A 447-space park-and-ride lot built as part of the Mon-Fayette Expressway's Route 51 interchange will open Monday morning. The Turnpike Commission handed the lot over to the Port Authority during ceremonies Friday. It is located just east of Route 51 in Large, along the reconstructed Peters Creek Road, at the northern end of the 17-mile expressway between Interstate 70 in Washington County and Route 51. The Turnpike Commission built the lot as part of environmental clearances for the expressway. The Port Authority will provide frequent rush hour service between the park-and-ride lot and downtown Pittsburgh via bus routes 46G Elizabeth, CL Clairton Flyer, E Elizabeth Flyer and the JL Jefferson Flyer. The 46G will also provide midday service between the lot and Downtown. All routes will travel on Route 51 and the South Busway. Cash fare is $2 each way. A weekly pass is $17 and a monthly pass costs $61.25. The $1.3 million lot includes four bus shelters with benches and a bus driver relief station. Jefferson Hills Mayor Mary Larcinese said she is looking forward to seeing the lot opened and how much traffic it gets. "When people realize it's a lot easier to park here and catch the bus, they're going to utilize it," she said. "It's in a nice location. I think we're going to find folks from Clairton and Elizabeth using this park-and-ride, not just Jefferson residents, which is fine." Larcinese said borough police will patrol the lot to guard against vandalism and theft. To commemorate the opening, Port Authority personnel will give a special gift to each motorist who parks at the lot between 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. Monday. The facility is the Port Authority's 50th park-and-ride and is the largest park-and-ride served exclusively by bus. The authority's lots combined total 8,700 parking spaces. About four miles of the 17-mile expressway, from Interstate 70 to Coyle Curtin Road, opened in May. The rest of the highway to Route 51 is scheduled to open in the spring.

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