Traffic of the two-wheeled variety will be heavier than usual this morning, as thousands are expected to take part in Bike to Work Day in Pittsburgh.
Sponsored by Bike Pittsburgh, the event is in its 14th year here and will include five “commuter cafes” where bicyclists can congregate for free coffee and breakfast items. The cafes, open from 7 to 9:30 a.m., will be in Market Square, Downtown; Tunnel Park, South Side; at the Roberto Clemente statue outside PNC Park; Friendship Park, Bloomfield; and Schenley Plaza, Oakland.
Group rides called “bike trains” will push off from 12 locations. More information is available at bikepgh.org.
Bike Pittsburgh said last year’s celebration drew 700 visitors to the cafes despite chilly weather and that thousands more took part in the event.
It comes as a major bike-sharing program is about to debut in the city, and with an expanding network of reserved bike lanes on Pittsburgh streets.
The Healthy Ride program will deploy 500 bicycles at 50 self-service stations throughout the city, available for rental. Users can buy single trips or weekly or monthly passes. The program did not debut in time for Bike to Work Day but Pittsburgh Bike Share spokeswoman Erin Potts said the launch will occur this month.
The program will have Healthy Ride bikes at the Oakland and Market Square commuter cafes this morning, she said. “It will be a good way to introduce the bikes to people on Bike to Work Day.”
Gov. Tom Wolf has issued a proclamation declaring today Bike to Work Day throughout the state.
Scott Bricker, executive director of Bike Pittsburgh, said the number of Pittsburghers biking to work has grown by 408 percent since 2000 and the city ranks 11th among the 60 largest U.S. cities in percentage of bike commuters, according to census data.
Two efforts to measure current bicycle traffic are underway. The city had 72 volunteers out this month counting bicyclists and pedestrians at key intersections. The data is still being assembled, said Kristin Saunders, the city’s bicycle-pedestrian coordinator.
The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership installed a counter April 11 on Penn Avenue Downtown to measure traffic on the 10 blocks that were converted to bike-only use in September. The partnership “is working with the city to aggregate the data” and expects to make it public this spring, spokeswoman Leigh White said.
Jon Schmitz: jschmitz@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1868. Twitter: @pgtraffic.
First Published: May 15, 2015, 4:00 a.m.