Show your support for a car free Serpentine Dr in Schenley Park

As a scenic, twisty road through the historic Schenley Park, Serpentine Dr lives up to its name. While it has long been a destination for cyclists and walkers, these park users would also have to contend with motor vehicles, who often aren’t too keen on sharing the road, even within a park.

That all changed in 2019, when a tri-axle truck slipped off the road and nearly tumbled down the hillside, requiring a tricky rescue mission and destroying 80 feet of a historic stone wall in its wake. The truck was part of a contractor’s team that was repaving the street.

The City quickly closed Serpentine Rd to motor vehicles, giving residents a chance to experience the street and enjoy the park in new ways. The space quickly filled with people walking their dogs, kids playing, and just generally made for a better park experience.

Then, after some temporary repairs to the wall in 2021, the City decided to open the road back up to motor vehicles, in the downhill direction only. They installed uphill flexpost protected bike lanes and downhill sharrows. The design was met with lukewarm reviews with walkers confined to a smaller space, bicyclists having trouble climbing the road around the sharp, steep curve, and drivers having trouble steering through the flexposts.

It’s clear that the road is not an integral part of the motor vehicle network and would serve residents much better as an area for park users to enjoy Schenley Park without motorized vehicles.

Enter the latest DOMI project where they are proposing to close Serpentine Dr to cars permanently, which we wholeheartedly support. In addition, they plan to restore the historic wall, bringing back the charm of the structure. These changes will also save the city money in the long run, as maintenance costs for Serpentine will drop dramatically. Remember, it was a repaving project that led to the wall being destroyed in the first place.

There is a 60-day comment period for this change to operations that ends Thursday, February 29th, 2024. 

Please take a moment to share your thoughts and hopefully share your support: