Dave Munson

Explore the City Ratings | PeopleForBikes 2025 City Ratings Browse over 2900 cities across North America and see how they rank for biking.

According to People for Bikes, Jersey Shore (it's not where you think) is the best place to bike in Pennsylvania. cityratings.peopleforbikes.org/ratings

I haven't read the news for over a month (but don't worry, my ADHD is totally under control). I spent the last several days cleaning out my feed. I will now start actually reading the stories. Prepare for some rather cold takes.

§ 907.03 NSCPO, North Side Commercial Parking Area Overlay District.

"The intent of the NSCPO District is to prohibit the installation of commercial parking areas as defined under Section 911.02 on vacant lots."

Well, that seems pretty cut and dry. ZBA, reject it.

At 1241 Western Avenue, they want to build a commercial parking area (which the lot is not physically wide enough for, but I digress) on a vacant lot. It's in the North Side Commercial Parking Area Overlay District, so let's see what the code says about that. www.pittsburghpa.gov/files/assets...

This looks like a case of someone not doing their due diligence before buying a property, and now they're asking permission to do whatever they want once they find out it isn't legal. The whole reason we have planning is to shape future land uses, not assume we can keep the old ones. ZBA, Reject it.

At 8510 Frankstown Av, I'm making some assumptions, but it looks like:
1) The existing garage was noncompliant but grandfathered
2) Someone bought it intending to convert it to parking, but
3) that isn't a permitted use in the zone, so they can't
www.pittsburghpa.gov/files/assets...

I was ready to slam the parking pads at 4624 Penn Avenue that are accessed directly from the street, until I looked at Streetview and saw that they've been there since at least 2007. Should have never been built, but at this point, why are we litigating it? www.pittsburghpa.gov/files/assets...

Several parking-related variances at the 8/21 Zoning Board of Adjustment. Let's take a look at some of the proposed projects. 🧵 www.pittsburghpa.gov/Business-Dev...

I would love to know more about this parking variance at 210 East End Av on August 13, but I'm not finding much. Anyone know what's happening there? www.pittsburghpa.gov/Business-Dev...

If you were waiting for Pittsburgh City Council to drop some new public meeting info, don't hold your breath. They're on recess for most of August. pittsburgh.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx

I'm trying to find neighborhood meetings, so I check the City of Pittsburgh's website and find this map of registered community organizations. Huge parts of the city don't seem to have any RCOs. Is there a better list of neighborhood groups somewhere? pittsburghpa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant...

Why don't people walk? Well for 36%, because it's gross outside (gee, it's almost like the sunbelt isn't fit for human habitation). But for 25%, because there's nowhere to walk to in 10 mins, and for 22% it's just too inconvenient. These are design problems. www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2...

The link between low-stress bicycle facilities and bicycle commuting - Nature Cities Bicycling offers a range of benefits for urban commuters, but the facilities that best facilitate bicycle lane use are still unclear. Using data from 28 US cities, this study found that bicycle lanes ...

Today in "What we all already knew but it's nice to have the numbers," protected bike lanes work better. Researchers at UNM and CU Denver find protected bike lanes see 53% more new commuters than standard bike lanes and 281% over sharrows. www.nature.com/articles/s44...

If the other person is not ready and waiting for me I mutter understand my breath, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize we were holding this meeting IN SPAIN.”

I’m on island time, but the island is Britain, so I show up to everything five minutes early, then stare at my watch until the exact time of the meeting before going in.

Pedestrian in critical condition after being hit by vehicle in Whitehall Pedestrian hit by vehicle in Whitehall

No mention of the driver AT ALL. Usually in the last paragraph they throw in a flaccid "the driver stayed at the scene and is cooperating with police" like they deserve a medal for it. Not even that. Did a parked vehicle somehow roll down the hill and hit the pedestrian? www.wtae.com/article/pede...

State Supreme Court affirms bicyclists' rights to use roads with other vehicles - Pittsburgh Union Progress It took nearly five years, but Brendan Linton of Butler County proved his point that bicyclists shouldn’t always have to move off the road any time cars back up behind them. On July 31, 2021, Linton w...

The great Pittsburgh Union Progress transportation writer Ed Blazina brings the goods with details on the case and and interview with the rider's attorney. www.unionprogress.com/2025/06/22/s...

Maryland’s Quick-Build Projects Are a Model for Every State DOT How do you make streets safer when your tools made them unsafe in the first place? If you’re the Maryland Department of Transportation, you start building a new toolbox.

Transportation projects built fast?
And cheap?!
And with community participation?!?!
Is Maryland some alternate dimension?
www.strongtowns.org/journal/2025...

Changes coming to Browns Hill Road stemming from deadly motorcycle crash 33-year-old Robert Brimage was killed in a motorcycle crash along Browns Hill Road on May 29.

The Fatal Crash Response Team is a real game changer, providing cheap, quick responses to deadly crashes. I hope that we can expand it in the future to severe injury crashes as well (apparently the limiting factor is the PPD only has one crash investigation officer). www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/n...

Also, yeah, the business owners are gonna complain, because they're myopic geezers who would complain about a free house-trained puppy. But where are our electeds, who should be pointing out that the bike lane is in line with the city's goals to reduce road deaths and carbon emissions?

Many Strip District businesses remain strongly opposed to Penn Avenue overhaul Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure says it has considered stakeholder input — even if much of it is very negative...

Strip District business owners: a bike lane would destroy everything!
DOMI: Okay, well, we did several analyses that show that it won't. If anything, it will benefit you.
SDBO: ...Well, you're probably lying! And you haven't done enough stakeholder engagement! www.post-gazette.com/business/dev...

PA Supreme Court AFFIRMS bicyclists' right to "take the lane" when they choose - BikePGH The state's highest court weighs affirms that bicyclists themselves can determine the safest lane position to ride

This stubborn guy in Butler County has spent the last five years appealing all the way to the state supreme court a $25 ticket a cop gave him for "impeding traffic" because he wouldn't pull his bike off the road in a place where it wasn't safe, and finally HE WON. bikepgh.org/2025/06/17/p...

Budgeting for Better Bike Infrastructure: How to Follow the Money | League of American Bicyclists Every great place to bike or Bicycle Friendly Community starts with a vision: more protected bike lanes, better-connected routes, safer crossings, and accessible options for everyone. But turning that...

Would anyone watch a youtube video about following the money, as directed here? bikeleague.org/budgeting-fo...

How to Paint a Crosswalk - Crosswalk Collective LA A step-by-step guide to paint a crosswalk and keep your community safe.

I'm trying to clean out some of my tabs, so just so I have this saved somewhere, here's Crosswalk Collective LA's guide to guerrilla crosswalks: crosswalksla.org/how-to-guide...

Because of these I was a bit taken aback this morning when, while I was in the bike lane, going about 10 mph, a person who was probably 15 feet away from me, crossing the street illegally, yelled at me "Slow down, asshole!" I wonder if they yelled that at all the cars going by at 30 mph.

2. Generally nonriders have been way nicer to me since I got the cargo bike than when I rode a regular one. I think because it's big and weird people are just delighted by it. The switch DID coincide with my move from Philly to Pittsburgh, which is not NOT a factor, but I think it's mostly the bike.

🧵
1. My @bunchbike.com CAN go over 20 mph, but out of respect for my acoustic bike friends, I keep it to 10 mph when there's a bike lane. I still pass some people, but more athletic riders are passing me all the time. Hell, more athletic PEDESTRIANS pass me sometimes.

Duffy Tells Congress He's Not Delaying DOT Projects — As He Delays DOT Projects — Streetsblog USA Thousands of transportation grants remain in limbo as the Trump administration cuts staff and cracks down on "woke" projects.

usa.streetsblog.org/2025/05/29/d...

Ooh, I didn't know Pittsburgh Scanner had made the leap to Bluesky. Thanks for sharing!