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Can You Bike the Fort Pitt Bridge?

Is it possible to bike across the Fort Pitt Bridge from Point State Park to the South shore of the Monongahela? I'm from out of town and was looking at this as part of an alternate route to start the GAP ride. I can see the Three Rivers Heritage trail marked on Google maps that spans that bridge, but I've seen videos of detour signs blocking the passage way and was just curious about the current state and overall bike-ability of that span thx
banjovi
2016-05-20 00:23:04
I'll give it a go today after work.
durishange
2016-05-20 09:01:20
Yes, you can cross it on the sidewalk on the north side of the bridge. The sidewalk ramps down into Point State Park behind the Fort Pitt Museum, and on the other side of the river goes down to Carson Street near the Duquesne Incline.
greasypants
2016-05-20 09:05:53
Yes, you can. You should note that once you're on the South Shore, along West Carson St., you can ride on the sidewalk until you reach West Station Sq Dr, at which point the sidewalk turns into a trail. You can ride this portion on the road if you're heading west, away from the Ft. Pitt Bridge, but I wouldn't recommend it, as that part is essentially a highway off-ramp
chrishent
2016-05-20 09:12:08
The downstream sidewalk can indeed be biked. If your rig is wide, please note that the sidewalk is fairly narrow, and has a couple of tight jogs (not exactly turns, well actually-kinda-sorta they are), so please be cautious of and courteous to travelers in the opposite direction, be they on wheels or in shoes.
stuinmccandless
2016-05-20 09:40:52
appreciate the feedback so far... thx everyone
banjovi
2016-05-20 12:02:18
it's a tremendous crossing, you can go Station Square - Point State Park - Northside (using Ft.Duq bridge) faster on a bike than on a car, most days. But for a GAP trip, there's a few details I'd mention. 1. It's sort of a big hill. If you're rolling with panniers/bags, it's starting off your trip riding up a hill. 2. It's eminently ridable, but there's two yah-Tah's that demand your attention. watch out when you're on the Carson St. sidewalk at the crossover for the Incline. There's not a lot of room between the fence and the sidewalk. If you hold your hands outside your handlebars, they'll likely get an ouchie. If you're rolling with full panniers, you might want to stop and shuffle-step through that one spot by the staircase. the tourists at Station Square plaza don't think they're on a bike trail, they think they're in a tourist plaza. They're generally not local. warning, warning.
vannever
2016-05-20 12:16:08
Once you get on the trail, you will also want to take it easy through the Station Square part. Technically trail, but pretty much a busy sidewalk. Lots of foot cross-traffic. Depending on day and weather, you might need to walk it through here. At least be cautious of lots of people, including children. ^Vannevar and I were typing at the same time.
stuinmccandless
2016-05-20 12:19:55
I'll just add that taking pictures of the fountain from the bridge sidewalk is highly recommend (just try to be courteous to other walker/riders).
marko82
2016-05-20 12:33:48
Again... replies so far are really appreciated. I didn't realize that there was much of a hill involved. That might play into our decision to use it along with other precautions discussed. We're staying overnight at the Quality Inn - University Center and we wanted to bike to Point State Park to start our trek. So since we're picking up the three rivers heritage trail just past the Hot Metal Bridge and then biking a couple miles on the North shore side to get to the starting point. I was thinking it might be nice to check out something different as we actually turn around and officially begin our trek back towards Cumberland. BUT we do have a tandem recumbent in our group and that might be a little unwieldy going up a hill over the Fort Pitt bridge to start off with... and then it sounds like it's pretty tight getting through too. Maybe I'll take a harder look at the Smithfield St Bridge
banjovi
2016-05-20 12:43:59
@banjovi: If you've got someone on a two-wheeled tandem 'bent (RANS Screamer or similar), it'd be doable, but not great fun...probably end up hike-a-biking it for a few feet.. If it's a tandem trike, I'm honestly not sure if it could negotiate the narrow bit by the Incline staircase. If you wish to do the South Side trail, Smithfield St Bridge is a better option, in my opinion. I'd take the right lane on Smithfield, make the right turn into Station Square just before the intersection with Carson St, then turn left at the stop sign. From there, go half-a-block, merge onto the sidewalk to your right, and make your way (carefully...might have lots of people) through the plaza to the trail. You'll have one on-road detour for a few blocks shortly after Station Square; one tight turn as you leave the trail, but should be fine aside from that. When are you coming through? I work on the South Side, and could possibly keep you folks company for a short while, if you'd like a native guide. Feel free to drop me an email (dan DOT blumenfeld AT gmail) if you wish.
reddan
2016-05-20 13:00:26
@reddan thanks for the info and native guide offer. I'll definitely shoot you an email. We are riding a bent two wheeler, but we will have panniers and it's a pretty heavy bike. So it's looking more and more like the Fort Pitt bridge isn't ideal for our group. We're starting our journey on Friday 6/3 hopefully in the morning, but we'll see what the weather gives us to plan our departure time.
banjovi
2016-05-20 13:27:41
@Banjovi: If you are staying at the Quality Inn - University Center, I'd like to caution you about the heavy traffic on the Bates St toward the 2nd Ave. It will become a parking lot after 7 am, but you could get around the traffic by riding on the sidewalk. Do be careful near the off-ramp of I-376, though. I would recommend you go right on 2nd Ave and get on Jail Trail (there's a trail access about 200 feet down the 2nd Ave) and reach Point State Park using the route shown here: https://goo.gl/maps/qduGuY9SJ3y Here's a video of how I reach Point State Park starting @24:44 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5k8FE-DMFBE Afterward, I'd recommend you take the same route back until you reach Smithfield Bridge (you might have to ride on sidewalk of Ft Pitt Blvd for a block). Get across the bridge and follow Southside trail to start your journey.
ninjaturtle0304
2016-05-20 16:27:26
Thanks Gordon! That's super helpful. I knew there was a better way to get to the fountain than just going up Blvd of the Allies like Google maps suggested. I could see the parts of the trail by the water past Wood St... just didn't know how to get to it... now I do much appreciated
banjovi
2016-05-20 18:01:15
what about riding up forbes to craig to fifth and then cut through panther hollow through schenley park and then onto the eliza furnace trail to downtown? That might be easier/safety than dealing with crazy bates street and the big hill and all the traffic due to the greenfield bridge being closed? It is a longer ride, for sure, but more much scenic.
edronline
2016-05-20 19:30:45
The problem with that is the cattle chute at Second/Saline/Irvine. Or, worse, not using it. Can we find a local person or persons to accompany them through that mess? Particularly if they try to do this at rush hour?
stuinmccandless
2016-05-20 21:42:15
Wow!! thanks folks... I think we'll be okay down Bates... it's only a 1/3rd of a mile if we do decide to take it. We could walk or hit the sidewalks if there's too much traffic. I've also received some alternate route suggestion messages to avoid Bates that I can look into. But again... thanks for all the help. The support on this page has almost been overwhelming... you guys are great!!
banjovi
2016-05-20 22:15:19
Good thoughts Stu about the cattle chute especially encumbered with all that stuff. C'est la vie. It is Pittsburgh. With hills, narrow streets , and old infrastructure.
edronline
2016-05-21 08:09:52