For our project, my group and I will be focusing on how biking is currently being handled in Pittsburgh and how we can make biking a safer, more accessible form of transportation and recreation in the city. The addition of Healthy Ride Pittsburgh, a bike sharing system, along with the growing fad of “green” transportation, has made biking a hot issue in Pittsburgh. This biking movement has taken the city by storm, and its popularization has lead to criticism of how Pittsburgh is handling making the influx of bicyclists.

The death of the beloved Pitt teacher, Susan Hicks, along with many other Pittsburgh cyclists this year have caused an outcry that demands more safety measures be implemented to protect bicyclists. The road she was on had no bike lane, and it’s hard not to wonder that, if the roads were more accommodating to bikers, this tragedy could have been avoided.

Pittsburgh has plans to create more bike lanes on major roads that are clearly marked in green paint in the next 8 years. As the addition of bike lanes is happening, slowly due to the construction process and of a push-back by some, it is important that the people of Pittsburgh must be educated on how to share the road with cyclists. There are many already existing websites that deal with biking safety and accessibility, and ours will have that too, only it will be unique in that it was also invite non-bikers into the conversation.

The end goal is simple: to continue the ongoing conversation of biking safety and accessibility to the Pittsburgh population with a new focus on how teaching the community how how to respect and accommodate their cycling neighbors on the road. Biking is becoming an increasingly rewarding way to get around the city and the people who choose to use this mode of transportation should not have to fear for their safety. It is our responsibility as a city to be aware and educated of what we can do as individuals and as a community to prevent further tragedies and make the roads safer for all.