I got out for short rides on Monday and today after work. It's been downright weird though. People at Costco actually stopping and waving me through. Someone at one of the hotels was blocking the crosswalk and actually backed up to let me pass. Dog walkers saying hello instead of cursing me...

I don't know if it's the Northern Lights or if I should expect to see the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man terrorizing the streets soon, but I'll take the friendliness while I can.

This has been discussed a few times over on the general Pittsburgh subreddit (and I'm sure some of you have commented on those threads), but just wondering if there is a consensus from the "bike-specific" community on this issue?

Some general points:

1. I assume there is a fair degree of overlap between folks who are interested in biking/bike infrastructure and folks who support further development of public transit options.
2. For its part, it appears that the firm that is proposing this use, Railroad Development Corp., has been advocating for this potential use for, at least, 6 years (and the County and/or associated redevelopment entities, have, apparently, repeatedly rejected the dual use proposals).
3. PRT has included the potential to develop this route in long-term plans, although it does not appear that any substantial steps were ever taken toward developing this route, and certainly no funding was available to do so.
4. Trail advocates worked diligently for several years to secure an agreement with the owners of the Brilliant Branch, and after securing such agreement, and seeking approval from a government entity known as the "Surface Transportation Board," Railroad Development Corp., is attempting to insert itself into the process, in order to promote its desired use.
5. Railroad Development Corp. claims that there is community support for its proposal, and it did file five (5) letters of support with the Surface Transportation Board, including letters from two rails with trails advocates, a CMU professor and two reps from transit organizations ("Pittsburghers for Public Transit" and "Mobilify Southwestern Pennsylvania").
6. In their filing with the Surface Transportation Board, Railroad Development Corp. and its affiliate, Pop-Up Metro, claim that the trail only usage represents, "the parochial policies advocated by the former Allegheny County Executive" and that such proposal is "short-sighted and is merely reflective of local politics".
7. Pop-Up Metro claims that it will invest, at a minimum, $3.5 million in the project, although it is not necessarily clear what percentage of these monies would go toward the trail development vs. the proposed transit use.

I dunno, what do yinz think?

Hi all, my partner and I are planning a bike trip this summer from DC (where we live) to Michigan (where my family lives). We will take the C&O and GAP to Pittsburgh, and then a mix of trails and quieter roads from there. Most of the trip is hashed out and looking good, but I am having trouble finding a good route north out of Pittsburgh. Any advice?

Currently, the best option looks like:

-North Shore Trail, cross McKees Rock Bridge

-Island ave to Neville road

-PA 51 to Sewickley, mostly neighborhood streets north to Rochester

My concerns with this route are 51 and 65. It looks like they are unavoidable on this route and from my Google Maps perspective, it doesn't look like a safe ride. It seems like it'll be a lot of sidewalk riding, too, which is fine. Safety is the real concern here.

Any solutions? I was trying to see if there are any good bus routes that could get us to Crescent Township or somewhere nearby where the roads seem to calm down a bit, but couldn't figure out a good route.

I am happy to DM my ridewithgps route to folks if that would help with suggesstions! Just don't want to share the whole route here as endpoints give away my addresses.

Title says it all. I can't find any current information as to whether it's reopened yet.

An international annual event, The Ride of Silence brings together community members who have been affected by traffic violence. Here in Pittsburgh, the ride is organized by the Western PA Bicycle Club with support from Women@Work Cycling Club and BikePGH.

On this day, bicyclists will take to the roads in a silent procession to honor bicyclists who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. Although bicyclists have a legal right to share the road with motorists, the public often isn’t aware of these rights, and sometimes not aware of cyclists themselves.

When: Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Time: 6:45 pm announcements, 7:00 pm ride begins (please come early to sign a waiver)

Starting Location: Second Avenue Parking Plaza (parking is free after 5pm)

We’ll travel about 10 miles through Downtown Pittsburgh past the ghost bike memorial for James Mills, across the newly reopened Clemente Bridge to Allegheny Circle, to the Strip District, then back through Downtown. This year’s ride will highlight that we rely on quality biking infrastructure to get around safely.

https://bikepgh.org/2024/04/26/pittsburgh-ride-of-silence-wednesday-may-15-2024/

Bike & pedestrian advocates in the "Far East End" neighborhoods & boroughs are going for a group ride on Wednesday, May 22nd at 6pm to explore what we hope will become the Three Rivers Heritage Trail extension from Duck Hollow to Carrie Furnace.

Meet at 3 Rivers Outdoors Club, bring lights, and plan to join us for a bite or drink afterwards at D's!

The route will include some off roading on potentially muddy and overgrown sections of trail, so prepare accordingly. You won't need a mountain bike, but a road bike will probably lead to struggles.

More info: https://fb.me/e/1XorU2Gre

There is a bad section on the north side of the river approaching downtown, but biking on the south side between Hot Metal Bridge and Costco is extremely unpleasant. Today I biked that section for the second time and remembered why I didn't like it.

Does anyone who is more in touch with the bike infrastructure know if there are plans to fix the tree root problem? I would rather bike in the sun than deal with the trail being so bumpy from tree roots.

Trying to plan a route from the bridge to millvale trail. Not familiar with area. Looks like I can cross HP bridge and take the ramp to main st. follow to the 62nd st bridge. And then butler street.

From here the heat map kinda splits. it looks like either Parker st to seavy road or Washington to Friday???

Then there’s the evergreen or north ave choice down to the trail???

Anyone familiar and have the best route? Is there a climb off of butler street? I usually come down one wild place and hang a left down butler? into lawrenceville. Looking for something different and cross another bridge. Any info is greatly appreciated.

I was thinking about the Bud Harris track, but I wanted to get more input. Any other good spots?

Whats the verdict? Allowed? Allowed but frowned upon? Not allowed?

Hi guys, I will be attending the university of Pittsburgh this coming fall. Currently, I live in NYC, I race road and ride anywhere from 12-20 hours a week. I am looking for some good training routes in the Pittsburgh area. I would also like to know more about good climbs in the surrounding area, thanks!

Where did you ride in the past two weeks? Did you have any positive or negative interactions with people on the road or trail? What rides are you going to this upcoming week? This thread is also for any posts/comments/quick questions/rants you think don't warrant a full thread.

Best Bike Trails within 2 hours of the city

Hi! So my boyfriend and I started bike riding recently and we've been to ohiopyle, the panhandle, and montour trial but we're looking to go to bunch of new trails this summer. Does anyone have any recommendations on trails within 2 hours of the city? We're very new to this so nothing to hard. Easy or moderate trails are best. Thank you so much!

Pittsburgh's growing network of bike lanes, traffic calmed streets, bike racks, and policies like Vision Zero couldn’t happen without your support.

𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:

May 1: Show up to support a safer Strip District

May 2: Operation Illumination - free bike lights!

May 8: Pittsburgh SRTS Walk and Roll to School Day

May 9: Bike to Work Day

May 11: OpenStreetsPGH presented by UPMC Health Plan - Downtown & South Side

May 15: Ride of Silence

May 23: WMNBikePGH Ice Cream Group Ride

& more - Check out the Calendar

The city is proposing a bike lane and pedestrian improvements along Penn Ave as part of a road diet. While these changes were funded in this year's budget, they have to go through community engagement before they're implemented. Tomorrow, May 1st from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM at the Original Pittsburgh Winery the city is hosting a meeting to collect feedback. If you're available, please attend and let the city know you support this project.

https://preview.redd.it/ho55my0icoxc1.png?width=1700&format=png&auto=webp&s=285fa63caabea34d064d71f78e1badd0cea5ab08

Three of us rode Millvale to McKeesport on Saturday. As we exited Point State Park, we saw the trail to the Mon Wharf was closed. We doubled back and took the Ft. Pitt bridge to West Carson St.

That is a detour I never want to take again. Bridges make me nervous on a good day, but a narrow walkway with a relatively low rail on one side and girders and traffic on the other had me nearly hyperventilating. That plus the narrow gap between the bus stop shelter and curb on West Carson made me wish for a spare set of bike shorts. The fact I didn't crap my shorts was a miracle.

Hello.

So a friend of mine proposed doing the GAP+C&O route from Pittsburgh to DC. I know it's a classic bike pack route, but he wants to do it in 2 days.

Anyone here done it that way, as opposed to the more classic 4-5 day breakdown? If so, what was your experience?

In terms of bikes, he's got a Pivot Vault with a 44 front and a 10-52 rear, while I have the option of a Giant Revolt (gravel) with a 48/32 front and an 11-42 rear fit with 40mm tires or a Specialized Tarmac SL8 (road) with a 48/35 and 10-36 rear, 25mm tires.

Both of us have done centuries, but never back to back centuries. Still very much in the tossing ideas around stage, before moving on to a planning stage, then training.

Hi All,
I'm a relatively adept weekend cycler in Pittsburgh - averaging about 18-20 miles a ride. I have one of those big oversized bike seats for comfort, but I've been learning that a less padded seat that is the right fit for my sit bones would be a better choice and lead to less rubbing. I am also a fat woman planning to do the GAP Trail this year, which comes into play for my two questions:

1. Is there a bike shop in the PGH area run by women or non-judgemental folks? All the shops I've been in have a really bro-y feel and I'm not into supporting that.

2. I really need to find somewhere to get a good reliable seat test in order to purchase the right kind of saddle for my trip this summer. Where has the best test?

Thanks all!

Hey folks! Once again we're running the East End Bike Bus to the monthly Critical Mass.

It'll be on the 2nd Friday of next month (like Critical Mass) heading from Regent Square, Homewood and East Liberty.

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45676613

5:45pm: First stop will be Savannah at Whitney.

5:49pm: Second rolling stop is South at Peebles St

5:53pm: Third rolling stop is at Ascend Point Breeze (7443 Thomas Blvd).

5:57pm: Fourth rolling stop is at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh - Homewood (7101 Hamilton Ave).

6:14pm: Fifth rolling stop is at East Liberty Boulevard and N. Euclid Ave.

This is a casual bus, no drop. Typically 9mph ride and we stop at the top of hills for everyone to catch up.

We also have a bcc'd email list. Fill out this google form if you want to be added to it. Drop a comment here if you'd like to help us organize! We need help with marshaling and with spreading the word. We have lots of ideas to improve this bike bus but we can't do it without additional volunteer capacity. We are on instagram at @EastEndBikeBus.

Rode with friends from Millvale to McKeesport today. On our way to the Ft Duquesne bridge, there was some walk/run event. I was coming up on a group standing in the middle of the path and yelled "passing on your left!" Of course the Pirate Parrot jumped left and just about knocked me off my bike. Et tu, Parrot? Et tu?

I found a bike this morning near negley and penn. It looked crashed. I hope the rider is okay. Please DM if you think this is your bike.

I use William St to get up and down Mnt Washington with my bike and feet. There are new large barriers and a closed sign at both ends now. Is there a place I can go to find out what's being done? Repayment into an official bike/pedestrian path would be great!

You guys are so nutty and I absolutely love it. Just rode at Frick for the first time this season and the additions were such a welcomed surprised (had to do a second loop just to appreciate it).

Thank you for all that you do. You’ve turned a dump yard into world-class mountain bike trails.