Route Focus: PVTA Route 38 - Mount Holyoke/Hampshire/Amherst/UMass

Route Focus: PVTA Route 38 - Mount Holyoke/Hampshire/Amherst/UMass

  April 08, 2020    Kareem W

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Trip: UMass / Haigis Mall

Taken: February 2020

Running from South Hadley to Amherst and serving four out of the five colleges in the area (Mt. Holyoke College, Hampshire College, Amherst College, and UMass Amherst), UMass Transit operated Route 38 appears to be a very key college route in the PVTA’s Northern service area.

A good-looking Gillig bus for the 38

I took the 38 to UMass Amherst on a regular academic morning. The vehicle operating the trip was PVTA bus #3215, a 2007 Gillig Low Floor 40’. At the southern end, the route begins at the Mt. Holyoke campus, outside a building called Blanchard Hall. Leaving the stop, we turned onto Chapin Road, serving one more on-campus stop.

I love the appearance of the brick buildings at Mt. Holyoke

Leaving the campus, we turned north on Route 116, which is College Street in South Hadley. Heading through South Hadley’s center, we passed the large stone buildings of Mount Holyoke and small town common with its cafes and eateries.

For the next 3 miles after the town common, houses line Route 116, but as the road climbed towards the Mount Holyoke Range, there are less houses and stops, and the road becomes more winding. At the peak of the hill there is a quarry and “The Notch” at the Mt. Holyoke Range State Park, which is a popular hiking trail that is served by this route.

The parking lot for “The Notch” – Even in the middle of February, there’s people using it

After descending the hill, we arrived at Atkins Corner in Amherst, home to the notable Atkins Farms Country Market. After going around a roundabout, there’s a stop for the market on West Bay Road. We soon turned into the entrance of Hampshire College, which has the Eric Carle Museum at the start. The bus used a series a campus roads to get to the main bus stop at Hampshire College, outside of the library center. This is a timepoint and is also served by routes 39 and R29.

The bus shelter and a building at Hampshire College – Sadly this was the best picture I could get

After a brief wait, the bus departed the stop and we continued on some more narrow roads to leave the campus. Leaving Hampshire College, we continued north on Rt. 116, where houses and the occasional business lined the road again. There was a bit of development at the intersection of Pomeroy Lane, but the surroundings were still rural for another three miles.

There’s a lovely footbridge over a river at one point along the route

After a bit, Amherst College finally comes in view and that’s when you know you are approaching Amherst’s downtown. The bus turned off of Pleasant Street and onto Boltwood Avenue, to serve Amherst College’s main stop, also served by the eastern end of the B43 to Northampton.

Historical looking buildings of Amherst College

Leaving the stop, the bus got back onto Pleasant Street, passing the Amherst town common and proceeding through Amherst’s downtown, lined with shops and restaurants popular with college students. After going around a roundabout, UMass affiliated buildings began to appear, and before long the bus turned into the Haigis Mall, which is a rather grand plaza with the UMass Fine Arts Center at the end of it. The bus rounded the loop of Haigis Mall, and this was the end of the 38, which is also the end of the R29 and a stop for the B43 and Peter Pan intercity buses.

The bus takes a short break with the massive Fine Arts Center in the background

Overview

The 38 has headways of 30 minutes on weekdays and operates on Saturdays and Sundays during the 5 Colleges academic semesters. The 38 does not operate at all during the summer and major holidays. The 38 does a great job at connecting 4 major colleges in the region to each other, as well as activities like downtown Amherst, hiking trails, museums, and inevitable college parties. Operating as late as 2 AM on Fridays and Saturdays, I am sure the 38 is used to get students back to their residences after parties. As for ridership, the 38 gets between 20 and 30 passengers per revenue hour, which is above the expectations of the PVTA but also lower than some of the other “campus service” routes. The late-morning trip I was on got 29 passengers overall.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the 38 is a well-regarded route that is essential to connecting the people of 4 major colleges together. The frequency and ridership of the route is good for what it is, and while the route may not be as scenic as the 39, its still is good enough. The 38 is a decent route in my book.