The busway runs for 5.1 miles (8.2 km) from the southern shore of the Ohio River near Downtown Pittsburgh to Carnegie,[1] following former railroad right-of-way on the Panhandle Route.

[citation needed] It broke ground on October 27, 1994 and is owned and maintained by Pittsburgh Regional Transit, the public transit provider for Allegheny County and the Pittsburgh region.

In addition to running along the abandoned railroad right of way, the West Busway also reuses the historic Cork Run Tunnel, also known as the Berry Street Tunnel, which was heavily refurbished for the busway The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), under its BRT Standard, has classified the West Busway as a "Basic BRT" corridor.

[3] Four Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus routes currently serve the West Busway.

[4] Another important route is the 28X Airport Flyer which uses the West Busway as far south as Bell Station where dedicated ramps connect the Busway to Interstate 376.