Reference Material

Murrysville Area

Trail Blazing Instruction

Policy No. 20-05 - Municipality of Murrysville - Specifications for
Construction and Maintenance Manual for Hiking, Bicycling and Cross-country Skiing Trails

Year 2002 Comprehensive Plan - Appendix B(Partial) & C - Contains information on land use patterns, analysis of parks, reserves, private recreational facilities, etc. (5 MB)

“Wiestertown bike path funds targeted”; Murrysville Star, 1/1/09, (note: correction was printed that the Municipality of Murrysville submitted the application, and that it was for bike lanes on both sides of Wiestertown Road)

Trail building in Southwestern PA

"Latrobe considers trails linking to Saint Vincent" ; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 15, 2010

'Active Allegheny' plan aims to integrate walking, biking routes
Monday, June 21, 2010.  Active Allegheny web site.

"Downtown commuter center has secure indoor bicycle spaces”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/20/10

“North Fayette awards walking trail contract”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/12/10.

A Life in Pittsburgh ... With a Lot Less Car in It - The 12 Step Program (Post-Gazette, Sunday, May 02, 2010 By Bob Firth)

“Trails in city parks to receive $3 million in improvements”: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1/29/10

“Move PGH effort would analyze city’s disjointed transportation system”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1/27/10,

“The Last Mile” (about Great Allegheny Passage); Newsweek, 1/15/10,

“Pittsburgh stands tall amid national turmoil” (about good things in Pittsburgh, including riverfront bike trails); Post-Gazette, 12/17/09

“Replanting Cranberry”, Pittsburgh City Paper, 12/3/09

“Bike Pittsburgh seeks converts among commuters”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6/113/09

“Raystown Lake bike trail system opens”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/31/09

“’Smart’ transit projects revealed”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/29/09

“Fresh New Bike Lanes on Wightman and Beacon in Squirrel Hill”; Bike Pittsburgh, 5/7/09

“Trail project gets $780,000 federal boost; Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 4/13/09

“Pittsburgh ranked No. 10 in places to walk by Prevention Magazine”; Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 4/10/09

“Allegheny River trail part of the big picture; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/13/08,

“This ‘Burgh is made for walking”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 12/6/07

“Trail improvements planned for city parks”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/12/07

“Greenways, trails could enhance Hill District”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 5/14/07

“Vision forms for giant riverfront park”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/24/06

“Bicycle lanes gain support on long stretch of Liberty Ave.”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 8/28/06

Books about Trails in SW PA

“Best Hikes Near Pittsburgh (Easy Day Hikes)”, Bob Frye,

“60 Hikes within 60 Miles: Pittsburgh and surrounding Counties”, Donna Ruff,

“50 Hikes in Western Pennsylvania”, Tom Thwaites,

“Great Natural Areas in Western Pennsylvania”, Stephen J. Ostrander

Trails elsewhere

Trail System of Westminster, CO

“Best Places to Live 2009” (link details show that best places include trails and exceptional parkland); Money Magazine, 2009

“A Free-Wheeling City”, Parade Magazine, 9/27/09

Health and well being benefits of trails

“Green spaces ‘improve health'”; BBC, 10/15/09,

“Green spaces ‘reduce health gap'”; BBC, 11/7/08;

“Have we become posthuman digital zombies?”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1/24/10

“For an Architect, the Bike’s the Thing”, The Wall Street Journal, 11/24/09,

“Minnesota town goes crazy over turning healthy”; The Morning File, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/16/09,

A book a about how unstructured play in natural settings is good for children and society; “Last Child in the Woods”, Richard Louv

“Report: National strategy needed to fight fat”, cnnhealth.com,

“Great Allegeny Passage rail-trail first hall of famer”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6/26/07

Economic benefits of trails

Economic Impact of Trails - National Trails Training Partnership

Economic Benifits of Trails Handout

“Great Allegheny Passage users help local economy, survey finds”, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 5/2/09

“Realtors peddle real estate to bike-happy clients”; AP, 9/6/08

“The granola factor”; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 4/15/09

Traffic calming

New Jersey FIT: Future In Transportation - Calm Traffic

“Narrow Streets, Less Traffic: Increasingly, Planners See That Bike Lanes and Sidewalks Calm Traffic"