Brighton Walk Audit Examines Pedestrian Challenges on Washington

On Friday, January 24th, WalkBoston met with City Councilor Liz Breadon and representatives of the Office of Neighborhood Services and Age Strong Commission at the B’nai B’rith Housing’s Covenant House & Patricia White Apartments to conduct a walk audit of the surrounding area. Attendees shared that drivers speed along Washington Street mainly during non-rush hour times of day as they come down the hill on Washington away from Commonwealth Avenue, which leads to dangerous conditions for pedestrians trying to use this crosswalk. During our walk, Eversource was on site doing construction in the middle of the road with a police detail. As a result, there was slower moving traffic – we referred to it as a traffic calming pilot project. Despite the construction, participants noted that many drivers failed to yield for pedestrians in the following crosswalks along Washington near Whole Foods. In addition, walk audit participants recorded vehicle speeds at over 25 mph even though they were coming through a work zone. 

Attendees shared that lighting at night along this corridor can also be a challenge for people walking, and especially for people with low vision. The walk audit was a great opportunity to look at both built-environment assets as well as opportunities to improve pedestrian safety in the area, which WalkBoston looks forward to synthesizing in a report that will be available soon. Many thanks to all of the participants who spent their morning with us!