Blue belt? orange belt? yellow belt? etc. belt? What is that? (Pittsburgh: houses, school)

[creepsinc]

Yeah, I like the belts too. I don't really used them that much (besides the Blue Belt), but it's good to know they're there. Dave and Dave on WQED have a series on them, where they just drive them and stop at all the interesting places along the way. I think they're there in place of a beltway or ring road, which wouldn't be very feasible with the topography.

[gotermite]

They are the answer to the question:
If I could get out of traffic and just take side roads around town which way would I go?

[MathmanMathman]

Proficiency levels in Karate.

[SorryIMovedBack]

Originally Posted by Drover

The "Belts" are basically used as navigational aides to determine just how far you are from your intended destination when you're driving around looking for something. "Aw f*#k, did that sign just say Yellow Belt? We're not even supposed to be outside the Green Belt. We are so lost it's not even funny."

LMAO! That is exactly the story (stories) of my youth, every time my family went to Pittsburgh, which was frequently in either a '48 Hudson Commodore or a '49 Pontiac Chieftain, in the summer, with no freaking air conditioning, with Dad staying off the Interstate and parkway and taking any older-than-dirt former buffalo trail into or out of the city. Lost, lost, lost, and sweltering, and beaten to half to death by the wind noise, half carsick from all that cigarette smoke wafting into the back seat, that hamburger from McDonald's, etc. Heaven help us if the car broke down. Ah, those belt signs still bring back the memories.

[I_Like_Spam]

The belt system is useful if you don't know where you are. If you follow the belt signs, you'll sooner or later run into a major highway.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by SorryIMovedBack

LMAO! That is exactly the story (stories) of my youth, every time my family went to Pittsburgh, which was frequently in either a '48 Hudson Commodore or a '49 Pontiac Chieftain, in the summer, with no freaking air conditioning, with Dad staying off the Interstate and parkway and taking any older-than-dirt former buffalo trail into or out of the city. Lost, lost, lost, and sweltering, and beaten to half to death by the wind noise, half carsick from all that cigarette smoke wafting into the back seat, that hamburger from McDonald's, etc. Heaven help us if the car broke down. Ah, those belt signs still bring back the memories.

Good times.

[wanderlust76]

It's better to learn the actual roads and how they all connect instead of trying to go by the belt system. At least that's my opinion after learning the roads in most of the main sections of Pittsburgh. If you use google maps all the main roads and streets throughout Pittsburgh are marked in yellow...those are the roads you want to learn first and then from there branch out and learn the side roads. I agree the belt system is useful if you are flat out lost and looking for the highway or downtown. When I was younger and got lost in Pittsburgh the belt system did help me once or twice I believe.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by Tallysmom

Now -- I have my father's sense of direction. I may not know where I am, and I may not know how to get where I am going, but I am never lost. My mother, however has become famous on these boards for the "Brown Cow", and can get lost if you take her two inches past her destination.

What's the Brown Cow?

[WorldViolation90]

The belt system doesn't really make much sense, but many of the roads along the beltways are roads you should know, plus the belts make it pretty easy to get from one place to another in some cases. For example, following the green belt can take you from Ross to Hampton to Fox Chapel painlessly.

To me, the more confusing aspect has always been the "parkway" deal. I've lived in Pittsburgh my entire life and still don't know what the "parkway east" and "parkway west" are. Admittedly, I grew up in and still reside in the northern suburbs, but I've never been able to figure that out. For a visitor, it's even worse--the traffic reporters never say "279", "376", or "579" (which honestly wouldn't be that hard to do).

There are ways around all of those numbered roads (I try to avoid most of those three digit ones). The best thing to do is to spend a day with a Rand McNally map of Pittsburgh and to keep said map in your car at all times. It's also useful to get to know older residents of the city who know the shortcuts, which are often quicker in the long run. Taking East Street to Evergreen Road is always quicker than using I-279 and McKnight, for example, when you're headed out from the North Side, plus it gets rid of those awful merges you have to make. (Seriously, who designed I-579 with its horrible southbound lane shift?)

[Sealtite]

I've always just ignored the belt system. When my dad was teaching me to drive, he told me that they created it back in the 70's, that it made no sense, and to ignore it.....which I have. To this day I haven't the slightest clue what the belts are for, nor do I care because I can find my way around Pittsburgh and surrounding areas just fine.