Author: WalkMassachusetts

Event: WalkBoston’s Talk The Walk Session: “Jane Jacobs,” 5/5 12pm On Zoom

Event: WalkBoston’s Talk The Walk Session: “Jane Jacobs,” 5/5 12pm On Zoom

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WalkBoston’s Talk the Walk Session
“Jane Jacobs”
May 5, 12-1pm
Register for this event

Lunch hour discussion session on Zoom. Open to all. Eating is encouraged. Video is optional. 

This is our second topic-driven discussion session (not just books!). These discussion sessions may include articles, podcasts, videos, and yes, maybe even a book or two. This session will cover Jane Jacobs (brief bio on Wikipedia). The event coincides with the Jane’s Walk Festival Weekend (May 6-7-8), which features citizen-led free walks around the globe.

This Talk the Walk Session will feature a presentation by author Anthony Flint, who wrote “Wrestling with Moses: How Jane Jacobs Took on New York’s Master Builder and Transformed the American City.”

Sixty years after the publication of “The Death and Life of American Cities,” the legacy of Jane Jacobs endures. She would be cheered by the pandemic-driven transformation of urban environments to accommodate outdoor dining, biking, scooting, and walking; the support of local businesses and grassroots local climate action; and the resilience of transit systems enabling the “15-minute city,” a 21st-century version of how she lived her life in Greenwich Village. But what wouldn’t she be happy with? Quite probably the scourge of “Not in My Backyard” responses to multifamily housing, amid dizzying increases in housing costs.

We’ve included a few relevant links about Jane Jacobs below. If you have read something related that others might find interesting or a question you’d like to include, send it our way—we can include it in our event reminder email and add to this post.

Discussion questions to consider:

  • For whom does Jane Jacobs’ concepts work? For whom don’t they work?
  • What makes Jane Jacobs’ arguments exciting to planners?
  • How do Jane Jacobs’ theories/ideas hold up today, particularly with the latest challenges cities are facing in 2022 (ongoing pandemic, remote/hybrid work, online shopping, rising housing costs, gentrification, etc?)
  • What are some of the critiques of Jane Jacobs’ concepts?

Register for this meeting:

https://www.givesignup.org/TicketEvent/TalkTheWalk
You will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Articles to get you started:

Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021) Report News Coverage

Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021) Report News Coverage

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We list all media clips on our website, but on this post we consolidated some of the media coverage for the Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021) Report. Please let us know if we missed any others that you’ve seen and we can try and keep this current.

Report Overview

Every life lost on Massachusetts’ roads is tragic. At WalkBoston, we advocate for the most vulnerable road users – people walking. In 2021, at least 75 pedestrians lost their lives in traffic crashes in Massachusetts, accounting for 18 percent of all lives lost in traffic crashes.

Findings:

  • Of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts, 47 had a fatal pedestrian crash in 2021. Over half (40 of 75) of the deaths happened in 12 municipalities.
  • Older adults were hit and killed at a higher rate than those in other age groups: 36% of fatal crash victims were over the age of 65. In Massachusetts, only 17% of the population is over 65.  1  
  • Over half of Massachusetts’ fatal pedestrian crashes (50.67%) occurred on streets with speed limits of 30 to 35 MPH. These are neighborhood streets and main streets where more people are walking.
  • Roughly 65% of the people killed while walking were on roads owned by a city or town, while approximately 35% were walking on roads owned by a state agency (MassDOT or MassDCR).

Read the press release | Read the full report

Coverage

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, February 2022

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, February 2022

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Each month, we post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from the previous month, and share any trends that we see. For the full list of monthly posts, head here. Earlier this month, we released a year in review for 2021 to highlight common issues.

Last month, we took a look at the nine fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in January. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in February 2022. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Crash Information.” The Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

  • Of the 31 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in February in the MassDOT Crash portal, seven were identified as people walking.
  • The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in February was 47.1.
  • We could not find any news coverage from three of the crashes. If you have any information, please let us know.
  • At least two of the crashes were hit & runs (as referenced in news articles).
Date 2/3/2022, 8:52 PM
Location South St. EAST + Jubinville St.
Town Holyoke
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 37
Sex F

We could not find any news coverage of this crash. If you have any information, please let us know.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, both South Street and Jubinville Street are under local jurisdiction. Jubinville Street Avenue is two-way, with 1 travel lanes in each direction. South Street is two-way on one side of the intersection with Jubinville Street, with 1 travel lanes in each direction, and one-way with one travel lane on the other side of the intersection. There is a sidewalk on one side of South Street and no crosswalks are present. The speed limit is not indicated for either street in the Road Inventory.

Holyoke adopted a 25 mph default speed limit in 2018 in “an effort to keep the city’s streets safer for pedestrians, bicyclists and other motorists” according to a MassLive story at the time.

Date 2/6/2022, 8:28 PM
Location I-90 WEST, MM 117
Town Natick
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 26
Sex M

Ryan Connearney, age 26, was struck and killed by the driver of a 2017 Chevrolet Cruze after he exited his own vehicle, a 2018 Ford Fiesta, which for reasons still under investigation, went off the roadway into a ditch on the right side of at the beginning of the off ramp for exit 117, according to the Mass State Police’s preliminary investigation.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a limited access highway, with 3 travel lanes in each direction, separated by a median. There is an off ramp at this location. The speed limit is listed as 65mph. (The location is listed as Natick, while the Google Street View displays Framingham; municipal boundaries of Natick, Framingham, and Wayland all meet near this exit ramp.)

Date 2/18/2022, 4:11 AM
Location 36 Boylston St.
Town Worcester
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 52
Sex M

Edward Geddis, age 52, was struck and killed in a hit and run crash. The driver of a gray Ford truck left the scene. When police arrived on the scene, they found Mr. Geddis in the roadway with a heavily damaged wheelchair nearby.

The Worcester Police Crash Reconstruction Unit determined that “a gray Ford truck was traveling Northeast on Boylston St when it struck the male in a wheelchair. The operator exited his vehicle and remained on scene for about a minute and fifteen seconds before fleeing. After further investigation, officers developed probable cause for the arrest of Charles Brant, forty-years-old of Boylston. Officers went to his residence in Boylston and observed damage to the front right end of the vehicle, and other evidence consistent with having been involved in a crash. Mr. Brant was placed under arrest and is charged with Leaving the Scene of a Collision Causing Death.”

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Boylston Street is under local jurisdiction. Boylston Street is two-way, with 2 travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on one side of the street, and a partial sidewalk / grassy curb that is not wheelchair accessible on the side of the street where Mr. Geddis was struck. The speed limit is 30mph in the Road Inventory.

The closest crosswalk across Boylston Street from 36 Boylston St is ~900 feet away at the intersection with Lincoln Street; there are no crosswalks at Chino Ave (~550 feet), Tacoma Street (~330 feet) or Plantation Street (~900 feet).

Date 2/22/2022, 8:50 PM
Location 345 Massachusetts Ave.
Town Amherst
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 19
Sex F

Elena Lucore, age 19, was struck and killed on Mass Ave on the UMass Amherst Campus while walking with a friend. She was struck and killed by another student at UMass Amherst, according to Boston 25 News.

Western Mass News reported on March 11th:

Campus officials told us that since the accident, a UMass Police Officer has been stationed around the clock near the location where the accident occurred. And they said the university is taking added steps to improve safety on Mass Ave. Those include a covered walkway on the south side of the street that is expected to be finished by this Friday. The addition of push-button flashers across all cross walks on the east and west side of the street. And a speed limit reduction from 30 mph to 20 mph.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Massachusetts Avenue is under State college or university jurisdiction. Massachusetts Avenue is two-way, with 2 travel lanes in each direction and a large grassy median and sidewalks on each side. The speed limit is 30 mph in the Road Inventory.

Date 2/24/2022, 7:17 PM
Location 33 Montvale Ave
Town Woburn
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 70
Sex M

John McGuinness, age 70, was struck and killed by Elmer Coreas, age 57, who was driving a Honda Pilot. WCVB reported that it was a hit and run crash, as Coreas fled the scene; Woburn police said they were able to identify fluids from the suspect motor vehicle which they were able to follow back to an apartment building on Montvale Avenue, where they located a maroon Honda Pilot with heavy front-end damage.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Montvale Avenue is under local jurisdiction. Montvale Avenue is two-way, with 1 travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 25 mph in the Road Inventory.

WCVB also talked to people who knew John:

“Nice guy, very generous. Always took care of everybody,” the Woburn VFW’s Becky Higgins said of John McGuiness, 70.

His photo now hangs on the wall at the VFW in Woburn, where McGuinness was a fixture, and friend.

“Any time you asked him, he was always doing great, always had a positive attitude,” Higgins said.

Date 2/24/2022, 10:30 PM
Location 35 Washington St.
Town Peabody
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 65
Sex M

We could not find any news coverage of this crash. If you have any information, please let us know.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Washington Street is under local jurisdiction. Washington Street is two-way, with 1 travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of each street. The speed limit is not indicated for Washington Street in the Road Inventory.

WalkBoston conducted a walk audit in downtown Peabody in the fall of 2018 which notes “excessively wide vehicular travel lanes lead to high traffic speeds on Washington Street.” The report also states:

Even though the City of Peabody has reduced its default speed limit to 25 miles per hour, the posted speed limit on parts of Washington Street is 30 miles per hour, creating a complicated regulatory issue.

Date 2/27/2022, 6:04 PM
Location 780 South Main St.
Town Sharon
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 61
Sex F

We could not find any news coverage of this crash. If you have any information, please let us know.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, South Main Street is under MassDOT jurisdiction. South Main Street is two-way, with 1 travel lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on one side of the street. There is a shopping plaza at this location, with signs for accessing I-95 along the roadway. The speed limit is 40 mph in the Road Inventory.

Updates

If you have an update about a community member who was killed in one of these crashes, please contact Brendan so we can update our 2022 list. WalkBoston has maintained a list each year since 2016, pulling the information from news reports, social media, and from people like you that share the information with us.

Yearly trackers:  |  |||| | 2022

Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021)

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal

MassDOT makes no representation as to the accuracy, adequacy, reliability, availability or completeness of the crash records or the data collected from them and is not responsible for any errors or omissions in such records or data. Under no circumstance will MassDOT have any liability for any loss or damage incurred by any party as a result of the use of the crash records or the data collected from them. Furthermore, the data contained in the web-based crash report tool are not an official record of what transpired in a particular crash or for a particular crash type. If a user is interested in an official copy of a crash report, contact the Registry (http://www.mass.gov/rmv/). The City of Boston Police Department may be contacted directly for official copies of crash reports and for crash data pertaining to the City of Boston. In addition, any crash records or data provided for the years after 2018 are subject to change at any time and are not to be considered up-to-date or complete. As such, open years’ of crash data are for informational purposes only and should not be used for analysis. The data posted on this website, including crash records and other reports, are collected for the purpose of identifying, evaluating or planning the safety enhancement of potential crash sites, hazardous roadway conditions or railway-highway crossings. Under federal law, this information is not subject to discovery and cannot be admitted into evidence in any federal or state court proceeding or considered for other purposes in any action for damages that involves the sites mentioned in these records (see 23 USC, Section 409).

A step in the right direction

A step in the right direction

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BY WENDY LANDMAN / WALKBOSTON SENIOR POLICY ADVISOR

Over the last year WalkBoston has been working with the Stepping Strong Center for Trauma Innovation at Brigham and Women’s Hospital on an innovative project to engage hospital injury prevention professionals (IPPs) in pedestrian advocacy. WalkBoston initiated this effort after learning that all Level 1 Trauma Hospitals are required to undertake community-facing injury prevention efforts, but that nowhere in the US have these programs focused on pedestrian safety improvements to the built environment. We believe that engaging with hospitals and bringing the voices of health care professionals into the pedestrian safety movement holds great potential to strengthen our effectiveness. WalkBoston worked with staff at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Medical Center, Boston Children’s Hospital, and Tufts Medical Center to set the stage for each hospital to develop pedestrian injury reduction projects as one element of their overall injury prevention efforts. The primary component of the project was a workshop training course on pedestrian safety and injury prevention to provide the IPPs with the necessary information and tools to determine how such an effort would be incorporated into the hospital’s injury prevention programs. Our interaction with the IPPs identified what the key safety issues are that they might address and how they could work within their hospitals to develop support among hospital leadership and staff. Based on the positive reception of the effort, WalkBoston and our Stepping Strong partners have joined forces to apply for funding to continue the effort and expand it to include partners in Chicago’s pedestrian advocacy and hospital communities. If successful, the grant would allow us to deepen the work with Boston hospitals, expand the program to the Chicago metro area, and lay the groundwork for a national effort. Stay tuned for more!

This article was featured in WalkBoston’s Spring 2022 newsletter.
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Building Social Infrastructure in the Gateway Cities

Building Social Infrastructure in the Gateway Cities

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BY AYESHA MEHROTRA / WALKBOSTON PROGRAM MANAGER

From September 2020 to August 2021, WalkBoston and MassINC conducted virtual walk audits in five Gateway City downtowns: Springfield, Fitchburg, Brockton, Haverhill, and Fall River. Our teams worked alongside residents, municipal officials, and other community leaders to not only improve pedestrian safety and access, but also to consider the quality of each downtown’s social infrastructure — the physical infrastructure that fosters community connections and a sense of belonging, like seating, plazas, parks, stoops, libraries, and recreational facilities.

People in communities across the Commonwealth have shifted the way they spend their time since the pandemic began. The Gateway Cities are no different. Our walk audit participants often told us that they were eager to be a part of this process because their experiences during the pandemic had made them realize how important it was to have streets on which they could safely and comfortably go for walks, access rich and plentiful outdoor public spaces, find family friendly activities closer to home, and support beloved local businesses struggling to stay open.

Yet, their downtowns mostly lacked enough activity and inviting, pedestrian-oriented spaces to make them destinations. Too much paved space allocated for car parking coupled with inadequate tree cover also meant downtowns are uncomfortably hot and barren for a large portion of the year. Despite this bleak picture, many of these downtowns have the bones of great walkability. They have small parks and plazas scattered throughout that could become wonderful community spaces with some investment and maintenance.

Several small business owners also participated and were excited to establish pop-up venues in empty ground-floor retail locations or weekend stalls in vacant plazas. And we know that there is immense desire for these types of rich public spaces in all five communities. Time and again, walk audit participants expressed eagerness to see multi-purpose community gathering spaces that could be used for farmers markets, seasonal arts and music events, and recreation.

On Zoom calls, participants exchanged contact information and made plans to join committees or build partnerships to start campaigns to celebrate the cultural fabric and history of their city through historical notices, wayfinding signage, and public art. At a point in time when people could not easily gather in person or meet new people in their neighborhoods, our walk audit conversations became spaces of connection where neighbors came together to set aspirations for their city and for the types of spaces they could share.

So, what’s next for the Gateway Cities project? Our partners at MassINC are currently working on case studies of the five downtowns that participated in this project, conducting land use analyses for each to help answer the question: Why aren’t people walking and spending time here? The case studies evaluate how active a downtown’s streetscape is, how lack of tree cover and car-centric spaces make the environments less inviting to walk, and what types of policies and programs cities can use to create more active downtowns. The case studies will be presented to decision makers at the respective municipalities. We presented some of our project’s initial findings at MassDOT’s Moving Together Conference in December 2021 with Andre Leroux, our partner at MassINC.

We’ll also be taking the important lessons learned through these five case studies of the Gateway Cities and applying them to advocacy at the state level. Like all communities across the state, our mid-sized cities need funding that prioritizes quality public realms, from improved traffic safety to seasonal walkability to social infrastructure that fosters community ties. We hope to continue our work with these cities to support each community’s vision for creating streetscapes and public spaces that foster a lively, welcoming, and thriving downtown.

This article was featured in WalkBoston’s Spring 2022 newsletter.
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