Politics & Government
Residents Say Trestle Road Traffic is Speeding Up Again
With the school year starting and traffic increasing, those who live on Plum Borough's Trestle Road are seeking an update on measures to limit speeding on the small residential street.
Trestle Road residents again want to know when speeding will stop on their small residential street and, according to officials, an answer shouldn’t be far away.
The street has been plagued by speeders, particularly motorists who cut through Trestle Road when rush hour traffic backs up on Monroeville-Trestle Road, which intersects with Saltsburg Road near Puff’s Discount Tobacco shop.
At previous council meetings, residents said that rush hour speeding has troubled Trestle Road for decades and that borough officials and other local lawmakers have been enlisted to the stop speeding.
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The borough is now having a traffic study done by its traffic consultant, the Pittsburgh-based Trans Associates.
Mary Beth Held, who has been one of a number of dedicated Trestle Road residents asking that the borough take measures to stop the speeders, spoke out at council’s regular meeting on Monday.
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“We’re going to hold steadfast to protect our children,” she said.
Held told officials that the presence of a police car on the road this summer—in response to the requests of residents—helped to put the brakes on speeders.
“There was never a time that they were there when they didn’t catch someone within moments,” she said.
That was about a month ago. Now, with the police cruisers gone and the school year starting up, speeders are gearing up again, according to Held.
She indicated that the street’s residents won’t back down until the street is safer and became emotional as she mentioned that two children on the street had been lost this summer—a reference to Brenna and Mikaela Griffith, who, along with their mother, Kimberly, passed away Aug. 19 in the flash flooding on Washington Boulevard in Pittsburgh.
“It’s very important that we continue the crusade to protect the children that still live here,” she told officials, her voice breaking as she fought back tears.
Borough assistant manager Greg Bachy said he expects the results of Trans Associate’s traffic study to be presented to Plum in two or three weeks, along with a cost estimate for whatever speed control measures the consultant recommends.
Councilman Charles McMeekin asked Mayor Richard Hrivnak to send more officers to Trestle Road.
