By Mason Fish
SPC
8/31/2026

Most of us don’t spend much time thinking about how transportation decisions are made. We have places to go, and we find a way to get there; whether that’s behind the wheel of a car, on a bus, or on a bike. 

Behind those everyday trips is a much larger system, supported by programs and investments that most people never have much of a reason to think about. One of those programs is The Federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) Program. 

The need for a program like CMAQ becomes easier to understand when you consider some of the challenges built into everyday travel. More vehicles on the road can mean more congestion, and transportation-related emissions can affect air quality. CMAQ is designed to address both issues, supporting projects that can improve traffic flow, reduce emissions, and give people alternatives to driving alone. 

CMAQ provides federal transportation funding for projects that can help reduce transportation-related emissions or improve the movement of people and vehicles. The program can support things such as transit improvements, bicycle and pedestrian facilities, traffic-flow projects, carpool and vanpool programs, cleaner vehicles and other transportation strategies. 

It’s undoubtedly a wide range of projects, but they all have something in common. Each is intended to help address the effects that transportation can have on congestion and air quality. So, what does that look like in practice, and how do we know whether these investments are making a difference? 

Well, CMAQ isn’t simply a matter of funding projects and checking a box when they’re finished. Federal requirements also call for transportation agencies to establish performance targets and measure how the region is doing over time. For the Pittsburgh urbanized area, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) tracks several measures. 

One looks at peak-hour excessive delay, which measures how much additional time people spend traveling when traffic slows significantly during the busiest parts of the day. 

Another measures non-single-occupancy-vehicle (non-SOV) travel. In simpler terms, these are work trips made without someone driving alone. Transit, carpooling, biking and walking can all count. Furthermore, trips that never happen can also be counted due to someone working from home. 

The third measure looks at emissions reductions from on-road mobile sources, including pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and fine particulate matter (PM2.5). 

Together, these measurements provide a way to look at several different aspects of transportation performance such as how much time people spend in congestion, how they get to work, and how transportation-related emissions are changing. 

What do the numbers show? 

SPC recently reported the results from the 2022–2025 performance period during its Full Commission Meeting on Aug. 27. The scope is positive in some areas, while showing that there is still work to do in others. The region exceeded its target for non-SOV travel, where the goal was for 27 percent of work trips to be made without someone driving alone. The actual figure was 34.8 percent, which is quite encouraging. 

The emissions results were also positive. CMAQ-funded projects exceeded the four-year targets for reductions in nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter. Volatile organic compound reductions also exceeded the four-year target. 

Congestion, unfortunately, remains a challenge. SPC had set a target for annual peak-hour excessive delay at 10.5 hours per person. The actual result was 11.9. 

However, this does not mean CMAQ investments have simply failed to reduce congestion. Peak-hour congestion can be influenced by a wide range of factors across the transportation system, including major construction projects, special events, and weather-related impacts.  CMAQ is only a single part of that larger picture. 

These results instead show us why it is useful to look at transportation performance from several angles, as progress in one area doesn’t always guarantee progress in another. A region can increase the number of people using alternatives to driving alone and reduce emissions from CMAQ-funded projects while still facing significant congestion. The performance measures make those differences visible. 

In conclusion 

SPC is now moving into the next performance period, covering 2026 through 2029. The new targets build on the region’s most recent results. Interestingly, SPC’s new target for non-SOV travel during the performance period in 2027 and 2029 is 30 percent.  

Now, in-case any readers are wondering, this doesn’t mean the region is necessarily expecting non-SOV travel to fall from 34.8 percent, rather that the 2026–2029 targets are established as part of a new four-year performance cycle. Using the federal performance-measurement process and its underlying data, SPC will use the new targets to track progress through 2029. 

Furthermore, the new peak-hour excessive delay target is 12 hours per person, to better reflect expected construction and weather impacts.  New targets have also been established for reductions in VOC, NOx, and PM2.5 emissions.  

The numbers may come across as transportation-planning jargon, but what they represent is largely quite simple. Can people get where they need to go without always having to drive alone? Can transportation-related emissions be reduced? Can the transportation system work more efficiently? CMAQ is one way SPC aims to pursue those answers. 

All in all, the goal isn’t simply to hit a number on a chart. It’s to understand whether the transportation system is becoming less congested, giving people more ways to travel and producing fewer transportation-related emissions. No single project will solve all of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s transportation challenges, and CMAQ is definitely not intended to do that on its own. 

Instead, it is one part of a broader effort to improve how people and goods move throughout the region while reducing the environmental impact of transportation. 

The latest performance results show progress in several areas, along with challenges that remain. These next four years will give another opportunity to measure the region’s progress. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July, 30 2026

SPC Awards $30.7 million for Transportation Projects

Projects include bridge, roadway, transit, sidewalk, bicycle, trail, and freight enhancements and improvements in design and/or construction phases.

Pittsburgh, PA – The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) has awarded over $30.7 million in regional federal discretionary funding for transportation projects across its ten-county region. As part of the recently adopted 2027 – 2031 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), SPC administered a competitive program to award the agency’s allotment of federal Transportation Alternatives Program (TA), Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ), and Smart Transportation for Livable Communities (STLC) funding. The projects approved for funding advance the region’s adopted long range plan, Smart Moves for a Changing Region, and its vision of a world-class, safe and well maintained, integrated transportation system that provides mobility for all, enables resilient communities, and supports a globally competitive economy. They must meet federal performance measures that include improving safety, maintaining air quality standards and reducing emissions, and keeping roads and bridges in good operational condition. Many projects also meet goals related to expanding multimodal access and improving safety for bicycles and pedestrians.

The entities and projects approved for funding by SPC are as follows:

• Allegheny County & PennDOT District 11 – SR 1001 Freeport Road: $1,000,000 towards 1.3 miles of rock wall stabilization along SR 1001 and accommodation of the Three Rivers Heritage Trail in O’Hara Township, Allegheny County.
• City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County:
  • Three Rivers Heritage Trail – Slope Stabilization and Trail Restoration: $1,000,000 to conduct 100 feet of slide remediation along the Three Rivers Heritage Trail in the Chateau district, City of Pittsburgh.

  • Liberty Ave – Main St. & Bloomfield Bridge – Traffic Signal Upgrade & Intersection Improvement Project: $1,322,540 to redesign and upgrade facilities at the intersection of Liberty Avenue & the Bloomfield Bridge. The project will replace outdated signal equipment and make bicycle infrastructure improvements.

• Armstrong County – Manorville Borough Enhancing Connectivity and Accessibility Project: $363,191 to construct new sidewalks, install ADA-compliant ramps and crosswalks, and add shared lane markings for bicyclists to improve bicycle/pedestrian safety in Manorville Borough, Armstrong County.
• Beaver County & PennDOT District 11 – Brodhead – Pleasant Drive Intersection Improvement: $1,000,000 to construct a roundabout at the intersection of Brodhead Road and Pleasant Drive in Center Township, Beaver County.
• Fayette County – Sheepskin Trail – South Union Township to Fairchance Borough: $173,192 to fund design work for a 2.3 mile section of the Sheepskin Trail, running from South Union Township to Fairchance Borough, Fayette County.
• Indiana County & PennDOT District 10 – 8^th Street Corridor Improvement Project: $200,000 to fund design work for corridor improvements along 8^th Street in downtown Indiana, including crosswalks, traffic calming, and streetscape improvements.  
• Westmoreland County – Mt. Pleasant Road Corridor Operations Study: $250,000 to fund a study to improve corridor operations along Mr. Pleasant Road in Hempfield Township.
• PennDOT District 11
  • SR 3005 at SR 3034 Intersection Improvements in Upper St. Clair and Bridgeville, Allegheny County: $2,440,000 to enhance and facilitate traffic operations at the intersection of SR 3005 (Mayview Road and Bank Street) and SR 3034 (Lesnett Road and Chartiers Street) through realignment and construction of a roundabout.
  • State Route 130 and State Route 2073 Intersection Improvements in Penn Hills, Allegheny County: $5,436,000 to reduce congestion at the signalized T intersection of Sandy Creek Rd (SR 130) and Allegheny River Boulevard (SR 130/2073) by either adding turn lanes or converting the intersection to a roundabout.

  • SR 18 Pavement Preservation in Lawrence County: $1,000,000 for shoulder reconstruction and restoration along State Route 18 in Wilmington and Neshannock Townships, Lawrence County.

• Pittsburgh Regional Transit – PRTX to Mon Valley: $9,000,000 to extend the University Line Bus Rapid Transit (PRTX) with new station and intersection improvements along Murray Avenue and Browns Hill Road in the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County.
• Port of Pittsburgh Commission – PortPITT Marine Diesel and Landslide Equipment Retrofit Program: $6,000,000to continue its marine vessel diesel retrofit program, which includes landside equipment such as cranes, locomotives, conveyors, forklifts and other similar diesel-powered equipment to improve efficiency and air-quality.
• Bike Pittsburgh, Inc.
  • Increasing Bicycle Ridership in Pittsburgh: $75,694 towards workshops and supplemental education resources that teach riders how to safely and confidently navigate city streets on a bicycle.

  • Bike Safety Education for Pittsburgh Youth $200,360 to expand continuing work in youth bicycle education, in partnership with the City of Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) to promote safe trips to and from school on bike and on foot.

• Ligonier Township – Ligonier Valley High School Pedestrian Safety Project: 1,211,969 to rehabilitate and construct sidewalks, and a pedestrian bridge over Mill Creek in Ligonier Township and Ligonier Borough, Westmoreland County.

• Sports and Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County – North Shore Garage EV Chargers: $61,397 to install four dual-port wall-mounted electric vehicle (EV) charging units within the North Shore Parking Garage (NSG), located at 20 East General Robinson Street in the City of Pittsburgh.

Press Release Download (PDF)

By Mason Fish
SPC
7/29/2026

On July 17, a massive gathering of experts from across Southwestern Pennsylvania entered Washington County with a clear shared task: help lock in the vision and goals for the region’s next Long Range Plan. 

SPC’s Policy Development Conference marked the end of this cycle’s expert-driven stretch of work on Built to Thrive: The Long Range Plan for Southwestern PA. These sessions were reserved for specialists from a variety of organizations including PennDOT, Pittsburgh Regional Transit and other partner agencies. 

The majority of those that were in the room already work closely with SPC on transportation and economic development issues, and represent the technical knowledge needed to test ideas before the wider public is invited in.  

More than 100 people took part in the expert panels. The experts also helped shape the strategies presented that Friday, allowing the attendees to weigh in on which ones should stay and which ones should go. Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis also closed the day as guest keynote speaker, sharing the stage with SPC Executive Director Rich Fitzgerald. 

The Expert Panel Process 

Of course, staff could have drafted a set of strategies in a few hours. However, that is not an approach that SPC ever wishes to take, because collaborative input from all stakeholders is.a key part of the planning process. 

“We just want the commission members to have a comfort level that we did our due diligence in developing these strategies. They just weren’t developed by staff or just developed by one or two commissioners,” said Ryan Gordon.  

Gordon, who facilitated one of the expert tables at the event, currently serves as SPC’s Transportation Program Development Manager and has worked on countless SPC plans over his near-two decades at SPC. 

The expert –panel discussions were utilized to create a clear path. People who know their fields inside and out were involved from the very beginning, which allows the region to reach an endpoint through deliberate steps rather than a closed conversation. 

Furthermore, Built to Thrive continues the approach SPC began in 2019 of combining its long-range transportation plan with the comprehensive economic development strategy. The result is a single policy framework for the entire SPC region’s vision, goals, objectives, and strategies. This framework represents the aspirational side of what SPC does, while also showing what a competitive and resilient region looks like. 

Programs and projects are expected to advance the same goals and strategies. Without that connection, a divide forms between the plan’s aspirations and what actually gets built or funded. Think of it like a personal budget: anyone can write down clear goals for saving money or completing home repairs, yet those objectives will still go unmet if daily spending never refers back to them.  

This same logic applies with funding at the regional scale. Commissioners and local officials often pursue opportunities for specific counties or municipalities, and regional goals/strategies give those applications a shared foundation. County and municipal plans frequently adopt the regional language as their own, which helps keep the larger direction consistent. 

Moreover, the engagement process for the plan has primarily focused on key stakeholders and specialists who joined the expert sessions thus far. True public outreach has not yet begun in a meaningful way, which is scheduled to change later this fall.  

Next Steps 

SPC expects to return to the public this fall, where meetings will again take place in every county. They will be open to anyone who wishes to attend, and any ideas or recommendations can still very much be considered and incorporated. When that happens, the most useful public comments tend to describe everyday experiences rather than demanding a finished project. 

“What I like to see is a comment that says, ‘I drive this every day and at this intersection there’s a problem.’ Those are the most valuable kind of comments,” Gordon said. 

When people report what they actually encounter on their regular routes in real life, patterns become easier to spot. A singular complaint may not move the needle, but when multiple residents describe the same dangerous intersection, the same unreliable signal, or the same missing bus stop, the concern then carries much more weight. 

Over time, some of those observations help to shape larger projects. They may lead to a traffic unit investigation, or perhaps a short study/road safety audit that may follow.  

Maintenance fixes such as signal timing or better signing can also solve some of these problems, while others will eventually become projects in a future SPC Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). When public comments line up with problems already identified by the agencies that own the infrastructure, that overlap is noted and credited in the documentation. 

This overall approach to developing the vision has stayed steady across successive plans. Outreach to stakeholders, experts, and the public has always been required. The specific sequence of expert panels and work sessions used for Built to Thrive is quite consistent with the current SmartMoves plan. It also builds on earlier methodology that SPC is always trying to fine-tune, as details of how the steps are organized can shift with different SPC staff and different commissioners. 

However, two elements remain constant: The process will always involve a large number of people from every SPC county, and it will always produce a clear set of vision, goals, and strategies for the region. Any long-range plan without that foundation would fail to serve its purpose. 

All in all, with the Policy Development Conference and all expert panels for this cycle complete, the expert-driven portion of strategy buildout is now finished. The months that follow will open the conversation much more broadly. Residents and organizations that want to shape how SWPA invests in transportation, economic development, and related infrastructure will have plenty of opportunity to do so while the plan is still rounding into form. Updates on meeting dates and locations will be posted at spcregion.org as they are set, so be sure to stay connected! 

When it comes to transportation, planning is a long-term game.

A road can be found dangerous years before anything is done about it. A bridge can be a known problem long before the studies and designs and funding are in place to make changes. Expanding mass transit can be a dream long before a new bus picks up a passenger.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission’s $4.7 billion Transportation Improvement Plan is an exercise in heading toward the horizon, knowing it is years away.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission’s $4.7 billion Transportation Improvement Plan is an exercise in heading toward the horizon, knowing it is years away.

The plan covers 2027 to 2030. It includes $2 billion for highways and bridges and another $2.7 billion for mass transit projects. It is not just about Pittsburgh or Greensburg. It covers 10 counties across the region.

The variety of projects spans big and small. It is densely urban and more rural. It is highways and tunnels, turnarounds and intersections.

But what they have in common is an attention to broad needs and broader plans.

“There is a good list of projects that support the county’s comprehensive plan,” said Josh Spano, deputy director of the Westmoreland County Department of Planning and Development.

In Allegheny County, approved projects knit together a variety of agencies, from the county itself to Pittsburgh Regional Transit to PennDOT.

All together, it points to goals that are more than a shopping list. It isn’t simply a gift registry for local leaders. It’s about connections.

Every community has things it would like to accomplish. Some are for safety. Some are for accessibility. Some are about economic development or industrial support.

The commission has the task of taking those objections and molding them into something larger, with a scope that carries it down the proverbial — and actual — road.

It speaks to the nature of infrastructure as more than the highways and bridges it is often distilled to. Infrastructure is the framework that creates connection, whether physical like a road or building or serviceable like the electric grid or broadband internet.

This plan and its $4.7 billion can do more than just pour pavement. It’s about the ability to build a region.

View the full article at triblive.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July, 2 2026

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) today announced the launch of the Allegheny County Vision Zero Comprehensive Safety Action Plan (ACSAP), developed in partnership with Allegheny County, City of Pittsburgh, PennDOT, and Pittsburgh Regional Transit. The announcement was made along State Route 837 near Kennywood Park in West Mifflin, one of the plan’s priority corridors. In attendance were County Executive Sara Innamorato, Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’ Connor, State Representative John Inglis, SPC Executive Director Rich Fitzgerald, and PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang. 

The ACSAP is a data-driven plan to improve safety for all roadway users, including drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and transit riders. SPC Executive Director Rich Fitzgerald said “In Allegheny County, 79% of severe crashes occur on just 9% of roadways. Over the last five years, 339 lives have been lost and 1,757 people were seriously injured on roads in Allegheny County. The plan designates a High Injury Network and a list of priority corridors where targeted safety investments will be concentrated.” 

Vision Zero is committed to reducing crashes of all severities while working toward the ultimate goal of eliminating fatal and serious injury crashes entirely. Achieving that goal requires a shared commitment among roadway users, planners, designers, policymakers, and operators across the region. The plan was funded by a $520,000 federal Safe Streets and Roads for All grant and $130,000 in local match by project partners. 

“This is how we build safer communities. We do it by working together across jurisdictions at all levels of government,” said Allegheny County Executive Sara Inamorato at today’s press conference. 

“Our number one priority is the safety of every person who comes through the City of Pittsburgh,” said Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor. 

This plan is intended to serve as a example of county-by-county safety planning efforts as a companion to SPC’s previously adopted Regional Safety Action Plan, which covers all ten counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania. To view these plans and for additional information on SPC’s work around safety in the ten-county region, visit www.spcregion.org/programs-services/transportation/operations-safety/. 

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The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, more commonly known as SPC, is the cooperative forum for regional collaboration, planning, and public decision-making for the ten counties of Southwestern Pennsylvania including the City of Pittsburgh. SPC develops plans and programs for public investment and fulfills federal and state requirements for transportation, economic development, and local government assistance programs.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 22, 2026

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) is proud to announce the approval of the 2027–2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) effective October 1, 2026. This document, which was approved unanimously by Commission members at today’s meeting, will direct $4.7 billion in infrastructure investment across the 10-county region.

The 2027-2030 TIP continues the implementation of the vision, goals, and strategies identified in SPC’s Long Range Plan. The plan invests $2.0 billion in highways and bridges and $2.7 billion in public transit between 2027 and 2030, addressing infrastructure condition, safety, and congestion across the region. This plan marks a shift toward proactive asset preservation, prioritizing investment in infrastructure rather than waiting for deterioration to demand costlier intervention. 

On the transit side, funding will support bus and rail maintenance, station upgrades, and the purchase of more than 450 new buses and shared-ride vehicles. On the highway and bridge side, nearly half of the budget is directed toward replacing or repairing poor-condition bridges, an effort projected to reduce the region’s poor-bridge count by more than 13%.

The plan also allocates more than $750 million to projects near regional freight facilities, acknowledging the critical role that logistics and goods movement play in sustaining the Southwestern PA economy. Additional investment will fund signal upgrades and Intelligent Transportation System communications to improve day-to-day traffic flow, as well as landslide remediation and flood mitigation to protect infrastructure from severe weather.

The 2027-2030 TIP reflects regional data, community feedback, and public input gathered during the comment period, including open houses held in every county SPC serves. It is available for online viewing at https://www.spcregion.org/programs-services/transportation/smartmoves-long-range-plan-transportation-improvement-program/.

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The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, more commonly known as SPC, is the cooperative forum for regional collaboration, planning, and public decision-making for the ten counties of Southwestern Pennsylvania including the City of Pittsburgh. SPC develops plans and programs for public investment and fulfills federal and state requirements for transportation, economic development, and local government assistance programs.

By Mason Fish
SPC
6/22/2026

Earlier this month, SPC Commissioners spent multiple days in the state capital meeting face-to-face with state policymakers, agency secretaries, and legislative leaders. The trip has become an annual event for the Commission, but for the counties and communities represented in the room, the lasting impact is anything but routine. 

For many residents, a “trip to the state capital” may sound like a procedural formality. However, this is where smaller counties get a seat at the same table as major metropolitan areas, where local priorities get raised directly with the people who control funding, and where the relationships that move projects forward get a foundation. 

Emphasis on a Bigger Voice 

This year’s trip was widely regarded as a productive one by SPC officers. Commissioners were split into two groups, allowing the delegation to meet with significantly more legislators than a single combined group could have managed in the same two days. 

“We had more of a reach this time,” explained SPC Chairman Vince Vicites, noting that splitting into two teams meant the delegation didn’t miss anybody within the leadership. Chairman Vicites also serves as a Fayette County Commissioner in addition to his SPC duties. 

For smaller counties especially, the value of the trip lies in numbers. Representing one of SPC’s smaller, more rural counties, Indiana County Commissioner Bonni Dunlap noted that going alone would carry far less weight than showing up as part of a unified delegation.  

“The effort to do that would not be as beneficial as working collaboratively, to put it all together, to say, hey, look, pay attention to us in Southwest Pennsylvania,” said Commissioner Dunlap, who also serves as SPC Secretary-Treasurer. 

The trip also included a joint presentation with the Allegheny Conference, giving each of SPC’s 10 counties a chance to showcase their own economic wins, needs, and future goals in front of legislative staff and agency secretaries. For commissioners representing smaller counties, this format makes a real difference. The sense of unified identity comes up repeatedly when commissioners describe the trip. Showing up as a single, ten-county delegation rather than individual counties sends a message to the legislators, business leaders, and anyone else in the room.  

“I think it shows unity,” Chairman Vicites said, adding that the region is ultimately competing for attention against Philadelphia and other urban centers. A coordinated SPC delegation, in other words, gives Southwestern Pennsylvania a stronger, more unified voice than any single county could have on its own. 

Small Counties with Opportunity 

When it comes to why this collective voice matters, it is especially important for counties that may otherwise struggle to be heard. SPC Vice-Chair Betsy McClure, representing Greene County, another one of the region’s smaller and more rural areas, described how the trip has become a critical opportunity to keep her county’s needs in front of state leaders. Public transportation has been of a particular focus. Out of SPC’s 10 counties, Greene is currently the only one without a fixed-route public bus or train system. 

Commissioner McClure noted that she got the opportunity to speak directly with PennDOT officials about her concerns during this year’s trip, while pointing out SPC’s planning team as a major reason why the county has been able to move forward on transportation solutions, crediting the team’s recommendation of a co-mingled ride model that combines existing shared ride service with new on-demand trips. 

Greene is also pursuing safety improvements to State Route 21, a narrow, poorly lit corridor shared with Fayette, a neighboring county, that has seen a high number of fatal crashes. Both counties’ commissioners attended the Harrisburg trip together, to which Commissioner McClure noted, sends its own message:  

“We’re all here in support of these two counties to improve this.” 

The trip also touched on economic development opportunities tied to the Robena site, a 1,400-acre former coal mine that the commissioner described as a strong candidate for future power generation investment given the county’s historical role in regional energy production. 

Beyond formal meetings, commissioners pointed to the informal happenings, hallway conversations, and impromptu office visits as some of the trip’s most valuable moments. Commissioner Dunlap recalled being personally recognized by a PennDOT official while leaving the building, who singled out hertheir county’s presentation from earlier in the day.  

Moving Forward 

All in all, the commissioners seemed to come to a consensus that the annual trip has steadily built greater recognition for SPC over the years. For an organization whose work and planning strategy can sound abstract from the outside, trips like this make the value a lot more concrete when they provide legislators with a clearer picture of what’s happening on the ground across Southwestern PA. 

“I think these trips to Harrisburg have raised our profile to the point where the legislators all know the leaders,” Chairman Vicites said, “and a lot of the legislators know what we are and what we stand for.” 

With another trip already on the calendar to Washington D.C. in September, SPC commissioners will once again be out to show why a unified voice is one of the most valuable tools a region can have. 

By Mason Fish
SPC
5/29/2026

Every few years, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) works through a planning process that quietly shapes how people move throughout the region. Roads are repaired. Bridges get replaced. Bus fleets get updated. The decisions made during this cycle have ripple effects that can last years, and right now residents have had an opportunity to be a direct part of it.

Active subscribers of the SPC Newsletter will already be familiar with Built to Thrive: The Long Range Plan for Southwestern Pennsylvania (currently SmartMoves), which will establish a 25-year vision for how our region grows, connects, and moves. But as some readers will already know, a vision that massive can’t be implemented all at once.

Instead, it comes to life through a series of shorter-term investment blueprints known as Transportation Improvement Programs, or TIPs. Each TIP serves as a four-year steppingstone that translates those bigger picture regional goals into real-world, funded projects.

Right now, SPC is in the final stretch of an important planning cycle. Earlier in May, the Draft 2027–2030 TIP was officially made viewable to the public on the commission’s website, and the public comment period has been active throughout the month. As we head into the first week of June 2026, residents still have a window to review the draft program and provide comments.

What’s New?

This upcoming edition of the TIP outlines a $4.7 billion regional investment over the next four years across our 10-county region. The funding is split into two major categories (Public Transit and Highway/Bridge.  For those who closely track our regional infrastructure or follow SPC, this program marks a subtle but important evolution as the draft continues proactive asset preservation. In essence, this means saving taxpayer money by dedicating more resources to extending the life of the region’s transportation infrastructure through preservation activities, rather than relying strictly on a more traditional and reactionary repair strategy.

The region is allotted $2.7 billion in funding for the Transit TIP, with projects focusing heavily on system operations and reliability. This money will keep transit systems running smoothly across the region, fund crucial bus and rail maintenance, upgrade local stations, and purchase more than 450 new buses and shared-ride vehicles.

$2 billion is dedicated to highways and bridges, targeting the region’s most urgent roadway needs., For example the TIP will invest over $880 million in projects to address poor bridges and to preserve and extend the life of good bridges,  a targeted effort projected to drop our region’s poor-bridge count by more than 13%.

Over $750 million of the Highway/Bridge TIP are on projects within a mile of critical regional freight facilities, recognizing the industrial, manufacturing, and distribution activity that sustains Southwestern PA’s economy and keeps goods moving through the region. Additionally, another large chunk goes toward system reliability improvements like signal upgrades and Intelligent Transportation System communications, investments that tend to be less visible but have a real effect on how smoothly traffic flows from day to day.

Beyond standard paving and transit operations, the program weaves in essential upgrades throughout our daily commutes. Instead of breaking these down into endless individual line-item budgets, the TIP groups hundreds of millions of dollars into broader modernization priorities. This includes funding for intersection upgrades, roundabouts, and landslide remediation at high-risk locations, alongside flood mitigation to protect aging infrastructure from the ever-changing weather patterns of Southwestern PA.

Whether someone drives on a state highway every morning, rides a bus through Pittsburgh, or walks a shared-use path on the weekend, the TIP has something to say about the quality of each of those experiences.

It’s important to make note of the fact that these are not distant infrastructure abstractions. They are the bridges people cross, the buses people ride, and the roads people navigate every single day, which is exactly why public input is so critical for our organization during this process!

The projects in the TIP reflect years of data, community feedback, and regional priorities, and resident voices that are part of how those priorities get shaped. Two in-person public meetings still remain before the public comment period officially closes on June 5, and both offer the chance to speak directly with SPC staff, PennDOT representatives, county planners, and local transit operators.

The final open-house meetings are scheduled for early next month, offering a chance to speak directly with SPC staff, PennDOT representatives, and local transit operators during the vital last week of the public comment period:ations, and purchase more than 450 new buses and shared-ride vehicles.

The remaining $2 billion is dedicated to highways and bridges, targeting the region’s most urgent roadway needs. Nearly half of that highway budget goes directly toward replacing or repairing poor-condition bridges, a targeted effort projected to drop our region’s poor-bridge count by more than 13%.

Furthermore, the plan extends well beyond roads and bridges. Over $750 million supports projects near regional freight facilities, recognizing the industrial, manufacturing, and distribution activity that sustains Southwestern PA’s economy and keeps goods moving through the region. Additionally, another large chunk goes toward system reliability improvements like signal upgrades and Intelligent Transportation System communications, investments that tend to be less visible but have a real effect on how smoothly traffic flows from day to day.

Beyond standard paving and transit operations, the plan weaves in essential upgrades throughout our daily commutes. Instead of breaking these down into endless individual line-item budgets, the TIP groups hundreds of millions of dollars into broader modernization priorities. This includes funding for intersection upgrades, roundabouts, and landslide remediation at high-risk locations, alongside flood mitigation to protect aging infrastructure from the ever-changing weather patterns of Southwestern PA.

Whether someone drives on a state highway every morning, rides a bus through Pittsburgh, or walks a shared-use path on the weekend, the TIP has something to say about the quality of each of those experiences.

It’s important to make note of the fact that these are not distant infrastructure abstractions. They are the bridges people cross, the buses people ride, and the roads people navigate every single day, which is exactly why public input is so critical for our organization during this process!

The projects in the TIP reflect years of data, community feedback, and regional priorities, and resident voices are part of how those priorities get shaped. Two in-person public meetings still remain before the public comment period officially closes on June 5, and both offer the chance to speak directly with SPC staff, PennDOT representatives, county planners, and local transit operators.

The final open-house meetings are scheduled for early next month, offering a chance to speak directly with SPC staff, PennDOT representatives, and local transit operators during the vital last week of the public comment period:

• Butler County: June 3 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Forward Township Municipal Building (207 Ash Stop Road, Evans City PA).
• Beaver County: June 4 from noon to 2 p.m. at the Beaver County Courthouse, Commissioners Meeting Room (810 Third St., Beaver PA).

If you are unable to attend the open houses, you can review the full draft documents and pin your thoughts directly to the interactive project map at spcregion.org or send your perspective via email to comments@spcregion.org before the window officially closes. SPC always reviews 100% of public comments, whether they are made digitally or in-person.

All in all, it’s easy to view a multi-billion dollar regional blueprint as an abstraction entirely out of our hands, but infrastructure plans are ultimately only as good as the local insights that shape them. Taking a few minutes to voice your perspective ensures that the next four years of development accurately reflect the people who live, work, and commute all across our region.

By Mason Fish
SPC
4/30/2026

On her first morning at the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC), Rena Liu-Belshe would never have predicted she would still be there 26 years later.

It was the Summer of 2000, and she had just arrived for her first day as the agency’s export assistance manager. By mid-morning, the organization had received devastating news — its executive director had passed away unexpectedly after being struck by a motor vehicle, and a team of people she had only just met was suddenly faced with an unimaginable loss. For most people, that kind of start might have been enough to reconsider. Rena stayed anyway.

Twenty-six years later, she is retiring as one of the longest-tenured members of the SPC team, leaving behind a program that has quietly shaped how Southwestern Pennsylvania businesses compete on a global stage.

Her colleagues celebrated her with a breakfast last week, a send-off that drew people from across the organization. For Rena, it was a fitting way to close a chapter defined far less by titles and trade missions than by the relationships she built along the way.

Rena’s Work at SPC

Ask Rena to explain her role, and she will stop you before you get too far into the phrase “international trade.”

“International trade is a pretty broad term,” she said. “But export is very specific. We only do export, and export is helping our people sell their product overseas.”

In practice, that means being the first call for a small regional business that woke up one morning to find an inquiry in its inbox from a buyer in Japan, Germany, or South Korea, and had no idea what to do next. The services SPC provides through the program are free to businesses, which Rena said is part of what made her work feel meaningful.

“I truly want to help this company,” she said. “I don’t have anything at stake whether you use my service or not. I’m not selling anything.”

The companies that come to her are almost always small, she said. Whether it be a family-owned manufacturer or a local food producer looking to test an overseas market, she would walk them through pricing strategy, export documentation, cultural differences in doing business abroad, and when to refer them to someone with more specialized knowledge.

“Today I’m talking with somebody selling coffee,” she said. “The next day, talking with somebody selling airplane parts. You just have to learn all kinds of different things.”

A Region on the Rise

Rena has worked under six Pennsylvania governors and watched the export landscape shift considerably. When she started, leading trade delegations to China was a major undertaking. She would serve as interpreter, guide, and logistics coordinator all at once. Today, she said, that kind of handholding is largely unnecessary.

Additionally, Rena has watched SPC itself transform. When she arrived, the organization was relatively unstructured and, in her words, operating well under the radar. A new executive director brought professional systems and a clearer organizational identity, but the organization remained largely unknown to the general public. She recalled a business owner who told her he had lived in Pittsburgh for decades and had never heard of SPC, only to discover at a bar one evening that his neighbor’s wife worked there.

That began to change in recent years. Rena credits the organization’s current leadership under Executive Director Rich Fitzgerald with raising SPC’s public profile significantly, bringing visibility to work that had always been strong but rarely celebrated.

“Before, we were a great book without a good cover,” she said. “Now we have that cover.”

Within the state’s export network, she said Southwestern Pennsylvania has emerged as what program partners now call a rising star, driven by the region’s growing technology sector and the attention it has attracted from state and national leaders.

What Will Rena Miss Most?

Rena confidently stated that she never once dreaded coming into the office. In nearly three decades, she could not recall a morning when she woke up and did not want to come in to work. That, she said, is not something everyone gets to say.

She will miss the people within the organization the most. Particularly, Jackie, her colleague of 17 years, whom she described as the second most important person in her Pittsburgh life after her husband. She also cited that loyalty as one of the reasons she decided it was finally time to go.

“If I keep working, Jackie never gets the chance to be promoted,” Rena said with a laugh. That was something she knew from her very first day.

Ultimately, retirement has turned out to be much less daunting than she originally expected. Her husband retired a few years ago and has barely slowed down, having enrolled in the Osher Lifelong Learning Program at Carnegie Mellon University, a national initiative that offers retirees the chance to take courses without the pressure of grades or exams. Rena has already followed him into the program.

There is also travel. She noted that she has been to Chile many times on business and never once made it to Patagonia, an iconic travel spot located at the Southern tip of Chile and Argentina, known for its stunning landscapes.

“My friends would always ask me, ‘You lived in Venezuela for so long, how have you never been to that place [Patagonia]?'” she said.

Last Christmas, along with her husband, sister, and brother-in-law, she finally went.

“Business travel and leisure travel are two completely different things,” she said. “You can go to a foreign country on business and probably never see the sky. When you go on your own, you can do whatever you want. You see the things that are meaningful.”

She plans to stay subscribed to the SPC newsletter. For an organization she stumbled into in one of the strangest ways imaginable, that feels about right.

By Mason Fish
SPC
3/31/2026

We are now less than 25 days away from the 2026 NFL Draft, which will take place in Pittsburgh from April 24 to 26, and with hundreds of thousands of fans expected to descend on the city, getting there smartly could be just as important as getting there at all.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC) has played an important role in helping shape the regional transportation plan for this year’s draft. As the designated metropolitan planning organization for the region, SPC has worked alongside partner organizations to coordinate a comprehensive approach to moving fans safely throughout Pittsburgh and the surrounding region.  

A key part of that effort was ensuring that fans from outside of Allegheny County had real options for getting into Pittsburgh efficiently. 10 regional transit agencies across southwestern Pennsylvania will provide expanded and connected service during draft week, with express routes, extended hours and connections to park and ride locations that link directly into Pittsburgh’s transit system. 

The draft’s footprint spans two main areas: Point State Park on the Downtown side of the Allegheny River, and the North Shore near Acrisure Stadium. Pittsburgh Regional Transit (PRT) and city officials have developed a comprehensive transportation plan to facilitate safe and efficient movement between the two sites, and in many cases, for free.  

Sheetz has partnered with PRT to make light rail and the Monongahela Incline completely free from April 23 through 25. The free-fare initiative covers all travel on the Red, Blue, and Silver lines with no tickets, transit cards or apps required to board. Fans can use the Gateway, Wood Street, Steel Plaza or First Avenue stations for rides to North Side Station. Riders should note that Allegheny Station will be closed April 22 through 25 and should plan to use North Side Station instead.  

Those looking for a more scenic option can walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge, which will be closed to vehicles and open exclusively to pedestrians as a dedicated gateway between the two draft sites. For a unique and distinctly Pittsburgh experience, the Gateway Clipper Fleet will also run shuttle boats throughout the weekend, connecting Point State Park to the Acrisure Stadium Quay, and more running between Station Square and PNC Park. 

For fans coming from outside the city or looking for a broader picture of their transit options, SPC Transit Staff has put together an interactive transportation planning map specifically built around the draft. The map, accessible at platform.remix.com, displays all active transit lines serving the greater Pittsburgh area during draft weekend, including bus routes, light rail lines, the inclines, and park and ride locations throughout the region. 

Using the map is straightforward. Visitors can toggle different transit lines and data layers on and off to focus on the routes most relevant to where they are coming from. A park and ride layer is also available, making it easy to identify the nearest lot, plan a route into the city, and avoid the congestion and parking challenges that come with any major downtown event. 

Regardless of where you’re coming from, the map offers a clear starting point for building your game plan before draft weekend arrives. It’s definitely worth taking a look at for those interested in maximizing efficiency. 

Additionally, city and transit officials are strongly recommending against fans driving into the city altogether during draft weekend. However, for those who must drive, the ParkPGH app allows users to track real-time parking availability. Carpooling is also encouraged to help reduce congestion in the Golden Triangle. Parking restrictions will be strictly enforced throughout the weekend, and vehicles in restricted areas may be ticketed or towed. 

Significant road closures will be in effect across Downtown and the North Shore in multiple phases. The most widespread closures run April 22 through 25 and include Federal Street, the 6th and 7th Street bridges, Penn Avenue from Stanwix Street to 9th Street, Liberty Avenue and several highway ramps into and out of the area. 

Road closure updates will be shared in advance of each phase and posted on the NFL OnePass app and pittsburghpa.gov, and PRT’s full transit guide for the draft can be found at rideprt.org/2026-draft/draft. 

Beyond the logistics, there is plenty to look forward to once fans arrive. Free public events at Point State Park and the North Shore include interactive fan experiences, a Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibit, food from local Pittsburgh restaurants, and live music. Fans are also invited to watch Round 1 on Thursday and Rounds 2 and 3 on Friday from the field at Acrisure Stadium. Draft picks begin at 8 p.m. Thursday, 7 p.m. Friday, and noon Saturday. Doors will officially open at noon on Thursday and Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday. 

However you plan to get there, officials agree on one thing: the earlier you plan, the better your weekend experience will be.