Step by Step: Help Survey City Steps & Gather Data

By Ngani Ndimbie
Getting daily exercise is one of the best fringe benefits of biking and walking for transportation; a twofer, if you will. Now, you can volunteer to help the Department of City Planning while having fun, seeing new places, and getting exercise (specifically, toning your tush).

For the first time ever the Department of City Planning will collect comprehensive data on the the city’s 700+ public steps. The city will use the data prioritize the steps for maintenance and repairs.

The 700+ sets of steps can be found in 66 of the city’s 90 neighborhoods.

Sign up to volunteer to help the Department of City Planning collect data in this enormous project. The data collected will provide valuable insight into the usage and condition of steps. Volunteers will work in teams of three, with each person an assigned task to ensure consistency of data. Training and an instructional field guide will be provided to all volunteers.

Volunteer duties

— Dedicate a few hours on the date of the survey (TBA)

— Walk up and down several sets of steps

— Survey the state of the treads, rails, and structural supports

— Electronically record data using an Ipad

— Take photographs of the steps

— Inform the City Official of the usage and utility of the local steps

Interested in helping?
Fill out the Volunteer Form. See the Field Guide for more information, or email Catherine.crevecoeur@pittsburghpa.gov.

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PedalPGH is Sunday, August 30th! Register today to participate in Western Pennsylvania’s largest ride. All proceeds benefit BikePGH! Choose from the popular 25 mile Highmark City Tour, the challenging 62 mile PJ Dick and Lindy Paving Metric Century, or the 2-16 mile Family Ride.