Walking from Aspinwall into Town (Pittsburgh, Washington: chapel, home, neighborhood)

[Hopes]

Oakland and Shadyside are definitely more doable in my opinion than Downtown. Yes, you can walk across the Highland Park Bridge safely. There's a sidewalk.

I'd go a different way than Kate. I'd go across the Highland Park Bridge, up One Wild Place and cross through Highland Park, into East Liberty to Shadyside. If you went the Morningside Route, you wouldn't need to go into Lawerenceville and Stanton Heights. You'd just cut through Morningside into Highland Park, but there's no reason to go that way when you can go directly up into Highland Park. It's still a decent walk and would take some serious time.

Originally Posted by prb75

Does Aspinwall seem like a good area to raise a family and not be completely car dependent?

Definitely. You'll need a car but you don't need to be dependent on a car. You dont' need to go into downtown or Shadyside to take care of your everyday stuff. Aspinwall has everything you would need for the most part. There's a very large grocery store in a strip mall nearby within walking distance. There's a movie theater within walking distance too. Aspinwall has lots of little shops and restaurants sprinkled throughout it too. You'll need a car to do things outside of the area, but there is frequent bus service into downtown and there is also bus service to Oakland.

[greg42]

The thing that strikes me about Shadyside and Oakland vs downtown is that they are significantly uphill from the river. No matter how you slice it, whether you go through Highland Park, Lawrenceville, whatever, it's uphill.

[BrianTH]

There are family-friendly neighborhoods that would be a much easier walk to Oakland/Shadyside than Aspinwall. Downtown is a bit trickier because the walkable residential neighborhoods from Downtown tend to be some of the oldest around with fairly dense housing, and so are not as family-oriented.

Personally, for combining non-car Downtown access with family-friendly residential neighborhoods, I think your best bet is to look along some of our rapid transit routes, such as the T (light rail) into the South Hills, or the East Busway (bus rapid transit) into the East End. That's not quite the same as a purely walkable route, but it does get you out of your car.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by greg42

The thing that strikes me about Shadyside and Oakland vs downtown is that they are significantly uphill from the river. No matter how you slice it, whether you go through Highland Park, Lawrenceville, whatever, it's uphill.

Yep. If I were looking at walking to Shadyside/Oakland, I'd be looking at one of the many neighborhoods at roughly the same raised elevation (relative to the river valleys).

[onwardandupward]

Hm. If you're walking for walking's sake, there are lots of routes that are safer and more doable than walking from Aspinwall to downtown or Shadyside. It is theoretically possible, as Hopes indicates, but if your intent is to walk to shop, it's a very long route to be carrying groceries or anything else. Remember that Pittsburgh has hills, rivers, valleys, etc. - walking across the Highland Park bridge and up One Wild Place by the zoo to Shadyside is a serious endeavor for shopping purposes undertaken only by (in my personal opinion) a crazy person . If you don't want to take a car, you are much better off taking a bus.

If you really don't want to drive, there are, as Hopes said, lots of places in and around Aspinwall for shopping - the Waterworks Mall is right next door, though I don't think there is a sidewalk along Freeport Road in front of it.

Aspinwall is a great little town, and if your interest is in the school district and a small walkable town without being in the city proper, you're got that covered. You can always drive or bus it to the Strip, the East End, the South Side, and spend the day walking and shopping.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by greg42

The thing that strikes me about Shadyside and Oakland vs downtown is that they are significantly uphill from the river. No matter how you slice it, whether you go through Highland Park, Lawrenceville, whatever, it's uphill.

It's only uphill at the beginning. Once you get up there, it's all flat. And some routes are less steep---like Washington Boulevard.

[onwardandupward]

Originally Posted by Hopes

It's only uphill at the beginning. Once you get up there, it's all flat. And some routes are less steep---like Washington Boulevard.

But there are no sidewalks on Washington Boulevard. I drove past someone walking along it the other evening, and I was seriously concerned - it is not a safe thing to do.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by onwardandupward

But there are no sidewalks on Washington Boulevard. I drove past someone walking along it the other evening, and I was seriously concerned - it is not a safe thing to do.

Washington Boulevard itself isn't that bad. It's getting to Washington Boulevard from the Highland Park Bridge. That little stretch of road on Allegheny River Boulevard would be a frightening walk. But Washington Boulevard isn't bad on the the side of the road that has the police station. It's mostly open grass, parking lots in the business area, and then there is a sidewalk after that until the top of the hill. Granted, its' not walker friendly, but it's an alternative if someone is concerned about walking a hill. I personally would walk One Wild Place and get it over with. That's the most direct route too.

[BrianTH]

One way or another you are going to have to climb around 200 feet to get from Aspinwall to Oakland/Shadyside.

[Hopes]

The climb from Allegheny River Boulevard into Morningside via Baker Street isn't that bad.

Once you're on Jancy or Morningside Avenue, it's fairly flat within a block.

It's just four blocks of hill on Baker Street.