Pittsburgh is moving closer to adding another bike and pedestrian trail crossing the Allegheny River.

Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said Thursday that the county has moved into a partnership with the Allegheny RiverTrail Park and Allegheny Valley Railroad Co. to start the process of acquiring the Brilliant Line rail corridor to eventually convert it into a dedicated bike and pedestrian trail.

Fitzgerald said the partnership will add 4 miles of trails to the 200-plus-mile trail network of Allegheny County. The Brilliant Line runs from Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood to Aspinwall across a rail bridge over the Allegheny River. It runs above and parallel to Washington Boulevard and includes five bridges.

“This will be one of the most beautiful and transformational trails that this region has ever seen, connecting Bakery Square to the Erie-to-Pittsburgh Trail,” Fitzgerald said.

The 4-mile line is owned by Allegheny Valley Railroad Co. The purchase is being funded with $22 million from the county’s Trail Development Fund, which was created last year using covid-19 stimulus funding.

The Allegheny RiverTrail Park has been working on the Brilliant Line project since 2015 and envisions extending the trails out from the new line, potentially connecting along the trail easement in Sharpsburg to the Etna Riverfront Park and ultimately to the Three Rivers Heritage Trail in Millvale.

Allegheny RiverTrail Park board member Trish Klatt told the Tribune-Review last year that the new trail will rest on an architecturally stunning former rail line. She said the project will take at least a few years to complete, she said.

County officials said the acquisition is subject to a regulatory process of notifying federal and state agencies, as well as the general public.

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)