Big Traffic Changes Coming To East Carson Street Following Triple Shooting
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Big traffic changes are coming to East Carson Street after a triple shooting last week and "dangerous and untenable" crowds that followed the lifting of pandemic restrictions.
Pittsburgh Public Safety and PennDOT announced traffic adjustments for East Carson Street on weekend evenings in an attempt to eliminate gridlock and make the South Side safer.
Police say the South Side has become a little too crowded, resulting in fistfights, pedestrians getting hit by cars and gun violence. Last week on Friday, three people were shot in the early morning hours.
When you look at the makeup of the South Side neighborhood, you are looking at a whole lot of houses and a whole lot of angry residents.
"You don't know if someone is going to turn around and shoot you. You can't walk, you can't park your car anywhere," said a lifelong resident.
That resident is fourth generation and told KDKA the recent uptick in violence along East Carson Street is taking the neighborhood downhill.
"You don't want to hear at 11 o'clock when you are watching the news bang, bang, bang. You don't want to see police chasing people down the street," the resident told KDKA.
Changes include allowing only outbound traffic on East Carson between S. 10th and S. 18th streets from 7 p.m. until 4 a.m. and closing side streets from S. 11th to S. 17th. Only emergency vehicles and Port Authority buses will be allowed to go both ways on East Carson Street.
Uber or Lyft pickups from S. 10th and S. 18th Streets won't be allowed. People using ride-sharing services will have to arrange pick-up and drop-off points ahead of time on side streets that aren't closed.
"If it's hard to get down here, I wouldn't come here. There is no incentive to. We are already dealing with the violence part and now you are throwing another blow to us when that's not really the solution," said Twelve Whiskey BBQ owner Christie Neff.
Neff's business is on the 13th block. She feels the traffic change will hurt business and wants to know why the owners on East Carson weren't included in the city's conversations.
"It seems like it's more young kids than anything else, younger like can't-get-into-a-bar kids so I think that's part of the problem, maybe a curfew would be a better idea," Neff said.
Police officers will also be posted in "key areas" to make sure traffic is flowing safely. Public Safety says the pilot project is running until the foreseeable future.
