Road Project Aims to Improve Traffic and Safety in North Park

In an effort to make a trek through a little more tranquil for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists alike, a $500,000 improvement project is moving along as planned, despite area residents' concerns about safety and traffic congestion.

The project is part of the North Park Trails Project. The work is being done on Babcock Boulevard between Ingomar and Wildwood roads to the south and Pearce Mill Road to the north. When completed, a through lane will be replaced with a new bike lane, wider sidewalks and a grass island to improve the separation of pedestrians and motor vehicles. 

During Wednesday night's meeting, Steve Stuart, project engineer for the county’s consultant, Michael Baker Jr. Inc., said work on the project, which started three weeks ago, is expected to be completed by Christmas when a new, oversized red light designed to direct the new flow of traffic is installed. 

Stuart, displaying an oversized map of the area, said the company that supplies the new, high-tech traffic signal takes six months to fill the order. 

“We’re adding synchronized turning lanes and reconfiguring lane usage, more or less putting the area on a road diet,” said Steven Smallhoover, project manager for Allegheny County Department of Public Works.

Allegheny County Council Member Jan Rea, of McCandless, conducted Wednesday's meeting. She represents District 2,which includes the quarter-mile-long stretch along Babcock Boulevard and North Park Lake.

She said a state grant has fully funded the project. The funds were awarded in 2009 when then-Gov. Ed Rendell reached out to communities to support development that reduces vehicle use and promotes biking and walking trails.

However, not everyone is happy with the proposed improvement plan, and they turned out Wednesday with their concerns and questions. 

“It’s definitely a flawed plan,” said Lee Rouse of McCandless, a resident of the nearby Villas of North Park. Rouse said he believes the design with separate lanes for bikers and joggers will be too close to the moving traffic on Babcock Boulevard. 

In response, Frank Cippel, an assistant traffic engineer with PennDOT, said Pennsylvania allows for bikers to share the roadways with motorists. Cippel said the project was designed with safety in mind, adding that two new 6-inch curbs will be erected at the turns at Ingomar and Pearce Mill Roads. 

Rea told the audience that she and her family also live nearby in a North Park community. She said she enjoys the park for recreation and commuting and looks forward to the project’s completion because it will not only improve traffic congestion but safety for walkers and bikers.