PennDOT and the City of Pittsburgh are rushing to build a new Fern Hollow Bridge to replace the one that collapsed in January 2022. PennDOT released a conceptual rendering of the new bridge design on March 8, 2022. Unfortunately, the rushed process has resulted in some serious design flaws that need to be addressed before
Tag: Safety
The Latest Preventable Pedestrian Death
A person driving a 2020 Honda Ridgeline pickup truck hit two men just after 6 am on November 17, 2021, killing one of them. The driver drove through the intersection as the light turned red, hitting the men crossing the street. The crash occurred at the intersection of Kennywood Boulevard/Route 837 and Hoffman Boulevard. This
How Car Seat Requirements can Endanger Children
My favorite way to travel with my kids (ages 3 and 2) is by train. It’s much safer than driving, my son doesn’t get motion sickness like he does in the car, and I am free to interact with my kids. As I began researching a family vacation this summer, I started looking for destinations
The Manual that Defines Street Signs and Markings Needs a Rewrite for Safety
In 2014 a little girl was killed and another seriously injured crossing the street outside the front entrance to Central Library at Springfield MA. City council requested that a HAWK (High Intensity Activated Crosswalk Beacon) system and a crosswalk be installed to allow for a less dangerous mid-block crossings. Street safety advocate Charles Marohn describes
Pittsburgh needs Lower Speed Limits on Narrow Streets
The street I live on is a two way street with one parking lane, and it is only 22 ft wide. It is common on many other streets for driving lanes to be 12 ft wide, and parking lanes to be 7 ft wide, which would result in a 31 ft wide street. My
I Never Thought I Would Write This…But a Private Car May be Safer than Transit for the Next Few Weeks
People are panicking about the COVID-19 outbreak. I have read several posts on social media urging people to drive and avoid transit to reduce the spread of the disease. As of March 20, it has killed 229 people in the United States over the course of the entire outbreak so far. In comparison, car crashes
Traffic Calming should be Implemented on Low Volume Streets
In the summer of 2019, several residents of our street expressed interest in adding speed humps to improve safety. Our street has over 20 children living on it, and studies have shown that speed humps reduce the likelihood by over 50% that children living on a street will be injured or killed by being hit
What if Steeler Games were as Dangerous as Driving
Imagine you’re at a Steelers game at Heinz Field, and all 68,400 seats in the stadium are full. Partway through the game, part of the stadium collapses. 8 people are killed, and 578 people are injured. Imagine the level of shock, inquiry and general reaction there would be that this type of accident is unacceptable.
Pittsburgh Needs to Implement Traffic Calming to Improve Street Safety and Reduce Traffic Deaths
In November 2014 a truck hit two pedestrians in a crosswalk on East Carson Street, killing one of them. In January 2016 a 36 year old woman was hit and killed after walking into Maytide street in Carrick. That same month a 23 year old man hit a deer on Windgap Avenue in the middle
Welcome to Connect-PGH
This blog is to discuss transportation, urban planning, and land use issues in the Pittsburgh area. My name is Jonathan Salmans. I have developed an interest in urban and transportation planning, and want to write down and share my thoughts on those topics as they relate to Pittsburgh. My formal background is in engineering and