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Berkshire Regional Transit Authority Offering Free Rides Though Saturday

By Brittany PolitoPrint Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Catch a free bus ride in Berkshire County while you can.

Berkshire Regional Transit Authority is offering free rides from Monday, July 12 through Saturday, July 17 to welcome new riders and thank existing ones for their patronage.

"The BRTA is so happy to see everyone out and about," Deputy Administrator Sarah Vallieres said. "This is a big ‘thank you' to all of our customers who used our services throughout the pandemic and a 'welcome aboard' to anyone who has never traveled with us."

This is a promotion to encourage riders to use the public transportation services they offer through 13 communities in Berkshire County in the hopes of generating more interest and more ridership for the rest of the year.

It is a way to welcome back existing riders and new riders as the COVID-19 pandemic begins to lessen and more people are leaving their homes.

BRTA has made some service changes and some alterations to the transfer policy, Vallieres said, and this free week is also intended to help riders and potential riders familiarize themselves with the transportation system.


This is the first time BRTA has offered such a promotion because the authority, along with the entire world, has never experienced an event like a global pandemic that caused such disruption in life.

"The BRTA does offer free rides on your birthday, but nothing for a full week of service," Vallieres added.

In the month of June, there were 30,468 riders on the fixed-route bus system.  The BRTA's numbers are trending upwards as the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic lessens.

Specific schedule or route information may be obtained by contacting the operations department at 1-800-292-BRTA extension 1 or by visiting the BRTA website.

 


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Pittsfield Looks to Update Zoning for ADUs

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Accessory dwelling units will be by-right in early 2025 and the city wants to be prepared.

On Tuesday, the Community Development Board voted to become the petitioner for amendments to the City Code that reflect the new ADU legislation. City Planner Kevin Rayner has crafted a draft ordinance that the board will dig into before it goes to the City Council.

As a part of the $4.1 billion Affordable Homes Act signed into law over the summer, ADUs up to 900 square feet can be built by right in single-family zoning districts.

"This legislation will go into effect February 2, 2025, so we're trying to get our ordinance to accommodate ADUs by that point," Rayner said.

"Our ordinance wasn't prohibitive against accessory dwelling units, but we do need to up our dimensional requirements to kind of accommodate for them as they are, sort of like an accessory structure, in a way but they have some different requirements because they are being used as a dwelling."

The city plans to allow ADUs in a one- to two-family residential use, allowing for duplexes that meet other requirements to have one.

Most of the amendments will take place in Article 23 Section 9.101, which outlines restrictions for accessory buildings.  

"They're mostly dimensional. We're going to make it so that maybe you can't take up more than 20 percent of the lot coverage," Rayner said.

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