2023 rehabilitation project and will not cost PRT, nor Allegheny County taxpayers in Pittsburgh, Pa., any additional money. The incline has been fraught with issues since the $8.2 million rehabilitation project, having been closed nearly a half-dozen times for various reasons during the past 12 months.
Talson Solutions, a capital project advisory and consulting services company from Philadelphia, Pa., began work this month to conduct an independent review of recent incline contracts and current procedures and protocols to improve the reliability, maintenance and operations of the incline.
A review committee made up of community members, business owners and other key stakeholders has been established to work in conjunction with Talson to ensure an additional layer of transparency and accountability.
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Editor's Note: This story was revised 4/23/24.
