1000 Signatures and Counting for the #ExtendPenn Petition

WANTED: 2000 Signatures before August 1st

The record-breaking attendance at our June OpenStreetsPGH event helped the #ExtendPenn efforts too! Over 300 signatures were added to the #ExtendPenn Petition to bring its current total to 1160 and counting! We’re looking to grow the petition to 2000 signatures before August 1st. Help us reach our goal and sign the petition today!

During OpenStreetsPGH BikePGH, Better Streets Lawrenceville, South Side Smart Streets, and OpenStreets volunteers set up an interactive #ExtendPenn advocacy outreach station. We had a photo booth with bike lane guy, a share your story station, live interviews about biking through the Strip District, and on-street petition signing.

stories from the streets

Lots of people have told us about their experiences riding through this corridor after the Penn Ave bike lane ends. Read some of these stories below.

The majority of close calls and aggressive drivers (honking/yelling at me) I’ve encountered while biking, have occurred on Smallman St., near the produce terminal, between the Penn Ave bike lane and connecting to Railroad St (to avoid Smallman traffic). We need a safe connection for all of our sakes — bikers, walkers, runners, and drivers alike. -Monica B.

I’ve directed many a disoriented cyclist through this confusing area. -Lauryn S.

The intersection of Penn and 16th Street bridge leaves an awkward termination of the bike lane with no obvious way to go. The alternative is to go one block parallel by the river to ride through the strip district, but this route is unsafe due to cars blindly backing out of parking spaces or right hooking cyclists as they try to nab a spot. The Strip District is an otherwise attractive destination for cyclists. -Monica V.

I live downtown, and the Penn Ave bike lane has opened up the strip to me by bike. I can ride there in the morning to have breakfast, or safely in the evening for a drink with friends. But I rarely venture beyond where the lane stops. Just too dangerous. -Brad S.

I can’t even count how many times I’ve almost been hit by someone on Smallman (in the produce terminal section). An established bike lane through the strip is badly needed. I think this would open the flood gates with respect to those that would bike downtown to work. In its current form, it’s an intimidating ride from Lawrenceville to downtown and an established bike path down Penn Ave would go a long way to alleviating riders’ discomfort. The east end might be the most concentrated section of the city with respect to the bike riding/commuting population. It would make sense to provide that area of the city a safe, established route into town. -Brad T.

My wife and I would do so much more shopping in the strip if there was a continuous bike lane in both directions. -Harry G.

Biking across the strip is a Russian roulette: you have more choices to go through it without getting hit, but there is always the real possibility that something would go very wrong. If we had a bike lane along it, and less parking for cars, we would remove 50% of car traffic, looking for cars, idling as they wait for the next available spot, and polluting even more. Please extend the bike lane! -Beatrice S.

It’s not too late

Sign the petition and support our efforts to #ExtendPenn and connect to the bike ways and neighborhoods east of 16th Street. Help us get to 2000 signatures!

We’re keeping track of your experiences sharing the road with Autonomous Vehicles. If you have biking or walking experience with an AV that you’d like to share, either positive or negative, please fill out our Submit Autonomous Vehicle Experience (SAVE) Form.