Category: Announcement

Longfellow has come a long way!

Longfellow has come a long way!

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WalkBoston is thrilled that after many years of advocacy, planning and design – and five years of construction – the Longfellow Bridge is open to all users. People on foot, on bikes, on the Red Line and in vehicles are all in motion. We celebrate the comfortable sidewalks, the beautifully restored ironwork and stonework, and the elegant new lighting. We are anticipating the fully accessible new bridge to the Esplanade which will open this summer.  Just a quick glance at the pictures below tell the sidewalk story!

Before (photos taken between 2007-2011):

     

After (photos taken June 2018):

We are continuing to work with our many advocacy partners to make biking across the bridge even safer than it is today, and are pleased that MassDOT Secretary Stephanie Pollack has committed to a pilot test of a separated bike lane on the inbound to Boston uphill portion of the bridge. We urge everyone to take a walk across the Longfellow Bridge this summer to enjoy the fabulous views and the cool river breeze. Support your local advocacy organizations (like WalkBoston) to keep state and local decision makers moving in the right direction on transportation in order to make our Commonwealth the best it can be!
Maintaining access for people walking around construction projects

Maintaining access for people walking around construction projects

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With Massachusetts’ booming economy, pedestrians encounter construction sites on streets large and small. WalkBoston recently led a lunch-n-learn at Commodore Builders, (a WalkBoston corporate supporter) focused on construction site management strategies that provide safe spaces for people to continue walking during construction.

Key points:

  • Maintain a safe path of ACCESSIBLE travel.
  • Match the solution to the setting – if there are a lot of walkers and busy streets, do not force pedestrians to cross the street. Find space for pedestrians on the same side of the street.
  • Provide advance warning at a safe crossing if the sidewalk is closed mid-block.

We shared good and bad examples of local construction sites and links to some good resources. If your company is interested in a similar presentation, please get in touch. Stay tuned: later this summer, we’ll be leading a construction access walk in Allston!

If you see a construction site that blocks access for pedestrians, we encourage you to report it to your city or town. In more and more municipalities across MA, you can dial 311, or use a reporting app like Commonwealth Connect. You can also tag us in photos @WalkBoston on Twitter.

Check out WalkBoston funder Bill Cummings’ new book “Starting Small and Making It Big”

Check out WalkBoston funder Bill Cummings’ new book “Starting Small and Making It Big”

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Last summer, WalkBoston was fortunate enough to receive a $100,000 grant from the Cummings Foundation to fund our work to train and empower residents to be change agents for safe streets. Earlier this month, we kicked things off with a Ped101 Training Session and neighborhood walk audit in Lowell with the Coalition for A Better Acre. We’re excited to engage with people that want to make their communities more walkable!

The Cummings Foundation’s $100K for 100 program supports nonprofits that are not only based in but also primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties – the area where the Foundation owns commercial buildings, all of which are managed, at no cost to the Foundation, by its affiliate Cummings Properties. Want to know more about the people behind the Foundation? We’d encourage you to check out Bill Cummings’ newly published autobiography, “Starting Small and Making It Big,” in which he shares his story and the dedication to giving back to the communities and institutions so vital to his success.

MA Vision Zero Coalition support for the Inman Square project

MA Vision Zero Coalition support for the Inman Square project

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May 21, 2018

To the Cambridge City Council,

We are writing to you today since we understand you will be conducting a hearing tonight that involves discussion on the removal of 4 or 5 trees from Inman Square, to facilitate the Inman Square road design for transportation safety.

The goals of the Inman Square redesign are to make the square, specifically the large intersection of Hampshire and Cambridge Streets, safer for people biking and walking — the most vulnerable road users. This is in line with the Cambridge Vision Zero policy, and is particularly timely as a  response to the dangers highlighted by the fatal crash that took the life of Amanda Phillips in June of 2016, while she was riding her bike away from Inman Square.

The Vision Zero Coalition is working to make Massachusetts safer for all road users and we believe that the proposed changes to Inman Square will make that complicated and busy intersection much safer for people walking and biking.  In addition, the plan responds to the requests of local residents and business owners to create a more attractive and connected Vellucci Plaza to better serve businesses. We believe that the plan now makes the most of the opportunity for a large re-construction project, to fix the traffic and safety operations of Inman Square, and provide an opportunity to revitalize struggling businesses in the Square.

We sincerely hope that the objections to the project stemming from the loss of 4-5 trees (which will be transplanted and/or replaced) will not delay these important safety improvements any longer.

Trees are an extremely important part of the  urban fabric and contribute to pedestrian comfort and safety, and our organizations advocate for trees as an important element of streetscape design. Trees are also important contributors to environmental benefits. As transportation is the number one contributor to greenhouse gases in Massachusetts, it is imperative that we provide people with transportation options that get them out of single occupancy vehicles. The amount of carbon that a tree can sequester is moot if we can get hundreds, even thousands, more people out of cars and onto their feet, transit and bicycles. While  Cambridge boasts one of

the highest percentages of people who travel by walking, transit and biking, that percentage could be much higher if the City is safer and more attractive for people using those modes.

While we regret the loss of four to five trees, making progress on safety,  mode shift, and the continued vitality of Inman Square outweighs that loss and we believe the project should move forward as soon as possible.  We are pleased that the designers and City staff have found a way to plant even more trees than are being removed.

We look forward to seeing the re-construction of Inman Square get underway, and to the safer, more convenient and more vibrant Square that will result.

Best regards,

Wendy Landman, WalkBoston

Stacy Thompson, LivableStreets Alliance

Becca Wolfson, Boston Cyclists Union

Members and leaders of the Massachusetts Vision Zero Coalition

Ashley Park Pop-Up Day for New Bedford’s Safe Routes to Parks effort

Ashley Park Pop-Up Day for New Bedford’s Safe Routes to Parks effort

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WalkBoston joined in the celebration at the Ashley Park Pop-Up Day in New Bedford on Thursday, May 17. Ashley Park was the pilot location for New Bedford’s Safe Routes to Parks efforts guided by a technical assistance grant from the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA). Residents, business owners, and school children came to see how a parklet and a brightly colored crosswalk could help to slow traffic at the busy corner of Rivet and Bolton Streets. WalkBoston, funded by the Mass Dept of Public Health’s Mass in Motion (MiM) Program, conducted a walk audit in the Ashley Park neighborhood in Fall 2017 identifying needed safety improvements along walking routes to the park.