Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey scraps shuttle portion of Mon-Oakland Connector project

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey said Wednesday that the proposed Mon-Oakland Connector project will no longer include a shuttle program, which was widely considered the most controversial part of the infrastructure project that seeks to connect research hubs in Oakland and Hazelwood.

The Mon-Oakland Connector initially included a proposed roadway that would carry shuttles — possibly self-driving ones — from Oakland to Hazelwood, with the city allocating $23 million to the project.

The proposed shuttles had early support from former Mayor Bill Peduto, Carnegie Mellon University and the Regional Industrial Development Corp. of Southwestern Pennsylvania, the developer behind the Hazelwood Green project that seeks to transform the former LTV Steel site covering 178 acres along the Monongahela River.

But Gainey’s announcement ended the shuttle and road part of the project. Instead, the connector will focus on upgrading bicycle, pedestrian and stormwater infrastructure in the corridor that runs along Oakland’s Junction Hollow Trail and through Greenfield’s Four Mile Run onto Hazelwood’s Sylvan Avenue.

Gainey said the Mon-Oakland project will focus on bringing green infrastructure jobs to Pittsburgh, and will address longtime complaints from residents.

The advocacy group Pittsburghers for Public Transit has long opposed the shuttle portion of the Mon-Oakland Connector project, instead believing that city funds should be spent on improving existing public transit.

The group’s Laura Wiens celebrated the news of the canceled shuttle program, which comes a day before Gainey and Pittsburgh City Councilor Corey O’Connor will hold a community meeting about the Mon-Oakland Connector project.

Wiens commended the mayor for “not (letting) taxpayer dollars go to building roadways through our park for private shuttles.”

Gainey’s office said the administration wants to work with partners like the county, Carnegie Mellon, Port Authority of Allegheny County and the University of Pittsburgh to secure funding for improvements to Bates Street, the East Parkway Interchange and Second Avenue, in hopes that they will relieve traffic congestion, improve public transit and better connect Oakland and Hazelwood.