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An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, providing for the development of a complete streets plan by the Department of Economic Development, in cooperation with the Department of Public Works, no later than December 31, 2025.
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Whereas, complete streets is an approach to planning, designing and building streets that enables safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities. This approach also emphasizes the needs of those who have experienced systemic underinvestment, or those whose needs have not been met through a traditional transportation approach; and
Whereas, complete streets policies are intended to save lives and reduce serious injuries on our roads and bridges, while increasing accessibility for people with disabilities and still allowing for maintenance and improvement, deliveries, and emergency services, and prioritizing sustainable transportation modes; and
Whereas, complete streets policies take into consideration concepts like walksheds, which is the area around any central destination that is reachable on foot for the average person within about ten minutes of walking time, taking available routes, terrain, and other factors into consideration. An analysis of walksheds aids in understanding the difficulties of walking to and from central points, like transit stations, in a complete streets scenario; and
Whereas, the City of Pittsburgh’s Council authorized adoption of the City’s complete streets program in late 2016; and
Whereas, completed projects under the City’s program include the Melwood Connector, Perrysville Complete Street, the Aiken to Liberty Connector, the Squirrel Hill Connector, Stanton Avenue Complete Street Phase 1, the Shadyside Connector, Downtown Penn Avenue Cycle Upgrades, S. Dallas Avenue, Forbes Avenue, and Beechwood Boulevard Safe Connections, the Trail to Mairdale Neighborway, and repaving/marking improvements on Reservoir Drive; and
Whereas, in October 2023, the City also re-started its community-driven Complete Streets Advisory Group; and
Whereas, since 2017, at least six other municipalities within Allegheny County (Dormont, Mt. Lebanon, Forest Hills, Wilkins, Millvale and Sharpsburg) have adopted complete streets programs; and
Whereas, Allegheny County has been increasingly advancing active transportation initiatives that resemble a complete streets approach, demonstrating that such an approach is neither novel nor infeasible at the County level; and
Whereas, the foundational principle of any complete streets program is that every resident, regardless of where they live or how they get around, should have the choice to travel in a safe and convenient manner; and
Whereas, bringing this principle to fruition requires coordinated advance planning, design, construction, and maintenance in collaboration with local municipal officials and residents in a manner consistent with and in support of the surrounding community character, land uses, environmental constraints and features, and having appropriate policies in place to shape a regional transportation network which recognizes the unique character of every roadway and that balances the needs of various users in a flexible manner; and
Whereas, it is the judgment of Council that transportation improvements should be planned, designed, constructed and maintained considering current and future demands for all modes of transportation while ensuring the equitable distribution of benefits and burdens of transportation projects upon all populations; and
Whereas, as early as 2010, Allegheny County’s Comprehensive Plan (Allegheny Places) included a component called Active Allegheny, which devoted significant attention to developing a regional complete streets approach; and
Whereas, Active Allegheny also expressly recommends that the County should create a complete streets policy, and specifically advocates for legislative adoption of whatever complete streets policy is formulated; and
Whereas, although County Council adopted Allegheny Places as the comprehensive plan for Allegheny County in 2008, no legislation relating to the Active Allegheny complete streets recommendation has ever been introduced; and
Whereas, it is the judgment of Council that the approach advocated for within Active Allegheny and followed by the City of Pittsburgh has merit and has shown quantifiable positive results, and it is accordingly the desire of Council to direct the formulation of a current complete streets plan and submission of such plan for Council’s approval no later than December 31, 2025; and
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby enacts as follows:
SECTION 1. Incorporation of the Preamble.
The recitations contained within the Preamble to this Ordinance are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
SECTION 2. Complete Streets Plan Development.
A. The Allegheny County Department of Economic Development, in cooperation with the Department of Public Works shall formulate, develop, and present to Council and the Chief Executive a complete streets plan for Allegheny County no later than December 31, 2025. Such program shall be consistent with the goals established by Active Allegheny, the City of Pittsburgh, and municipalities within Allegheny County that have adopted similar programs to the extent practicable. Once presented to the Council and Chief Executive, the plan shall become effective upon adoption via duly enacted ordinance of the County.
B. The County complete streets plan should be formulated with the intention of achieving a high scoring policy from the National Complete Streets Coalition, and should:
1. Provide a clear, comprehensive plan for the County regarding pedestrian infrastructure, bike infrastructure and other forms of micro-mobility, as well as bus lanes;
2. Function to link together the patchwork of municipal bike and bus lanes and sidewalks and walksheds, with the goal of easing County and municipal difficulties in coordinating pedestrian and bike improvements;
3. Address linking street-level bike lanes with bike paths, even those that edge up just to the edge of the County, such as the Westmoreland Heritage Trail;
4. Be designed to incorporate protected bike lanes should as the norm where budgetarily and logistically feasible, and using design standards that promote use of the street by people of all ages and abilities;
5. In all instances comply with applicable law and regulation regarding road, bridge, sidewalk and other uses;
6. In all instances be consistent with conditions applicable to funding provided by the Federal Highway Administration, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, or any other Federal or Commonwealth agency;
7. In all instances require consideration of current and future budgetary constraints, as well as current and future needs;
8. Differentiate appropriately between planned road or bridge improvements and both emergency and non-emergency maintenance activities in a fashion that allows maintenance to be conducted in a safe, timely and fiscally responsible fashion;
9. To the extent practicable, be consistent with current design criteria and guidelines issued by entities including, but not limited to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, and the American Association of State Transportation Highway Officials;
10. To the extent practicable, include appropriate accommodations, facilities and amenities that are generally recognized as contributing to complete streets, such as sidewalks and pedestrian safety improvements such as median refuges, bulbouts and crosswalks; improvements that provide accessibility in compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act; transit accommodations including improved pedestrian access to transit stops and bus shelters; bicycle accommodations including shared-use lanes, wide travel lanes, or bike lanes as appropriate; paved shoulders; bicycle parking; and adequate drainage and other facilities;
11. To the extent practicable, provide for incorporation of other roadway elements such as traffic signals, lighting, landscaping, and furniture in planned projects in cooperation with local municipalities via cost-sharing agreements, highway occupancy permits, intergovernmental cooperation agreements, and maintenance agreements;
11. Provide for incorporation of complete streets principles into all future updates to Allegheny Places and/or Active Allegheny, along with other County plans, manuals, regulations and programs where appropriate; and
12. To the extent practicable, incorporate the 10 Elements of a Complete Streets Policy, as set forth by the National Complete Streets Coalition.
C. No later than December 31 of 2026 and each calendar year thereafter, the County Manager shall compile an annual report, submitted to County Council and the Chief Executive and posted on the County’s website, of current and ongoing complete streets activities, together with upcoming complete streets initiatives. Such report shall document progress using a variety of performance measures, including, inter alia:
1. Any changes in the total length of bike facilities/shared use paths on County owned roads and bridges;
2. Any changes in the number of marked crosswalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps, and other pedestrian safety improvements on County owned roads and bridges;
3. Any changes in the total length of new or repaired sidewalks on County owned roads and bridges;
4. Any changes in the number of reported bicycle and pedestrian-involved incidents on County owned roads and bridges;
5. All municipalities that have adopted complete streets policies or ordinances, that conduct active transportation planning, or undertake design of active transportation improvements; and
6. Documentation of partnerships with organizations to which the County has provided support to advance complete streets planned projects on County owned roads and bridges.
D. Upon adoption of the complete streets plan required under the terms of this Section, the County shall offer upon request technical advice and guidance relating to such plan’s development and formulation to municipalities, Councils of Governments, and other government associations.
SECTION 3. - Effective Date.
The provisions of this Ordinance shall enter into effect immediately upon the date of final approval.
SECTION 4. - Severability.
If any provision of this Ordinance shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Ordinance which shall be in full force and effect.
SECTION 5. - Repealer.
Any Resolution or Ordinance or part thereof conflicting with the provisions of this Ordinance is hereby repealed so far as the same affects this Ordinance.