Connecting neighborhoods and the bicycling network

The S Aiken Bike lanes are just about complete. While only a bit more than a quarter mile in length, the segment is a much needed connection between the Liberty Ave bike lanes in Bloomfield and Ellsworth Ave in Shadyside – both highly used bicycling corridors. The lack of bike lanes here created a barrier to riding between the neighborhoods.

These bike lanes are essentially a long-awaited extension of the Liberty Ave bike lanes, installed in 2007 and BikePGH’s first bike lane advocacy initiative.

The S Aiken lanes, originally began the planning process under the MoveForwardPGH program, a collaboration between the City’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI), BikePGH, and POGOH that worked to quickly boost Pittsburgh’s on-street bicycling network miles after the release of the Bike(+) Plan.

The S Aiken Bike lanes involved reducing the number of lanes on the stretch in order to keep the number of lanes consistent between the sections of Liberty and Aiken the same throughout the corridor. This lane reduction, or “road diet,” will prevent speeding and aggressive passing, and make the corridor much clearer and more predictable, increasing safety for all users.

The new bike lanes are painted, but not quite done. The City still intends to add flex-post bollards to the stretch, as well as still needing to do some signal work between Baum Blvd and Centre Ave.

As seen on Strava’s heatmap, you can see the importance of the S Aiken bike lanes to the overall City bike network. This is a welcome addition to the bike network and will help safely connect neighborhoods.

To find out more about the S Aiken bike lanes, see the City’s Engage Page.