“We love coming to the Strip. We’re here often. We spend a lot of money here and would like to continue to support the businesses. It is already hard enough to find parking on the weekends. Please do not move forward with this plan.”

“Anyone who has visited the strip for shopping or to dine on anything but a lonely Tuesday will tell you that reducing Penn Ave. to one lane would be crippling to most of the businesses located there. If the city wants to close the businesses and build more condos, this is the way to go.”

“This is unsafe! This is going to add to further congestion in our community. The residents pay a lot of money to live here and you’re inconveniencing us by this decision. We pay high premium of taxes to keep our neighborhood running well. The fact that you’re ignoring public safety officials advice is incredibly concerning. We will have to take this into consideration when rallying to elect the next round of officials for our great community.”

“SAVE THE STRIP!!!”

“No! Traditional is valuable”

“Please leave the strip the way it is. Why fix something that isn’t broke ! Please use the money to repair our failing bridges.”

“The Strip is a Pgh. Tradition and valuable fixture. DONT RUIN IT!”

“I’m here often, and live close-by. I can imagine, if Penn Avenue is narrowed to one lane and a bike lane, that the Strip District will be permanently damaged. There will be traffic jams, pedestrian accidents (both bicycle and vehicle), angry and therefore dangerous drivers, and a general demise to one of the remaining unique parts of Pittsburgh.
Please don’t let Mayor Gainey override other authorities and ruin the Strip.”

“Please leave the Strip alone!”

“Do not touch the strip district with this unnecessary plan. The neighborhood has thrived in the 45 years I’ve lived in Pittsburgh. I ran a business there and worked there for ten years. Now I visit a few times a month.

City Planning should not try to fix what isn’t broken. Reminds me of what the city government did to East Liberty in the early 70s by eliminating street parking and controlling traffic. It took 50 years to fix it.”

“Frustrated drivers aren't safe drivers, and parked cars will block the view of the bike lane – there's increasing accidents and injuries.

But what does he care, he parked illegally at the meeting at Pittsburgh Winery and at Preeti's Pitt…”

“Please don’t take away the charm of the strip!”

“Ludicrous idea which will lead to even greater congestion for those passing through the Strip OR looking to visit the strip via automobile This will be very detrimental to the well-being of many Strip District businesses and ultimately the decay of the vibrancy of the neighborhood. I am deeply troubled and saddened by the proposal to restrict Penn avenue to a single lane of vehicle traffic.”

“I fully agree with all points. Not to mention how school busses would handle this. I have lived in the surrounding area my whole life and my school district i attended regularly had field trips to the strip. They will be hindering such a historic area, the only things that should be happening is REPAIRS on a historic area, not changes.”

“I shop weekly in the strip especially at Penn Ave. Fish and this one lane in Penn Ave. Is so ridiculous. The city has done great with the strip’s revitalization but this move is just dumb and could really hurt the local businesses.”

“We've seen what happened with Penn Ave in the Strip District. Do not restrict traffic in the Strip District any more than it already is. Create more opportunities for economical parking situations including a shuttle. Let the longtime businesses and families continue to thrive in this economically vital area.”

“Former Pittsburgher (had to move for marriage, but trying to get back) who visits home as often as I can (several times a year) and ALWAYS make time for a trip to the Strip. Please don't destroy such a special place.”

“Please don’t do this.”

“It's admirable to want to enact progressive changes for the city, but more meaningful developments such as modernized crosswalks would do more for pedestrian safety.”

“Keep the strip! If anything put more money into the strip!”

“Preserve the Strip”

“The Strip District is already crowded for traffic with two lanes. Restricting traffic to one lane will create significant traffic problems. Please rethink your plan for this important area of Pittsburgh.”

“As a first responder for the city this is a terrible idea to reduce the strip to one lane. Asinine and Ludicrous. Keep it the way it is now.”

“I live right in Bloomfield and depend on the strip for specialty and heritage items.”

“As a bus driver, I go through the strip all the time. This will make things much harder for me. My veterinarian is in the strip as well and I'd hate for them to suffer because of poor leadership.”

“Stop changing the things about our city that make it unique and fix the things that will benefit the city……bridges, roads and the homeless and disadvantaged!!!! The focus should be on what keeps people coming to our city not driving out the ones who already live here!!
Do not try to fix what is not broken…..WE LOVE THE STRIP FOR WHAT IT IS !!!!!”

“Keep the strip the way it is”

“As a property owner on Penn Ave, I have been in the strip almost daily and able to actively observe the traffic flow on Penn Ave since November of 2023. Anyone actually driving, walking or observing Penn Ave would realize the impractical and harmful decision to restrict traffic flow. The two lanes of traffic allow for business and residential deliveries, emergency vehicles, backing into park spots, construction restrictions with one lane of traffic still able to pass in the second lane. Restricting emergency vehicles, commuter traffic and delivery access due to traffic congestion is critical concern.

Difficult to understand the fixation on impacting Penn Ave, when there is a safer and simpler solution to have a bike lane along the river trail (or a less traveled road). Clearly the volume of bikes is minuscule and seasonal compared to cars, trucks, delivery, emergency and construction vehicles on a daily basis at any time of the day. Thank you for your consideration.”

“This is absolute insanity. The traffic is bad enough as it is, now this? These bike lanes are stupid. Bikers don't adhere to any road rules in regular lanes or bike lanes. Half the time, they don't even use bike lanes, they're just in with traffic. Traffic is always slow and it takes forever to get anywhere. Who thought this was a good idea? Do better.”

“I come to the strip every single week on Monday to do my shopping.

There’s no way I would continue to do so with the headaches that would come along with this change.

Please reconsider!”

“It’s a historic area that invites a lot of people to support local businesses. I enjoy going and walking around the neighborhood, it would be sad for it to be affected by this plan.”

“Stop with the bike lanes! NOT NEEDED. Already bad enough since you haven’t run the city right for 40 years.”

“Stupid idea – and will hurt business, and be dangerous for the bikers.”

“Mayors plan is horrible”

“Penn Ave is already too crowded — going to one lane will make it worse. There are far more people who drive cars than people who ride bikes.”

“Restricting traffic on Penn Avenue will result in congestion and chaos”

“Don't mess with what has worked for 100 yrs.”

“This is one of the most inane plans I’ve ever seen.”

“Misguided Gainey! There is a constant flow of traffic down the two lanes ofPenn Avenue into the Strip District. Traffic flow is already congested on weekends to the point that I avoid going down there on Saturday and Sunday. Please do not make these changes. How about you put the money towards opening the two bridges that are strangling the flow of traffic into an out of squirrel Hill and Oakland!”

PENN AVENUE IS ALREADY A NIGHTMARE TO NAVIGATE WITH TWO LANES. CUTTING IT TO ONE IS ABSURD!!

“Horrible idea”

“I would be extremely reluctant to visit the Strip if parking and driving was more difficult.”

“This is the most absurd thing I've seen!! Do you want EVERYTHING in this city to shut down!! Gainey, you are pushing people OUT of the city instead of building a better city!! Open your eyes to whats going on!! How many bicycles do we really have compared to the cars?!?! How about we make the bikers follow ALL the laws of the road if they are going to take our roads over?!?!?!

“Other options should definitely be explored. I don't feel that Pittsburgh is enough of a biking town to warrant adding a bike lane to Penn Avenue.”

“I am a lifetime City of Pittsburgh resident and find this change will ruin Strip access. I stop often unplanned when passing through.
This would increase traffic and I may as well just loop around on Rt 28 as thousands others will do. Honestly, the bikes have more options than vehicles in the Strip (and the City) and do not justify a lane on Penn. If you really want to make progress insure that all new housing has 100% parking spots for all residents within the development. This will get resident parking off the streets and allow more room for businesses to thrive. DOMI move onto some other un-bright idea.”

“Whoever is doing this study has obviously never been on Penn Ave on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Making Penn Ave one lane would cause massive gridlock to an area that is already congested with two lanes. I am terribly sad to say that this change would make me think twice about my regular (at least one a month) trips to the Strip, where I regularly spend a couple $100 per trip.”

“The entire fabric of the Strip District has changed over the years. There is little left of the history, culture, and flavor of Pittsburgh. It has become "Yuppie-ville." It is not a place for local Pittsburghers, but rather, it has become an upscale location for the upwardly mobile. If it is to retain ANY of its historic value the few ethnic businesses which are left must remain supported. Changing traffic flow on Penn Avenue will ultimately destroy them. You bet, such a change will absolutely frustrate visitors that will not return! It's already a hassle to find a reasonably priced place to park. Why can't anything good in the City of Pittsburgh just be left alone!?!”

“I work with The Midwife Center and I can only imagine how much stress this will cause pregnant families and people who are in labor trying to navigate a possible lesser known area of town for them with only one way access to the birth center.”

“We fear delivery trucks with our medical supplies and ambulances will have difficulty reaching our facility. If it is one lane then traffic must stop every time someone parallel parks. Clients in labor will have undue traffic.”

“The Strip District is historic and any changes to that area would be a shame. It has worked for many many years so why change something that is a Pittsburgh tradition.”