The new Route 323 provides weekday bus service to Center Valley, Saucon Valley and South Bethlehem. (Credit: LANTA)
If you rely on public transportation in the South Bethlehem-Lower Saucon-Center Valley area, the Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority (LANTA) has good news for you.
LANTA announced Friday that it is expanding the availability of buses in those areas by adding stops and introducing a new route to connect Bethlehem’s South Side with the Promenade Shops “and other destinations in Saucon Valley.”
Northbound stops on the new Route 323, which operates weekdays, include Corporate Parkway in Upper Saucon Township, the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley, Penn State Lehigh Valley, the Saucon Valley Square shopping center on Rt. 378 in Lower Saucon Township and Fourth Street/Brodhead Avenue in South Bethlehem.
The southbound route includes the same stops listed above–in reverse order–plus stops at the Banana Factory and Third Street/Fillmore Street on the city’s South Side.
The new route is “welcome news to students, shoppers and others this academic year, including those attending Penn State-Lehigh Valley, Lehigh University and Northampton Community College’s Fowler Campus,” a LANTA news release noted.
Fall semester classes at many local colleges and universities have just begun.
Route 323 operates Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. and connects to LANTA’s new Enhanced Bus Service (EBS) Green Line, which offers frequent limited-stop service to Whitehall and Allentown from the new Southside Station at Bethlehem Parking Authority’s soon-to-open Polk Street Garage, the release said.
In addition to the Southside Station, the EBS Green Line has four additional South Side stops, including Fahy Bridge South (Second Street at Columbia and Adams streets); Hayes and Third streets; Greenway (Daly Avenue at the South Bethlehem Greenway); and Casino (under the Minsi Trail Bridge next to Wind Creek Casino’s main entrance).
“The new LANtaBus EBS system gives Southsiders rapid transit access to Downtown Bethlehem, Union Boulevard, Coca-Cola Park, Downtown Allentown, Lehigh Valley Mall and other destinations,” the news release.
To view a map and timetable for the new Route 323 (Center Valley) visit LANTABus.com.
LANTA, which was formed as a regional transportation network for the Lehigh Valley in 1972, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. An anniversary page on the website features vintage photos, logos and fun facts about LANTA from the past 50 years.