The intersection of Brighton Heights Blvd, California Ave, and Termon Ave is a crucial link in Pittsburgh’s transportation network and is important to both local and regional mobility as it connects the residential neighborhood of Brighton Heights to Ohio River Blvd (SR 65) and the McKees Rocks Bridge.

California Ave provides north-south movement within Brighton Heights and connects to Bellevue via the Jacks Run Bridge with access to the California Ave commercial corridor immediately south of the study intersection. California Ave also hosts PRT Route 13, which sees an average of 32 boardings per weekday at the two stops adjacent to the study intersection as of January 2024. This intersection also has two approaches from Termon Ave, providing additional connectivity throughout Brighton Heights.

As it exists today, this intersection has several safety hazards. From 2020-24, a total of nine crashes were reported crashes, with four resulting in serious injury and one involving the injury of a pedestrian. The dominant reported crash type was “angle,” which indicates that turning and yielding behaviors were key factors in the crashes. While this crash history is not insignificant, it is comparable to many other signalized intersections in Pittsburgh; however, this intersection is both atypical and high-profile, as it serves as a key gateway to and from a state route. The city has identified several issues with the existing operations of the intersection, including:

• Its signal cycle is overly long, causing delays and inciting drivers to make reckless maneuvers
• It lacks protected turn phases despite high turn volumes, which combined with the atypical geometry, creates unpredictable yielding behaviors
• The high vehicle turning volumes and long crossing lengths create unsafe conditions for pedestrians attempting to cross the intersection
• Brighton Heights Blvd and California Ave both have unclear lane assignments

The designs developed by this study will address these issues and create a safer intersection for all users.

This plan will:

• Identify traffic safety issues at the intersection of Brighton Heights Blvd, California Ave, and Termon Ave.
• Develop an implementable, safe, and accessible design for the intersection.
• Create cost estimates for the designed project.

This plan will not:

• Ensure funding or the city’s commitment towards immediate implementation of the designed project.
• Identify transportation projects beyond the scope of the plan.