Driver Hits Pedestrian Downtown
6th Street and Fort Duquesne Boulevard, looking south.
Crash
On July 20, just before 10:00 PM, a driver hit a pedestrian at 6th Street and Fort Duquesne Boulevard, breaking her leg. The pedestrian was taken to the hospital in serious condition, while the driver stayed at the scene and cooperated with police.
Context
6th Street and Fort Duquesne Boulevard are both owned by the City of Pittsburgh and maintained by the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI), while the adjacent 6th Street/Roberto Clemente Bridge is owned by Allegheny County. The County completed a major overhaul of the bridge in February of this year, and unfortunately failed to address some of the issues we will discuss below. The bridge sees about 9,700 cars a day, 6th Street sees about 3,400, westbound Fort Duquesne Boulevard sees about 4,800, and eastbound Fort Duquesne Boulevard tops the list at about 10,300 cars per day. The speed limit of all segments is 25 miles per hour. The intersection isn’t featured in any of DOMI’s plans, but is highlighted in the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP) Downtown Mobility Plan as part of a “pedestrian-oriented corridor” along 6th Street and Market Street connecting waterfront promenades on Fort Duquesne Boulevard and Fort Pitt Boulevard. As 6th Street is a busy corridor for nightlife, and the Roberto Clemente Bridge is the main connector between the Cultural District and the North Shore, the bridge often sees more than 12,000 pedestrians a day, emphasizing their outsized role relative to drivers.
Pedestrians per Hour, Roberto Clemente Bridge
Countermeasures
First of all, there is no reason for Westbound Fort Duquesne Boulevard to exist. It doesn’t handle a lot of traffic and what it does handle could easily be shifted to the 10th Street Bypass or Penn Avenue. The fact that PDP hosted the Allegheny Overlook, which closed westbound Fort Duquesne Boulevard during the summer, and the world didn’t explode, is proof. So if I’m coming out swinging, that is my big opening move.
In terms of smaller, more incremental changes, one of the biggest issues are the extremely large corner radii coming off of the Roberto Clemente Bridge. Larger corner radii encourage vehicles to take turns faster, which means they spend less time looking for pedestrians. The crosswalks coming off of 6th Street splay outward to accommodate these large corner radii; otherwise, the pedestrian crossings, already long, would be significantly longer. Tighter corner radii would slow down turning vehicles, and shorten and straighten the crosswalks across Fort Duquesne Boulevard. Unfortunately this wasn’t corrected in the recent improvements of the bridge, so a new project is necessary, right after the last one was finished.
The medians along Fort Duquesne Boulevard could be extended to create pedestrian refuge areas. This would allow pedestrians to cross the wide street in several phases if need be, and would allow them some shelter in the middle of the street. It could also slow down traffic.
Contacts
The responsibility for most of the segments of this intersection lies with the City of Pittsburgh and DOMI. they accept requests for traffic calming here. For political support, contact Mayor Ed Gainey’s office on this website or at (412) 255-2626, and Council President P. Daniel Lavelle’s office at (412) 255-0820 or daniel.wood@pittsburghpa.gov. The bridge and its corner radii are the responsibility of Allegheny County and their Public Works department. They have a vague online contact form, but their director, Stephen Shanley, can be reached by phone at (412) 350-4005. The Council Representative over this district is David Bonaroti, who can be reached online or by phone at (412) 350-6490. The chair of the Council’s Public Works committee is Robert J. Macey, who can be reached online or by phone at (412) 350-6490. And finally, the County Executive, Sara Innamorato, can be reached online or by phone at (412) 350-6500.