Pittsburgh makes street safety updates around three schools

Students at three Pittsburgh elementary schools will have safer routes to class this fall as the city finishes off a special state grant.

Under the Safe Routes to School program, the city’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure will make intersection improvements on the streets around Pittsburgh Arlington Pre K-8, Propel Hazelwood K-8 and Pittsburgh Faison K-5. The work that begins Monday will finish spending on a $464,000 grant the city received in 2019 to improve walking and biking conditions around schools throughout the city.

The grant also allowed the city to hire a coordinator to work with the schools on transportation safety programs.

At Arlington, the work will include intersection improvements near Rectenwald and McManus streets such as new ADA ramps, curb extensions to reduce the distance to cross the street, and upgraded LED lighting.

In the Propel area, two speed bumps will be installed on Glenwood Avenue to slow traffic and a pedestrian island will be added on Second Avenue at Alameda Street.

Faison is scheduled for curb extensions on Tioga Street to prevent wrong-way drivers, and a pedestrian island will be added at North Braddock Avenue and Susquehanna Street.

Work will take place from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays for the next two weeks with minimal traffic disruption. The exception will be work on the speed bumps on Glenwood Avenue, which will require closure for street bump construction and flaggers to allow local traffic to enter the street.

Temporary no parking signs will be posted in some areas.