Guest Blog: Introducing Morningside Stanton Heights Livable Streets

Meet Pittsburgh’s Newest Bike-Ped Advocacy Committee

Eight people walk across a snowy intersection holding clipboards. — Members of Morningside Stanton Heights Livable Streets are joined by city councilwoman Deb Gross (center.)

Morningside Stanton Heights Livable Streets Joins Two Unique Neighborhoods in One Mission

Bordered by Lawrenceville, Garfield, East Liberty, and Highland Park while also overlooking the Allegheny River to the North, the neighborhoods of Morningside and Stanton Heights are both in the heart of the city while also facing its edges. Uniting these two unique yet deeply connected neighborhoods, Morningside Stanton Heights Livable Streets advocates it improve our community’s streets, sidewalks, and stairs.

We are residents who walk, bike, bus, and also drive throughout our neighborhoods and are acutely aware of concerns regarding the safety and usability of our streets. Although these neighborhood streets are used by nearly eight thousand residents, they are also often used as high-speed cut-throughs to those looking to access the city’s limited-access highways. It is the mission of Morningside Stanton Heights Livable streets to advocate for the safety of all of our neighbors whether they stay for years or only minutes.

A Snowy Inaugural Walk Audit

Woman speaks to a group of five people on a snow-covered road. — **Stanton Heights resident, Megan Lovett, discusses the need for snow and ice clearing on the neighborhood’s several stairways.**

On Sunday, January 23rd, despite flurries, blustery conditions, and snowy sidewalks, the advocates of Morningside Stanton Heights Livable Streets met with City Councilwoman Deb Gross and her chief of staff for their first in-person event: a walk audit of the neighborhood. Among issues of note were snow and ice-covered sidewalks and public stairwells, parking on sidewalks, and an ever-present need for traffic-calming on the neighborhood’s main drags of Morningside Ave and Jancey St. Although our walking audit stuck to the northern portions of Morningside, future audits will focus on Stanton Ave which has long been identified as a dangerous thoroughfare that puts pedestrians and cyclists alike at risk.

The walking audit was a great opportunity to bring advocates together outside of our computer screens and to highlight our neighborhood’s many amenities, as well as concerns with traffic safety and road and sidewalk conditions. We are deeply grateful that city councilwoman Gross came to meet with us and “walked the walk!”

Join Us!

All residents of Morningside and Stanton Heights are invited to join us!

Email morningside.sh.livablestreets@gmail.com to be included in our google group for updates and follow us on Twitter @MHeightsStreets. In the coming months, we will be planning walks, and collaborating with neighboring committees to advocate for Stanton Avenue and other improvements.

BECOME AN ADVOCATE
JOIN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD’S BIKE/PED COMMITTEE

Want to get more involved with making Pittsburgh better for biking and walking? Become a bike/ped advocate. There are over 20 neighborhood bike/ped committees across the City and surrounding municipalities.

You can find a complete list of them here. You can always start your own committee too! Email anna@bikepgh.org for more information.