Category: In The News

Boston Globe: I took Brookline’s e-scooters for a road test. Here’s what happened

Boston Globe: I took Brookline’s e-scooters for a road test. Here’s what happened

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Boston Globe: “I took Brookline’s e-scooters for a road test. Here’s what happened”

Is it legal to ride these e-scooters on the sidewalk? Also a bit hazy, according to Brendan Kearney of the pedestrian advocacy group WalkBoston.

Posted April 12, 2019

Extra reading:

There are currently 8 bills before the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Transportation that deal with scooters & micro-mobility devices. We testified before the committee on March 28th: “At the most fundamental level, we believe that in areas of the Commonwealth where there is more than occasional sidewalk use by pedestrians, motorized scooters should be accommodated on-street or in separated bike/scooter lanes where they will not conflict with people who are walking on the sidewalk.” Read our full testimony.

Herald News: “Fall River wins Golden Shoe award for improving walkability”

Herald News: “Fall River wins Golden Shoe award for improving walkability”

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Herald News: “Fall River wins Golden Shoe award for improving walkability”

Fall River is now running the walking game.

On March 18, WalkBoston held its 29th annual meeting in Boston to present Fall River with an award for its progress in the city’s walkability.

This is the first time Fall River has won the Golden Shoe Award from WalkBoston. The honor recognizes the city’s improvements in walkability, including a change in the city’s policy.

“It says that there’s real dedication. … People really love their city and they’re willing to put work into the city,” said Coordinator of Mass in Motion Fall River and award-winner Julianne Kelly. She said the award is a great recognition of the partnership between city employees and volunteers, and inspires them to keep making a difference.

WalkBoston is a nonprofit organization that works as consultants for communities around the state to improve the city’s walkability and create a healthier and cleaner environment. It also recognized Springfield with an award this year.

Posted April 3, 2019

WBUR: “Advocates Say MBTA Riders Need Accessibility Now, Not Later”

WBUR: “Advocates Say MBTA Riders Need Accessibility Now, Not Later”

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WBUR: “Advocates Say MBTA Riders Need Accessibility Now, Not Later”

Wendy Landman, the executive director of WalkBoston and a consultant on PATI, praises the MBTA’s progress but acknowledges the project has barriers.

“Like everything else that we think about with public transportation in Massachusetts, the money is short and issues to solve are big,” Landman says.

In the meantime, those big issues continue to affect people with disabilities, advocates say.

Carol Steinberg, an attorney, writer and disability activist, lives near the Forest Hills stop on the Orange Line. Although she stresses that service has improved, she says she avoids the T. She worries that elevators will be out of service, or that no employees will be around to put down the ramp that helps her wheelchair cross the gap between the train and the platform.

“When I take it, I’m happy I took it. It works,” she says. “But I’m nervous about it, so I drive.”

To get her to use the T more often, she says the MBTA must keep getting better.

“Keep doing what they’re doing, but speed it up,” says Steinberg.

Aired April 3, 2019

Carol Steinberg is a WalkBoston Board member.

WGBH News – “As Boston Aims To End Traffic Deaths, Deadliest Streets Often Go Overlooked”

WGBH News – “As Boston Aims To End Traffic Deaths, Deadliest Streets Often Go Overlooked”

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WGBH News: “As Boston Aims To End Traffic Deaths, Deadliest Streets Often Go Overlooked”

Brendan Kearney of the pedestrian group WalkBoston worries the city isn’t taking on the bigger, more complicated roadways where most crashes are actually happening. “These are happening on fast arterial streets,” said Kearney, not on the residential streets that are the primary focus of the Neighborhood Slow Streets program. “We want to make sure they’re addressing the root cause.”

Aired March 11, 2019

WCVB – “Boston mayor’s transportation plan targets rideshare, MBTA, speeding”

WCVB – “Boston mayor’s transportation plan targets rideshare, MBTA, speeding”

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WCVB: “Boston mayor’s transportation plan targets rideshare, MBTA, speeding”

“I would say he is working hard, his heart is in the right place.” But the head of WalkBoston says Boston lags behind New York and San Francisco when it comes to more expensive changes, like building safer crosswalks and installing cameras to catch red light runners and speeders. “This is something the City is working on, but we would like them to be working faster to get those things done.”