Greensburg seeking public feedback on city walking, cycling for Active Transportation Plan

Jeff Richards ditched his car 10 years ago and hasn’t looked back.

When the car’s transmission went kaput and repair costs were too high to justify, Richards decided to perform an experiment: How long could he last without a car?

It turns out, longer than he thought. For the past decade, Richards has gotten around solely by walking, cycling and occasionally renting a car for long-distance trips.

“It’s doable,” he said. “It’s just an adjustment.”

Richards, the parks planning coordinator for the Westmoreland County Bureau of Parks and Recreation, is working with Greensburg officials on an Active Transportation Plan — a blueprint to help the city improve infrastructure for human-powered forms of transportation, such as walking and cycling.

The plan is supported by a $20,000 WalkWorks grant from the state Department of Health the city received at the end of last year. The city held an open house in March to gather public input to guide the plan, which is being drafted by Gibson-Thomas Engineering.

About 20 to 30 people attended the open house, filling out a survey and marking key locations for infrastructure improvements on an interactive city map.

Greensburg Planning and Development Director Alec Italiano was pleased with the feedback gathered during the open house.

“It’s exciting for Greensburg to take this on,” he said. “There really hasn’t been (an active transportation plan) done for Greensburg. Seton Hill did a health study back in 2014, and that was the last time anything was really looked at in Greensburg in terms of pedestrian safety and transportation.”

About 100 people have responded to the survey, project manager Mark Szewcow said.

Several residents were concerned about working around Greensburg’s hilly topography, Szewcow said, but he believes the city can overcome those challenges.

The increase in popularity of electronic bikes and scooters might also play a role in dealing with Greensburg’s hills, Italiano said.

Many residents he spoke with at the open house supported the plan. They advocated for establishing better walking and cycling connections between neighborhoods, downtown and schools.

“A lot of people wanted to see improved active transportation infrastructure,” he said.

Survey still available

The survey and interactive map will remain open until mid-April, Szewcow said.

Gibson-Thomas will then compile the data and present it to the plan’s advisory committee — which consists of about 12 to 15 community stakeholders, including city officials and representatives from emergency management and the Westmoreland Transit Authority.

A draft of the plan is expected to open for public comment in July with the goal of presenting a final plan for vote before city council in September.

The plan will help Greensburg apply for grants to complete transportation projects, he said.

“It’s a blueprint that Greensburg can use to get funding for these projects,” Szewcow said. “It will list the projects that the city values and wants to do for their residents.”

While some transportation projects have a longer timeline, others might be completed as early as this fall — such as installing Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ramps at key intersections, Szewcow said. Long-term projects might include creating signage to point out city assets.

Trail upgrades seen as key

Other residents requested improved access points to assets such as the Five Star Trail, which runs from Nature’s Way Market on Mt. Pleasant Road to George Street.

Richards, a member of the Five Star Trail chapter of the Regional Trail Corp., said improvements to the trail have been underway for more than five years.

The city applied for a grant about six or seven years ago to improve neighborhood connections to the Greensburg segment of the trail.

The improvements — which include installing bollards where the trail crosses over a road, purchasing benches, updating signage and cleaning out drain pipes along the trail — will start this spring, Richards said.

Westmoreland County applied for a state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources grant in 2021 to move a 5,000-foot segment of the trail in South Greensburg and Hempfield farther away from the nearby rail line.

The grant was awarded in 2022, Richards said. The county aims to wrap up permitting and planning in the next six months and start building out projects in spring 2025.

The Five Star Trail plays a big role in city residents’ transportation possibilities, Richards said.

“Cities used to revolve around the idea of walking. A lot of the highways are so clogged with cars that it’s not a pleasant experience to walk,” he said. “If you’re on what we call a multipurpose trail and you’re not worried about getting whacked by an automobile (while) you’re out with your family, it’s a whole lot safer experience.”