I just moved to Woolslayer Way in Bloomfield a couple weeks ago and rode the northshore trail for the first time yesterday. Is there a decent way to get to the Millvale park end of it from 40th st? I drove my car yesterday, but I'd like to be able to get there by bike. Not sure how bike-able the bridge is.
That bridge is pretty sketchy. I don't take it much, but when I do I usually take the sidewalk (which is littered with lots of glass, so that's only a good idea with sturdy tires). To get to the trail, the options are either to ride on that big nasty freeway thing or to cross Ohio and take the sidewalk/path along the roadside, which ends with a staircase that takes you to Millvale city streets which lead to the trail.
Hey neighbor! I live at 39th and Liberty.
You can cross the 40th St Bridge and head down to the river. From there you can take the trail towards the Northside. The trail is not officially there and is fairly rutted out for 5-8 blocks past the rowing club, but picks up next to River Ave again.
Another option is to head down to the 31st Bridge, take the sidewalk across and catch the trail there.
I sometimes use the driving lane on the 40SB if there are two lanes northbound. Less glass than on the sidewalk. Note: There is one drain grate with slots aligned longitudinally, about 3/4 of the way across, just big enough to damage a bike tire, though not big enough to fall into it.
At the end of the bridge, cross 28, go around the pole and use the sidewalk to Maryland Avenue. Making a right turn at the bottom usually isn't too hard.
Some times of the year you can ride a trail right by the end of the bridge, but it's horribly overgrown at the moment. I don't like it anyway, as it dumps you out on riding a diagonal concrete slope. Horrid & dangerous IMHO.
BradQ's suggestion of taking the 31SB is good. Be sure to turn left at the light before the end of the bridge, onto River St. The trail is then on your left.
The trail is decent, but not to the standards of the jail trail until you get down by the Heinz Lofts. I rode it all the way to Millvale today.
How bike-able the bridge is would obviously be a matter of opinion. Mine depends on traffic volume. More often than not I take the sidewalk. Only once have I met a pedestrian but, yes, there's plenty of broken glass.
As to what you do at the end of the bridge I don't see much of a problem with making the same right turn traffic from the bridge makes. It might be ugly, but since you're new to the ride I'll point out that you only have traffic from the bridge to deal with. The bridge crosses over SR28N, the traffic coming from your left at the end of the bridge must turn onto the bridge. It's enough of a downhill slope that even my slow ass rarely gets passed, and there are two nice wide lanes there if someone wants to do it. The left lane is for Millvale and the right lane leads to a sharp turn cars will have to slow down for anyway to get onto 28. Just slow down a bit when you make that right turn to the park so you don't slip on the cinders that sometimes accumulate there.
This actually raises a question I have about this intersection. If traffic from the left must turn onto the bridge, why can traffic from the bridge not turn right on red? Honestly, that's what I typically do. Cars on the bridge are at a red light and there's no other traffic (barring, what? Southbound U-Turns?).
