PITTSBURGH trip
Aug. 12-13 2024
PART 10
New England Road in West Mifflin. That's a private drive on the left.
Southeast on PA 51.
PA 51 enters Jefferson Hills.
That speed limit sign has seen less ridicule-evoking days. I think this was on some ill-maintained side road for a big commercial area.
Our battle through the commercial area continues.
Back in Pittsburgh on PA 51. The sign with the blue circle shows this is part of the area's "belt" system of roads. Wikipedia says this is "a unique of system of routes" that was established in the early 1950s. It consists of 6 color-coded routes that generally bypass central Pittsburgh. These are usually city streets or surface roads, not freeways, and have helped reduce congestion by guiding traffic away from downtown.
A rail line causes a bridge over PA 51, as PA 51 goes over a creek called Sawmill Run. PA 51 is Saw Mill Run Boulevard here.
Being cool doesn't have to cost a fortune! Take it from me!
PA 51 again. There was once a Saw Mill Run Expressway proposed in this path.
The Liberty Tunnel is a dual tunnel that opened in 1924 and is over a mile long. It runs deep beneath regular residential areas. It had sidewalks that were removed in the 1970s. At first, the tunnel had no ventilation, but it was soon added after a traffic jam caused motorists to pass out from fumes. In 1941, this became the first tunnel in the world in which reception of AM radio was available.
A video of the trek through the Liberty Tunnel.
The Liberty Tunnel feeds into the Liberty Bridge, which opened in 1928 and crosses the Monongahela River to downtown Pittsburgh.
The Liberty Bridge affords us a broad view of other spans. The bridge with the arched framework at center left is the Birmingham Bridge, opened in 1977. The suspension bridge at far left is the South 10th Street Bridge, opened in 1933. I think the bridge at far right is the P.J. McArdle Roadway span over a rail line.
The Liberty Bridge becomes Crosstown Boulevard. It has a ramp here to Boulevard of the Allies, which has a certain resemblance to Cincinnati's Columbia Parkway.
Crosstown Boulevard goes under some ramps for I-579.
West on Forbes Avenue. I have no idea if the street has any connection to Forbes magazine. One hopes not.
Northeast on Grant.
Forbes at Grant.
Continuing on Forbes.
Southwest on Wood.
Looking down Smithfield Street onto the Smithfield Street Bridge. That span over the Monongahela River opened way back in 1883. As of 2024, it was reportedly the second-oldest steel bridge in the country. It replaced an older bridge designed by John A. Roebling and uses the Roebling span's piers.
Cherry Way from Boulevard of the Allies.
Boulevard of the Allies rises up and approaches the Liberty Bridge.
Looking down from Boulevard of the Allies, we see the framework of the Panhandle Bridge just peeping up. The Panhandle Bridge opened in 1903 and is now just for light rail.