BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

You're riding the opposite of rush hour traffic so I can't imagine Freeport being that bad? I work in Waterworks and I'd say that commuting from the east end to there would be a breeze with Freeport being a little sketchy where its 1 lane.

there are no secret portals, and freeport road requires a bit of, well, something. i am perfectly stress-free riding freeport, whereas ARB is pretty much a neverending oh-shit. you REALLY have to take the lane on freeport, though, and be comfortable biking near 60+ mph traffic.

heading out in that direction, i like lincoln, but it's a pretty big climb to get there, and i'm not sure it's quite as fun on the way in.

I think I may be coming to the realization that I'm a big wimp. Freeport was pretty empty when I rode it, but when it turned into four lanes, of the few cars that passed me, two practically whiffed me at what seemed like the speed of sound--the second when I had taken the lane. But, that could be me just being skittish--seems like a lot of folks have luck with Freeport.

Thanks so much for the suggestions--I may have to try Lincoln. Hills are a pleasure, compared to highways.

Outbound, I found Frankstown to Verona Road to Sandy Creek Road to ARB and up to Oakmont was OK on a Sunday afternoon. The unpleasant ARB section into Verona isn't very long. But I haven't tried it at rush hour. (I picked the route because it had very little climbing.)

Also, as an alternative to the bus on Freeport, you can get a 78 or P78 bus in Oakmont that goes through the East End. Might be convenient in the event of unexpected weather/broken bike/etc.

"you REALLY have to take the lane on freeport,"

This is solid advice for just about any road, especially if it has 4 lanes. It's tough to get there, but after a while, I've finally developed the attitude of, "This lane is mine. You can have the other one, but stay our of my lane."

I try to ride as close to the white line as possible without putting myself in danger or allowing a car to try to pass me on the right (it's happened before).

But yeah, basically, HV is right.

I do a lot of suburban riding, just not out that direction. On a thoroughfare like what you are describing, the most significant variables are lane count, posted speed, ambient speed, and width/usability of shoulder.

It's easier to take the lane on a six-lane road (McKnight Rd) than a four-lane (Perry Hwy). High initial traffic speeds makes that more difficult. Perry is posted 35, McKnight 40, and I'd say traffic speeds on Perry are 40-ish.

I don't know the roads out that way that well, but if ambient speed really is 50 or better, you do have reason to worry.

Is there any usable shoulder at all? On Perry, some parts there are, often there is a tall curb. McKnight does have a shoulder, so I often find it preferable.

Think of it in terms of changing a flat tire on a car, especially on the left side. If you had to do that, would there be space to pull over and work? Or would you be sitting right in the flow of traffic? If you could, then it should be fairly easy to bike along there. But if a disabled car blocks the right lane because there is nowhere to go, that makes it far less safe to bike.

Perhaps we need to start advocating for "road diets" on suburban roads. Parts of Perry are two wide lanes for the same traffic flow as the parts that are four, and it seems to move along just fine.

I haven't ridden ARB in years, but I do recall it sucking. It needs to go on a road diet that consists of 6" steel bollards that pop up in front of vehicles that exceed 45 mph. It was originally designed as some kind of scenic parkway along the river, but stupid suburban drivers seem to view it as a kind of worm hole to punch it into warp to get out of the city.

I can sympathize with getting buzzed in light traffic in that kind of situation. On my commute (Steubenville Pike, West Carson), rush hour traffic slows vehicles to something manageable, and drivers are kind of on the lookout for things. In light traffic, or opposite rush hour, all bets are off.

The route through Penn Hills takes significantly longer and has a fair amount of climbing.

Plus I dont think I'd want to ride Frankstown Rd. through East Hills on my bicycle. It sucks because that would be a pretty awesome ride.

If you take Lincoln off of Frankstown its no problem.

ARB is one of my least favorite roads in the county.

I used to live across the river from Verona and have ridden Freeport literally hundreds of times. The four lane section really isn't bad. The only part where I've had close calls is going past the waterfront, with all the driveways.

Lincoln Rd is good, but the worst part is after Lincoln ends, making the left while going up the hill on Verona just past 130. There's a blind curve and you're going uphill making the turn, kind of a sitting duck. I usually take Lime Hollow when going out that way, but it's pretty far out of the way for a commute.

I live inbetween the two, and spend most of my time on a bike going one way or the other (draw a line from EEFC to oakmont, and you've covered most of my errands with me in the middle)

++ Lincoln. It's not a bad ride, if you've got decent gears, especially with the lovely new pavement. You can also take Frankstown to Verona Rd (though it's worse now that they've made 2 through lanes at the top of the hill, you've got to make it over to the third lane to turn - I'd dismount and become a ped here), and take Verona downhill. If you like, at the next light it's easy to get to the railroad tracks by taking Sandycreek left (you can also get to the tracks from Washington Blvd intersection, but I've never had the hutzpah to do either). Or you can take Verona Road the whole way in to Verona (you can take the first left onto Third, wave to me as you pass Maple, then at Poketa turn back up to Verona rd - later it turns into Wildwood, and hits ARB at a stop sign, where you're stuck on ARB the rest of the way).

I prefer ARB to Freeport, but I'm a lazy Pittsburgher who doesn't cross rivers ;P I also despise Hulton Bridge, though I'm sure it was awesome and appropriate when it was built.

I don't like ARB at night, people treat it like a drag strip. I also don't especially like Lincoln at night, but that's more in the East End portion, and I'm getting more used to it. But ARB in the day time, with traffic, is fine - you'll pace cars inbound at 7AM if not outstrip them. Against traffic it's a little harrowing. Evening riding will never be happy in either direction, I'm not sure anybody on that road likes their job or their dinner plans.

The bus (78P I think it is) is a nice option in the winter, and it's empty against traffic.

You can do it!