Year In Review 2024

BikePGH and our community had some big accomplishments and milestones this year – and your support made it happen.

We’re reflecting on the progress we’ve made in achieving our mission in 2024- From exciting infrastructure improvements and grassroots advocacy, to an amazing OpenStreetsPGH series to brand new education programming, this year has been one of growth and momentum. There’s much to celebrate and look forward to as we continue to make getting around on Pittsburgh’s streets safer and more accessible.

Let’s take a look back at the key highlights of 2024 and what they mean for the future of safer biking and walking in Pittsburgh, and if you love this stuff, please consider donating today!


2024 Highlights include:

Advocacy

Education

  • We trained six cohorts of Pittsburgh Regional Transit Operator Trainees (250+ bus drivers!) on safe operation around bicycles! Our partnership with PRT also provided information and bike rack demonstrations at Operation Illumination and our other events. 
  • We taught 24 students basic bike anatomy and repairs at our Know Your Bike classes in partnership with Free Ride.
  • We certified eleven new League Cycling Instructors at our April seminar who have been hard at work spreading the love and skills of biking including both of our Educators of the Year and our very own Advocacy manager, Seth Bush! 
  • Our Confident City Cycling program taught 54 adults the skills and hands-on experience to master bike commuting in Pittsburgh. 
  • It was our biggest year ever for our Operation Illumination program! We donated more than 750 front and rear light sets and 222 helmets at four events across the city and other giveaways with community partners.
  • 2024 was also the first year for our Learn 2 Ride summer event series that provided free riding lessons to first-time riders of all ages at The Bud Harris Cycling Track in partnership with POGOH and CitiParks. 
  • BikePGH assisted two more PPS middle schools, Allegheny Traditional and King, to apply for and receive Outride bike programs providing 25 bikes and helmets each so kids can ride during their gym classes. 
  • In 2024 BikePGH’s education program worked with over 500 kids across 10 different Pittsburgh schools to provide bike safety education and resources.

Events

  • The annual Bike to Work Day celebrations hosted Commuter Cafes in Market Square, Oakland, and the Strip District, distributing free goodies to hundreds of people biking to work. We biked to work with Mayor Gainey (!) and gained 22 new BikePGH members to support our mission.
  • OpenStreetsPGH series presented by UPMC Health Plan visited 8 unique neighborhoods, including the Historic Hill District for the first time, inviting residents and community members to bike, walk, run, skate, and play in over 12 Miles of car-free Pittsburgh streets. OpenStreetsPGH once again partnered with over 120 community businesses and organizations to offer free programming + entertainment for all ages and abilities.
  • Our 31st Annual UPMC Health Plan PedalPGH fundraiser visited 30+ neighborhoods and partnered with over 25 local businesses and organizations. Over 2500 participants rode an estimated 90,000 miles and raised $275,000 to support safe biking and walking in PGH.
  • Our WMNBikePGH program had an action-packed year connecting with hundreds of women, trans, and non-binary people who participated in our events.
    • We rode bikes with over 200 people at the 10 community group rides we hosted. 
    • At our Gear Swap over the summer, we brought together dozens of people to “rehome” their gently used bicycle gear and clothing.
    • 25 people joined us for the 4th Annual WMNBikePGH GAP Camping Trip in September. 
    • We held our 11th Annual WMNBikePGH Summit in October, where 60+ friends came together to learn from local and national experts at in-person presentations, on-bike workshops, and activities focused on boosting skills and encouraging women and non-binary representation in cycling.
  • We partnered on Pittsburgh’s Sixth Annual Campus Bike Week with the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, Duquesne University, and Chatham University. We engaged over 1000 students, faculty and staff in biking and walking (as well as other transportation options!) with free classes, rides, info fairs, commuter cafes and more.
  • Volunteers continued to be deeply engaged with Bike Pittsburgh, with 202 individual volunteers at Bike to Work Day, OpenStreetsPGH, PedalPGH, and Monthly Volunteer Nights. We also engaged 8 volunteer groups from local businesses and organizations at OpenStreetsPGH and PedalPGH for a total of 1014 volunteer hours donated to our cause (that’s the equivalent of TWENTY FIVE 40-hour workweeks!) 

Membership and Community

  • The Pittsburgh Bike People Outreach Team attended 89 community events to spread the word about BikePGH and POGOH and provide resources to thousands of residents across the city.
  • Bike People distributed:
    • More than 2,500 Bike Maps
    • More than 1,000 copies of our Biking 101 Safe Riding Guides
    • 400 Family Biking Guides
    • 300 E-Bike Guides
    • And signed up more than 500 people to our email list
  • In 2024, over 3,400 individuals supported BikePGH through memberships and donations.
  • Our May Membership campaign contributed to 229 folks renewing their BikePGH memberships or joining us for the first time!
  • Our Membership Program received a huge upgrade, with the addition of local bike-friendly businesses signing on, offering exclusive discounts to BikePGH members.
  • We donated BikePGH merchandise to over a dozen Pittsburgh nonprofits in support of their fundraising efforts.
  • Our brand new Lifetime Membership tier launched with an incredible 15 engaged supporters participating (and counting!).
  • We collaborated with the Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation, selling a limited edition T-Shirt, donating all proceeds to their life saving work to the LGBTQIA+ and HIV communities.
  • This December, we hired BikePGH’s first Development Director! We are excited to expand our team and our capacity to explore revenue streams that support BikePGH’s operations and programming

We believe that every walk or ride you take should be a safe one, so please help keep the momentum going forward! Through our Advocacy, Education, and Community, we’ve made so much progress for safer biking and walking in 2024. And yet, there is still so much to do. YOU are the key to making it happen.

We need to raise $100,000 by December 31st, 2024— and this is the best time of year to show your support, as every dollar will be matched. Please donate now! Every dollar you give will double the impact for making Pittsburgh safer and more connected for everyone who bikes, walks and rolls in our beautiful city.

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