Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) has issued draft plans for a traffic calming project on Terrace and De Soto streets near the Petersen Events Center.
The area has been the site of several accidents — three fatal — in the past few years. The latest vehicle-pedestrian fatality on Dec. 5, 2024, left a Pitt employee dead. Jessie Maroney, 37, of South Park, was a member of the housekeeping staff at the Biomedical Science Towers. She was struck by a box truck while crossing Darragh Street.
Immediately after that accident, DOMI’s Vision Zero team — a national program designed to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries on city streets to zero — and the city’s Fatal Crash Response Team implemented “rapid response safety changes,” including signal adjustments and new crosswalks in early 2025.
Since then the Vision Zero team has met with local stakeholders, including Pitt, UPMC and community members, to come up with a plan to calm traffic, improve safety and better protect pedestrians and cyclists.
The project includes new pedestrian crosswalks on Dunseith at Terrace, across Chesterfield at Terrace, and across Buffalo at Terrace, as well as new bumpouts (painted lines) and flex posts added at Terrace and Dunseith, at the small driveway located just uphill from Dunseith at Terrace, at Terrace and Darragh, and at Terrace and Chesterfield (where a pedestrian refuge island also will be added on Terrace.)
An overview of the project on the city’s EngagePGH portal says the project will calm traffic primarily by narrowing the roadway, using the extra space to add bike lanes in both directions from Darragh to O'Hara.
The eastbound bike lane on Terrace approaching De Soto will be parking-protected, which will narrow the roadway. The uphill climbing lane on De Soto will be buffered with vertical elements, further narrowing the roadway. Bump-outs with vertical elements (flex posts) to keep cars from illegally parking near intersections will ensure clear sightlines and slow turning vehicles as they approach intersections. The narrower roadway will also create shorter crossing distances for pedestrians, improving safety.
Vision Zero Summit
BikePGH and the city of Pittsburgh will host a Vision Zero Summit on Oct. 17 at the University Club.
The day of discussions, speakers and breakouts will highlight the local and regional efforts to achieve zero deaths on area roadways. Topics will range from the state of Vision Zero to fatal crash responses and the PennSTART facility — a closed loop, state-of-the-art testing facility planned in Mt. Pleasant that will be used to accelerate innovation in emerging transportation technology, improve the safety and efficiency of transportation infrastructure, and enhance traffic incident management training.
The summit costs $150 or $50 for students, nonprofits and city of Pittsburgh staff.
— Susan Jones
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