east liberty station: realizing the potential - City of Pittsburgh

East Liberty Station & TOD
East Liberty station already has many of
the qualities that TOD principles would
recommend. Being situated in a historic
urban neighborhood, the station area is
already a relatively dense mixed use urban
area with strong pedestrian activity and
multi-modal connections.
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However, the environment around the
station varies radically from one direction
to another from tightly knit single family
houses immediately to the south and west
to automobile oriented commercial uses
to the east and some directions reflect
the goals of transit oriented development
better than others.
Since the creation of the Busway the area
around the station has been dominated
by large expanses of surface parking and
infrastructure not designed for pedestrian
comfort. The station also suffers from
being buried in the middle of the block
between Highland and Shady a grade lower
than that of the East Liberty business
district. The station’s only public street
frontage is along a section of Ellsworth
Avenue that has historically not been a
front door. Thus no active uses actually
face the station entry and access from
East Liberty is only possible by crossing
pedestrian bridges buried in the back
of the block. Large blocks and a lack of
north-south connections also limits the
pedestrian efficiency of the station making
for a smaller 5 & 10 minute walking shed.
East Liberty Station