I-376 and John Cigna

Traveling into Pittsburgh from the east on I-376, at one point the city skyline comes into view and it is a beautiful site, as you can see above.  But, a picture really doesn't do it justice.  I was in Pittsburgh this week, and I saw the 376 view of the city one more time.

One summer, I had this view through the windshield five days a week, but I don’t recall really reveling in it.  I was doing a portion of my seminary education at the hospital in Greensburg, and I would travel west to Greensburg in the morning and back to Ambridge, just west of Pittsburgh, each evening.  Fortunately, I was generally traveling in the opposite direction of the heavy traffic each day.

I remember listening to KDKA-AM with John Cigna each morning while commuting.  Cigna was the morning drive guy for KDKA from 1983 to 2001.  The morning show was mostly a news/weather/traffic program, but Cigna brought his personality to the show.  There was a little music, but not very much. 

Cigna was a Brooklyn kid who brought that NYC-brashness to his work.  He died at age 75 in 2011.  A bit about his on-air chutzpah:

"Several of his April Fools' pranks are the stuff of radio lore. Once, he reported that a flying saucer had landed in North Park. Many believed it. "My general manager didn't even know it was a joke."

On another April 1, he claimed there was an alligator roaming the sewer system and urged listeners to collectively flush their toilets to get the critter out. People bought that one, too. "People were calling up at 11 o'clock in the morning, saying, 'Should we continue to flush?' It was crazy.'"

A classic Cigna quote: "The greatest accomplishments are done in defiance of management."

“Your Wildest Dreams” by the Moody Blues was popular the summer of my 376 commute, and Cigna played it at the same time many mornings.  The song would usually come on as I was approaching the Squirrel Hill Tunnel, and I would race through the tunnel to hear the end of the song.  The song reminds me of a friend in college, and it’s my favorite Moody’s song.

I-376 is one of those weird interstate highways like the ones around Chicago.  378 is labeled east-west while most of the road runs north-south; a few of the interstates around Chicago have similar confusing directional designations.  

The traffic tends to slow down on the Fort Pitt Bridge, and right before the two tunnels east of the city.  The traffic around the bridge is the worst as different roads converge and drivers cut across lanes to head in the right direction.  

The traffic around the tunnels isn’t so bad, especially if you’re listening to a favorite song.  And if you're traveling west toward Pittsburgh on 376, don't miss the skyline view.