Mon/Fayette Special Edition: Benefits of the Mon/Fayette Toll Road to the Mon Valley and Pittsburgh Region
Benefits of the Mon/Fayette Toll Road to the Mon Valley and Pittsburgh Region
Hotline, Fall 2001
Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
- Close proximity of the Expressway to former industrial sites in Upper Mon Valley (Clairton, West Mifflin, Dravosburg, Duquesne, McKeesport, East Pittsburgh, Braddock, Rankin, Homestead, Hazelwood, etc.) would enhance their marketability to prospective employers. Truck access into the City as well as to key highway links to the north (the Parkway East) and to the south and east (Interstate 70, Pennsylvania Turnpike Mainline) would be greatly improved.
- The Expressway would improve access from the eastern suburbs and the Mon Valley to the City of Pittsburgh cultural district, educational centers, hospitals, sports facilities, the convention center and downtown businesses.
- The Expressway to downtown Pittsburgh, along with its northern connection to the Parkway East near Monroeville, would provide a bypass around the Squirrel Hill Tunnel for motorists traveling between the City and Pittsburgh’s eastern and southeastern suburbs. This bypass system would reduce congestion on the Parkway East and would act as an alternate route during periods of reconstruction, repair or closing of the Parkway East or the Squirrel Hill Tunnel. The bypass would also keep trucks, which have Squirrel Hill Tunnel oversize, height or hazardous materials restrictions, off City of Pittsburgh residential streets.
- With the Expressway, existing and future congestion would be reduced and mobility would be improved, resulting in a more efficient movement of goods and services through the area. This improved truck access and movement of freight would make the Pittsburgh region more competitive with other regions.
- The Expressway would provide the opportunity for enhanced transit service and could, in conjunction with the Martin Luther King Jr. Busway, provide for express service to downtown Pittsburgh. Additional park-and-ride facilities in conjunction with the Expressway could encourage more use of transit services and car pooling.
- The Expressway would give the Mon Valley a transportation infrastructure from the south similar to that which serves the City of Pittsburgh’s western, northern and eastern suburbs. This Expressway would complete basic radial access to the Pittsburgh “hub” and would better connect the region with the high-priority National Highway System.
- The Expressway will reduce the traffic volumes on major routes from the south (PA Route 51, PA Route 885, PA Route 837, PA Route 148, U.S. Route 30, Braddock Avenue) by more than 10 percent. The Expressway would also reduce the traffic volumes on numerous City of Pittsburgh streets by more than 10 percent. This reduction of traffic volumes on the existing highway network will reduce congestion, improve safety and better serve emergency services in the area.
- The Expressway would accommodate future riverfront recreational development and the present and planned trail system along the Mon River.