Is it time to replace the Mon Incline? Officials ponder its future

Pittsburgh Regional Transit officials are discussing what the future of the 154-year-old Monongahela Incline will look like, including the possibility it could be replaced by more modern technology.

The incline has been closed for a total of 39 weeks in the last two years due to repairs and upgrades.

Pittsburgh Regional Transit CEO Katharine Kelleman held a news conference Tuesday to announce the public transit agency is forming a committee and talking to an outside consulting firm to investigate several of the Mon Incline’s issues. Despite an upgrade project about a year ago, the incline has been rife with closures.

She said those discussions could include replacing the incline — the oldest continually operating funicular in the nation.

Kelleman said the incline’s “shortcut” route between Pittsburgh’s Station Square to Mt. Washington must be preserved. She said the Mon Incline is “a cherished part of Pittsburgh’s heritage,” and the agency’s goal is to preserve it in its current form.

But she added Pittsburgh Regional Transit is open to a future with a more modern replacement.

“There are not a lot of places in the U.S. that still do them,” said Kelleman, noting there are just 10 regular working funiculars left in the nation. “But there are places around the world that have modern versions. Whether they are gondolas, whether they are trams. As part of our big capital conversion, it probably is time to start asking what solutions are out there for a more modern way to connect these two areas.”

She reiterated the Mon Incline should remain at its location, but its public transit usage could change.

“If the incline sits here as a museum next to something that is pretty, shiny and new, that should be on the table,” Kelleman said. “But we absolutely need to have the conversation because Mt. Washington and Pittsburgh deserve an incline that is running.”

The incline shut down again last Tuesday due to a computer issue that is causing the doors to malfunction, said Kelleman. She said there is no timeline yet for when the Mon Incline will reopen, but the agency is hoping the issue will be resolved in a matter of days or weeks.

Before the current closure, the incline was closed for five weeks between January and February after electrical and mechanical errors were fixed. The incline underwent an $8.2 million renovation project that closed the funicular down between August 2022 to March 2023.

Any replacement or large change to the incline would take a significant capital project. Pittsburgh Regional Transit officials said it is too early to discuss potential costs or funding sources.

The Mon Incline is one of Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s most efficient transit routes, said spokesman Adam Brandolph. Cars travel just 635 feet up and down, an elevation gain of nearly 370 feet.

In the 2022 fiscal year, before the many recent closures, the Mon Incline carried 719 average weekday riders, 1,857 average riders Saturdays and 1,062 average riders Sundays.

Its average cost per rider was $4.15, meaning the incline came within about a dollar and a half of breaking even with its operating cost because of Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s $2.75 fares. Brandolph said that makes the incline one of the most efficient routes in Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s system.

Kelleman said a Mon Incline committee would include nearby business owners, local elected officials, and others. She said the committee will be formed in the near future, but no specific timeline was provided.

The name of the consulting firm has not been released.

The consulting firm will be dedicated to investigating short-term maintenance solutions to ensure the Mon Incline can stay running, Brandolph said.

Details regarding the consultant and committee will be made available once finalized.