Councilperson Erika Strassburger Introduces Will of Council to Grant Pittsburgh More Control of its Streets

On Tuesday, March 12th, Pittsburgh City Councilperson Erika Strassburger will introduce a Will of Council urging Governor Wolf, Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Leslie Richards, and the Pennsylvania State House and Senate to consider policies to grant local government more control when it comes to regulating the safe and equitable use of city rights-of-way and implementing policies that discourage dangerous driving and decrease the risk of bodily injuries and death of vulnerable users, such as bicyclists, pedestrians, and individuals with limited mobility. This Will of Council is Co-Sponsored by Councilman Corey O’Connor and Councilman Anthony Coghill.

Crafted in conjunction with the City’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI), Councilperson Strassburger’s Will of Council calls on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to implement more pedestrian and bicycle-focused policies that allow cities like Pittsburgh to experiment with and monitor the effectiveness of innovative roadway designs to protect vulnerable users.

Among other policies, the resolution also asks for local use of radar and LIDAR technologies to detect and enforce speeding, increased penalties for reckless driving, local ability to set speed limits on residential streets, and a change in State Motor Vehicle Code that would require motorists to stop for pedestrians rather than yielding, which greatly increases pedestrians’ chance of survival. Many of the policies mentioned in the Will of Council were included in BikePGH’s State Legislation we’re Pushing for in 2019 blog post.

“In order to implement the goals of the new Department and build a safe and equitable mobility system, we need strong collaboration with our partners in the state and the ability to implement local controls. We’re grateful for the opportunity to work with Council to elevate these critical needs”

Karina Ricks, Director of the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure.

Councilperson Strassburger and DOMI also worked with partners in Philadelphia to draft and pass a similar resolution calling on state leaders to pass these common sense measures. Philadelphia Councilman Mark Squilla, working with Philadelphia’s Office of Transportation, Infrastructure, and Sustainability (OTIS) introduced a similar resolution in Pennsylvania’s largest city. You can find a copy of Councilperson Strassburger’s Will of Council here.

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