Michael Baker International Partners with the City of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership to Reimagine Streets during COVID-19 Pandemic

Firm is creating new opportunities for outdoor dining that allows for social distancing while maintaining flow of traffic and improving pedestrian and bike connectivity

PITTSBURGH (June 30, 2020) – Michael Baker International, a global leader in engineering, planning and consulting services celebrating 80 Years of Making a Difference, has partnered with the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership  and City of Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility  to reimagine several thoroughfares in Downtown Pittsburgh’s Golden Triangle, home to the City’s highest concentration of restaurants. Michael Baker’s Urban Design Studio has reconfigured streets in this area to allow for more outdoor, socially distanced dining, with slower traffic speeds and new bike lanes while permitting customers to access downtown restaurants in a safe manner. The redesign is currently being piloted in two locations: 6th Street from Liberty Avenue to Fort Duquesne Boulevard and Penn Avenue between 9th Street and 10th Street. A total of six streets are under consideration for reconfiguration, creating new outdoor dining spaces for over 70 restaurants.

“With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen restaurants limited to a fraction of their indoor occupancy rates and available outdoor options were limited simply due to space. The redesign of these streets will not only allow these businesses to expand outdoor dining and accommodate more customers but also provide diners with a safe experience,” said Peter Quintanilla, Technical Manager - Urban Design at Michael Baker International. “Unprecedented times call for innovative solutions and this redesign maintains a safe slower flow of traffic while making our local communities more livable with the new COVID-19 restrictions in place while enhancing bike and pedestrian connectivity.”

The project includes temporarily converting travel lanes and the addition of protected bike lanes to allow bike connectivity. Remaining travel lanes have also been changed to 10 feet to encourage reduced travel speeds. Further work will include expanding the redesign to new areas of the City and providing input to local restaurants on how to make their outdoor space more inviting.  Design on safe distancing seating has also been undertaken at the historic Market Square and Strawberry Way.

About Michael Baker International

Michael Baker International, celebrating 80 Years of Making a Difference, is a leading provider of engineering and consulting services, including design, planning, architectural, environmental, construction and program management.  The company provides its comprehensive range of services and solutions to support U.S. federal, state, and municipal governments, foreign allied governments, and a wide range of commercial clients.  Michael Baker’s more than 3,000 employees across nearly 100 locations are committed to a culture of innovation, collaboration and technological advancement to help solve challenges for clients and communities throughout the country. To learn more, visit https://mbakerintl.com/.

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Contact: Julia Covelli

Email: julia.covelli@mbakerintl.com