Advocacy
With the long term benefits to so many groups, it is hoped that increased use of the stairs will provide a financial incentive to the city to better maintain this historic part of Pittsburgh’s infrastructure. Walking on many city stairs it is clear where residents have repaired individual stair treads when needed. However, there are many staircases where large portions of the underlying structure of the staircases are crumbling and need to be repaired or replaced.
In these cases, city funding needs to be allocated for staircase repair, just as it is for roadway and bridge repair. It is hoped that with increased foot traffic, the City will better maintain the stairs to support the increased number of people who will be using them. Some of the longer staircases in the city have now been closed due to only a few stair treads being broken. It is hoped that with increased staircase use that these few stair treads can be replaced and these staircases reopened. As I have described, in many cases the value to the communities and the cost savings to the City far outweighs the repair cost of these staircases.
It has also been shown that public murals and other public art tend to reduce the amount of graffiti and other vandalism. A well decorated staircase could reduce the amount defacement common on so many staircases across the city.
