Pamela Washington, of Downtown Pittsburgh, has been roller skating for over 40 years, and OpenStreetsPGH in Hazelwood was the perfect opportunity to get out and skate.
Ms. Washington explained that the coronavirus pandemic forced the closure of indoor skating rinks, so she started skating outside with a group of other skaters frequenting Point State Park. She said she came out to OpenStreetsPGH to get outside, get exercise and meet new people.
“We knew that this was coming … so it was like, ‘They’re bringing it back!’” she said. “We wanted to come out and support.”
After canceling the event last year, OpenStreetsPGH was open for 2 miles of streets in Hazelwood that were closed to vehicular traffic from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday. Usually, OpenStreetsPGH is held on three Sundays annually, but Alex Shewczyk, marketing and communications director for BikePGH, said the group hopes to be back to normal next year.
The free event was hosted by BikePGH, a nonprofit advocacy organization working to make the streets safer for other modes of transportation. Along the 2-mile stretch, bikers, skaters and pedestrians could stop at food trucks, crafts and a kids center.
“Open Streets Pittsburgh is an experience where we open the streets for cyclists and pedestrians, and we close them to cars, giving people the power to explore and not feel scared or nervous on the street sharing it with cars,” Ms. Shewczyk said. “Hopefully, it gives people with who drive another view of what streets could be.”
Ms. Shewczyk said the group chose to have the event in Hazelwood because of its unique bike lane infrastructure, which includes a sidewalk in between the road and bike lane to more clearly separate it. The area also had a raised intersection and protected bus stop.
“It’s really neat to see the best of the best infrastructure, and we hope that we can have more infrastructure like this around the city,” she said.
Sara Khalil — director of operations for Healthy Ride, abike-sharing operation — echoed Ms. Shewczyk, and said OpenStreetsPGH can help people feel more confident on a bike.
“If you’ve never been one one before and you want to try it out, [you’re] not on the street,” Ms. Khalil said. “It could be like a door opener for folks.”
Even biking veterans took advantage of the open streets. Barbara Jensen, of Squirrel Hill, started using her bike to commute about 10 years ago.
“I love biking. I bike everywhere I can,” Ms. Jensen said. “I really want to support the community and events like this, and I would love to see more biking in Pittsburgh.”
She said she recommends biking as a mode of transportation, even if it’s just a little bit, to learn more about traffic. She said that although she thinks the location of this year’s event is nice, it is less public compared to previous years.
“We’re not actually taking over streets,” she said. “It’s a good bike celebration, but cars will drive right by and have no idea we’re here and they don’t see us. It’s nicer for bikes, but it’s also less of a public thing.”
Ms. Shewczyk said BikePGH decided to use this area in Hazelwood, specifically, to limit the amount of people in the area to follow COVID-19 guidelines, if needed.
“This year, when we were planning in January, we didn’t know what the year was going to look like,” she said.
Ms. Jensen’s partner, Jim Leonard, of Squirrel Hill, has been biking as his primary means of transportation for 20 years. Attached to his bike, Mr. Leonard sported a large, homemade bubble blowing wand to make bubbles while riding.
“Initially, I made it for . . . a Burning Man event,” he said. “And then I modified it so it would sit on my bike.”
After 20 years, Mr. Leonard said, the biggest negative to biking are those who are unsupportive of bikes on the roads. And, he said, when it’s above 90 degrees.
“Cold doesn’t bother me so much, I can dress for that,” he said.
For those who didn’t have their own bikes, Healthy Ride, a bike-sharing program sponsored by Allegheny Health Network, was there to provide them. Riders had the ability to pick up and drop off bikes along the route. Healthy Ride works as a pay-as-you-go or monthly membership, charging $2 per 30 minutes or starting at $12 a month.
“Our mission is to provide affordable transportation for folks in the city of Pittsburgh, so we love stuff like OpenStreets,” Healthy Ride’s Ms. Khalil said.
She said it felt “good to be back” after the pandemic and that the event felt very safe.
Above all, Ms. Washington, the Downtown roller skater, said she wanted to live life and spread positivity.
“To me, [COVID-19] taught us a whole lot,” she said. “Life is too short — live it.”
Emma Skidmore: eskidmore@post-gazette.com
First Published: July 25, 2021, 10:00 p.m.
