Category: Statewide Efforts

Golden Shoe Award Winners For March 2021 Annual Meeting

Golden Shoe Award Winners For March 2021 Annual Meeting

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As presented at this year’s annual event on Zoom, March 24, 2021. 

Karen Cord Taylor for her long term service as a committed Board member and fierce advocate for better walkability in her Beacon Hill neighborhood and the greater Boston community. Karen has devoted thirteen years to WalkBoston and has been part of so many wins as a WalkBoston Board member. Her dedication to clearing sidewalks and curb ramps of snow is particularly top of mind this winter. In addition to her advocacy work, Karen, a former newspaper owner and publisher, often used her editing skills to ensure our written communications were top notch. Karen was also instrumental in attracting and nominating wonderful new Board members, including our former Board President Emma Yashar. Your impact continues far beyond your 13-year Board tenure!

The MassDOT Shared Streets and Spaces Program provided funds to municipalities that allowed them to quickly respond to the many mobility challenges highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the need for more sidewalk space to walk safely 6’ apart, to dine outdoors in unused parking lanes, and to reimagine streets as low speed, safe spaces for people walking and biking. The popularity of this program demonstrated the desire, need and capabilities of municipalities to implement quick build projects to make streets safer and more enjoyable for all. WalkBoston is a huge fan of this program and we would love to see the program continue beyond the pandemic! In fact, we have a call to action for all of you to help make this happen later in our program. Kate Fichter, MassDOT’s Assistant Secretary for Policy Coordination and Project Lead for the Shared Streets and Spaces Program will be accepting the Golden Shoe Award on behalf of the group. We also want to thank the Barr Foundation and the Solomon Foundation for not only funding technical assistance to municipalities, but also for truly leading program outreach to ensure that all municipalities had capacity to apply regardless of local resources or expertise. Help us say THANKS for Shared Streets and Spaces so these types of projects happen more often.

Finally, our last Golden Shoe Award goes to Frank Caro. Frank died unexpectedly in October of 2020. He was an extremely dedicated Brookline resident determined to make streets and spaces more hospitable to older adults. As the founder and co-chair of the BrookLINE Community Aging Network (CAN), Frank ensured that the needs of older adults were more integrated into the life of the town. His work earned BrookLINEan Age-Friendly town designation by the World Health Organization, the first town to do so in New England. In addition to Frank’s Age-Friendly work, he founded the BrookLINE Pedestrian Advisory Board, which continues to conduct research on pedestrian activities and needs. Some of the Board’s projects included sidewalks on Longwood Avenue, audible signals along Beacon Street, and an inventory of hedges interfering with pedestrian space on sidewalks. Carol Caro, Frank’s widow, will be accepting the Golden Shoe Award on Frank’s behalf. Read a post about Frank Caro by WalkBoston board member Anita Johnson.

Say THANKS for Shared Streets and Spaces

Say THANKS for Shared Streets and Spaces

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The MassDOT Shared Streets & Spaces and Winter Shared Streets and Spaces municipal funding programs have provided technical and funding assistance to help Massachusetts cities and towns conceive, design, and implement tactical changes to curbs, streets, and parking areas in support of public health, safe mobility, and renewed commerce.

This has created more places for people to walk, bike, and dine outside on a shorter timeline than many major infrastructure projects – allowing communities to respond to the needs of their residents more quickly. The grant program also made money available to convert temporary Shared Streets and Spaces projects to permanent facilities.

We all want to see more Shared Streets & Spaces projects in more places. But before that happens, let’s take stock of what is already underway! In conjunction with the Golden Shoe award WalkBoston is giving to the Shared Streets & Spaces program tonight, we’re rolling out a “Thank You” effort, and want you to take part.

  • We compiled a full list of projects funded along with project descriptions. Take a look at what has been implemented so far, and what is on the way.
  • Contact your local elected officials & public works/planning staff.
  • Let them know that you like the creative use of public space shown possible through the MassDOT “Shared Streets & Spaces” and “Shared Winter Streets & Places” programs (that you’ll hear more about tonight at our Annual Celebration), and that you want to see more!
  • Make sure they hear how programs that create space for people to walk, bike, and dine outside safely are a real win for your community, and how you, your neighbors, and other visitors will benefit.
  • Copy us on your message: comments@walkboston.org
  • Not sure what to say? Here is a sample message. Keep it simple!

Thank you, _____, for [insert the part of the project description in your city/town that you like]. I really like these programs and want to see continued creative use of street space and a focus on walking safety with MassDOT funding support.

Thanks, Your name & address

  • If you’re tweeting your thanks to elected officials, tag us @walkboston and we’ll retweet your messages.
  • This idea came out of a discussion at our newly-restarted advocacy committee, chaired by Cacilda Teixeira and Matt Lawlor. Want to get involved? Send Brendan an email and he can connect you. We’d love your participation!
Everett funded by MassDOT & the Barr Foundation. photo by BostonBRT. For more Shared Streets photos go here: www.flickr.com/groups/sharedstreets/
Statewide Fatal Crashes in MA, February 2021

Statewide Fatal Crashes in MA, February 2021

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Each month in 2021, we plan to post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from the previous month, and share any trends that we see. Last month, we took a look at the 5 fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in January. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in February 2021. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Information by Year.” The Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

  • Of the 19 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in February in the MassDOT Crash portal, 4 were people walking.
  • 3 of those 4 crashes were on limited access highways. In 2 of those crashes, tractor trailer drivers struck and killed a driver who exited a vehicle after it had broken down.
  • The crash portal does not include names. The names of 2 of the people walking who died have not been made public yet.
  • The name of the person driving was not identified in any of the 4 crashes in news articles.
  • 2 people lost their lives at a construction site in Boston in February when a co-worker hit them with a vehicle, pushing them into an open trench. That incident is not listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal. The Boston Globe wrote at least two follow up stories about 33-year-old Jose Carlos Figueroa-Gutierrez and 27-year-old Jordan Romero: “One day later, makeshift memorial for two construction workers only sign of tragedy in Boston,” “A sister mourns for brother killed at downtown Boston construction site.”
Date 2/2/2021, 11:30 PM
Location I-90 EAST, MM 87.0
Town Oxford
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 33
Sex M

A 33 year old Hartford man was struck and killed on on I-90 (the MassPike) by the driver of a tractor trailer. WHDH reported that he was hit after his Toyota Camry broke down and he got out of the car to examine the problem.

Date 2/8/2021, 5:55 PM
Location 418 Winthrop Ave.
Town Lawrence
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 70
Sex F

A 70 year old woman was hit and killed on Winthrop Ave (Rt 114) on the North Andover / Lawrence line. The Boston Globe reported that the scene of the crash on Route 114 was near the North Andover Mall. Rt 114 is 4 lanes (2 travel lanes each direction) in front of the North Andover Mall and 3 lanes after the driveway intersection. There is only a sidewalk on one side of the street. According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Winthrop Ave/Rt 114 is under MassDOT jurisdiction.

According to Google Streetview, the sidewalk is relatively new and under construction as of November 2019. There is only a sidewalk on one side of the street, but it did not exist prior to November 2019. New curb ramps are in place but only go across the driveway entrance, not Rt 114. The nearest crosswalks across Rt 114 are 0.9 miles away from each other, with the shopping center roughly in between. A housing development is also on the other side of the street from the shopping center.

Date 2/13/2021, 5:55 AM
Location I-90 EAST, MM 116.2
Town Framingham
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 57
Sex M

Mustapha Faddi, a 57 year old Marlborough man, was struck and killed on I-90 (the MassPike) by the driver of a tractor trailer. Mustapha’s Nissan Murano broke down and he got out of the car to examine the problem. The Patch shared that this was the second fatal crash on the MassPike in February involving a disable vehicle & tractor trailer.

Date 2/27/2021, 11:40 PM
Location I-93 NORTH, south of EXIT 33
Town Medford
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 22
Sex F

Madeleine Fox, a 22 year old woman, was hit and killed after she got out of her friend’s car on I-93. NBC Boston reports that investigators are working to identify a description of the vehicle or vehicles that might have hit her.

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 . 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:  |||||

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal

DISCLAIMER:  The compilation of data is based on preliminary data we receive from a variety of local sources.  Some of the data may differ slightly from information provided by NHTSA as this dashboard does not use imputation methods.  Information is subject to change when/if updated information becomes available. Data updated daily as reported by police departments.

Help us keep up the momentum for road safety legislation – contact your state rep/senator today

Help us keep up the momentum for road safety legislation – contact your state rep/senator today

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Last Friday was the deadline for the MA State Legislature to file legislation for the 2021-2022 session. Many important pieces of traffic safety legislation were filed. Will you help us keep the momentum going by asking your legislator to cosponsor important Vision Zero legislation?

This Friday, February 26th is the first deadline for legislators to cosponsor, and we need your help to ensure these bills have as many cosponsors as possible. Send an email to your state legislators (see script provided below). Be sure to cc info@visionzerocoalition.org so we can track which legislators have been contacted.

Learn more about all of the MA Vision Zero Coalition’s policy priorities here.

Thank you for taking action with us! Together we can make Massachusetts streets safer.

Massachusetts Vision Zero Coalition
http://www.visionzerocoalition.org

SAMPLE SCRIPT FOR EMAIL OR PHONE CALL

To: Your State Senator and Representative (if you don’t know who they are, click here)

CC: info@visionzerocoalition.org

Recommended email subject: Please co-sponsor traffic safety bills

Sample script:

Dear [your legislator],

I am writing to ask for your support on three bills the MA Vision Zero Coalition is advocating for that would make our roads safer and prevent traffic deaths: An Act to reduce traffic fatalities, An Act relative to automated enforcement, and An Act relative to work and family mobility.

[Talk about why this issue matters to you: how you get around the city, how you or someone you know has been impacted by a crash, etc]

An Act to reduce traffic fatalities (HD1888) is an improved version of the bill that was passed by the Senate last session. This omnibus bill would require additional mirrors, side guards, and backup cameras for certain trucks and other large vehicles, define vulnerable road users and set a safe passing distance at certain speeds, allow the default speed limit on state-owned roads to be lowered to to 25 mph, and create a standardized crash report form for people walking and biking. This bill in particular includes important truck safety regulations and and maintains the current law requiring a person biking to use either a rear red light or reflector, instead of adding a requirement to use both a rear red light and a rear reflector; the latter has been proven to lead to racial profiling in other states.

An Act relative to automated enforcement (SD1962/HD3705 and HD2452), which the Senate came very close to passing last session, would allow municipalities to opt in to installing cameras that would issue tickets for violations for speeding, failure to stop at a red light, failure to stop at a school bus stop arm, blocking the box, and parking or driving in a dedicated bus lane. When enacted in other states, automated enforcement has reduced speeding and serious crashes. More than 400 communities in the U.S. use red light cameras, and more than 130 use cameras to enforce speed laws.

An Act relative to work and family mobility during and subsequent to the COVID-19 emergency (SD273/HD448), which has been filed in previous sessions, would allow undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses, which, in addition to improving equity, has proven to increase safety in other states.

Can we count on you to cosponsor these bills this session?

Thank you for your consideration.

[full name
street address
city/town, state, zip
phone:
email: ]

Statewide Fatal Crashes in MA, January 2021

Statewide Fatal Crashes in MA, January 2021

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Each month in 2021, we plan to post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from the previous month, and share any trends that we see. Last month, we took a look at the year 2020 in review. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in January 2021. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Information by Year.” The Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

  • Of the 20 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in January in the MassDOT Crash portal, 5 were people walking.
  • 3 of those 5 crashes were hit & runs.
  • The crash portal does not include names. The names of 2 of the people walking who died have not been made public yet.
  • The name of the person driving was only identified in 1 of the 5 crashes in news articles.
Date 1/2/2021, 11:00 PM
Location 200 Locust St.
Town Springfield
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age
Sex M

An unidentified man was killed in a hit and run crash on Locust Street in Springfield. There have been no follow up articles that we’ve seen identifying the person who died, or anything about the person that fled the scene. WesternMassNews says the Police Department has located the car and vehicle owner, and expects more from the District Attorney’s office.

Date 1/5/2021, 11:30 AM
Location Chelsea St. + 13th St.
Town Boston
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 92
Sex M

Francis McGrath, a 92 year old man, was killed in a hit and run crash on Chelsea Street in Charlestown. The driver dragged him for nearly a mile. The crash location is listed as Chelsea St & 13th (entrance to the Charlestown Navy Yard), while StreetsblogMass reports the Boston Police said it happened even further back at Chelsea St & Terminal St. While there had been speculation that the driver of a large truck was involved, there have been no follow up articles that we’ve seen about the person that left the scene. We spoke to the Boston Herald about the safety issues large vehicles present for people walking/biking, and the increase of drivers speeding during the coronavirus pandemic.

Date 1/13/2021, 7:19 PM
Location 235 Main St.
Town Oxford
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 55
Sex F

Wendy Hibbard was crossing Main Street in Oxford when a driver hit and killed her. Based on Google Maps Street View, a crosswalk across Main Street was made ADA-compliant sometime between October 2018 and October 2019. The street is one lane in each direction with a sidewalk on each side, but it looks to be approximately 50 feet from curb to curb using the measuring tool on Google Maps. According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Main Street/Rt12 is under MassDOT jurisdiction.

Date 1/19/2021, 9:30 PM
Location 38 Upland Rd.
Town Belmont
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 35
Sex M

District Attorney Marian T. Ryan’s office shared on January 25th that Dean Kapsalis, 54 of Hudson, will face additional charges of murder and leaving the scene causing death in connection with striking and killing Henry Tapia on Upland Road in Belmont. Kapsalis was previously arraigned on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a civil rights violation causing injury and leaving the scene causing injury. The Boston Globe reported that “since getting a driver’s license around 1987, Kapsalis has been cited for speeding at least 17 times, was involved in at least 7 surcharge crashes, and had his right to drive suspended at least 6 times, usually for a cluster of traffic violations in a short period of time, according to RMV records.”

Date 1/23/2021, 8:42 PM
Location 687 Ocean St.
Town Marshfield
Type PEDESTRIAN
Age 56
Sex M

An unidentified 56 year old Marshfield man was hit and killed on Ocean Street in Marshfield. An article from 95.9 WATD quotes a police lieutenant that the “early investigation shows the victim was walking in the roadway along a dark stretch.” The street is one lane in each direction, but there is only a sidewalk on one side of the street.

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 . 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:  |||||

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal

DISCLAIMER:  The compilation of data is based on preliminary data we receive from a variety of local sources.  Some of the data may differ slightly from information provided by NHTSA as this dashboard does not use imputation methods.  Information is subject to change when/if updated information becomes available. Data updated daily as reported by police departments.