Walk Audit – Page 5 – WalkMassachusetts

Springfield Walk Audit in Upper Hill neighborhood with Way Finders

By WalkMassachusetts | June 17, 2021

On June 11, 2021 WalkBoston joined Way Finders and 15 local community members to complete an in-person walk audit of the Upper Hill neighborhood in Springfield, MA. Special emphasis was placed on accessibility and ADA compliance, as Springfield does not currently have an ADA transition plan. Residents are concerned about making Upper Hill a safer and more welcoming neighborhood for all people, especially the elderly, children, and people with mobility issues.

The walk audit began at Celestial Praise Church of God and residents walked east on Wilbraham Road towards the intersection at Roosevelt Ave. Participants stopped along the way to identify areas for infrastructure improvements such as safer crosswalks, addition of benches for respite, and dangerous and uneven sidewalks. Participants are interested in improving the access to Adams Park, which currently is inaccessible from the southern side of Wilbraham street as there is no crosswalk.

The next steps include a walk audit debrief on July 1, with WalkBoston and Way Finders, to collect participants’ opinions and recommendations. WalkBoston will generate a summary report of the findings for Way Finders.

WalkBoston is a technical service provider to communities through the Mass in Motion program. Mass in Motion is a statewide movement that promotes opportunities for healthy eating and active living in cities and towns across the state of Massachusetts.

Prepping for a Fields Corner walk audit later this summer in Dorchester

By WalkMassachusetts | June 11, 2021

This week, we walked around Fields Corner in Dorchester and some of the surrounding streets in the neighborhood with the executive director of Fields Corner Main Street to scout out a walk audit route for later this summer. Fields Corner Main Street (FCMS) is one of twenty Main Street organizations established by the City of Boston to promote neighborhood business districts. Fields Corner is home to a diverse community of Vietnamese, African-American, Cape Verdean, Irish and Latino businesses, and residents. FCMS’ mission is to safeguard and advance the diverse character and economic vitality of Field’s Corner to better serve its residents and attract visitors.

Along the way, we stopped in to speak with a few business owners and others we met on the street while walking through the area, especially around the intersection of Adams Street and Dorchester Avenue. Please send Brendan a message if you live or work in the area and want to take part in the walk audit later this summer.

Don’t live or work in the area, but know it well? Do you know people that we should be reaching out to in order to include in this effort? We’d love to hear from you, and are also happy to incorporate any feedback and suggestions you may have. Thank you!

Strengthening Connections to Community and Transit in Gateway Cities

By WalkMassachusetts | May 27, 2021

Since September 2020, WalkBoston has conducted a series of walk audits in Gateway Cities across the Commonwealth as part of our “Gateway Cities: Social Infrastructure and Walkability” project in partnership with MassINC and with support from the Solomon Foundation. We’re hosting walk audits in five Gateway Cities, in the area around each city’s downtown commuter rail station, in order to advance better connections to transit-oriented development (TOD) zones and public amenities in these communities.

WalkBoston and MassINC created interactive maps for participants in each community, noting the walking route, and highlighting the sites of pedestrian-involved crashes, social/gathering spaces, and the vast amount of the study area occupied by parking infrastructure. Click here to go to the interactive Google map.

This project not only assesses the neighborhoods’ walking conditions but also looks at the availability of spaces that foster gathering and social connection, such as parks, plazas, community centers, and cafes. Through virtual discussions, as well as sharing written and visual observations, we’re working with residents, municipal staff, and other community members to identify assets and opportunities, and develop program, infrastructure, and policy recommendations based on participants’ visions for the area. In addition to effecting change at the local level, WalkBoston and MassINC will produce policy papers based on the findings from these walk audits to inform state policy and budgetary investment in Gateway Cities.

So far, we’ve completed virtual walk audits in three cities as part of this project: Springfield, Fitchburg, and Brockton. Over the past year, the desire to live in a community with comfortable walking paths, open space, and street activity has dramatically increased as people spent more time at home and in their neighborhoods. The walk audits we’ve already completed have demonstrated that there is a lot of energy and enthusiasm to create more walkable, vibrant public spaces in our partner communities. In Fitchburg, participants are forming a bike/ped committee to advance the walk audit’s findings. In Brockton, residents looking for ways to get more involved in decision-making in their community used the walk audit to connect with municipal staff and each other and learn about joining committees, boards, and task forces.

Next, we’re kicking off our Haverhill walk audit tonight, Thursday, May 27th. This will be the first walk audit in the Gateway Cities series to include an in-person group walk option – we’re excited to get back to walking together again!

2 Projects to Celebrate in Springfield

By WalkBoston | May 17, 2021

A recent visit to Springfield revealed significant progress on two major pedestrian safety projects in two different Springfield neighborhoods.

Completed in September 2020, the Six Corners Roundabout was years in the making. WalkBoston learned about it back in 2013 when conducting a walk audit at the Elias Brookings Elementary School and the Maple High – Six Corners neighborhood. The project provides protected pedestrian crossings where there once were none. It slows traffic down and provides a connected sidewalk network for residents and kids walking to school.

Begun in August 2020, the North End Pedestrian Underpass Project will provide a safe connection for people walking in the Brightwood neighborhood. No longer will residents have to walk along highway ramps or cut across railroad tracks to get from Plainfield Street to Birnie Avenue. WalkBoston conducted two walk audits in the Brightwood neighborhood, including at the German Gerena Community School, that identified this connection as a pedestrian safety hazard.

So great to watch these big projects get built!

Making Walking Connections in Blandford

By WalkBoston | May 7, 2021

WalkBoston, along with more than 10 people committed to making Blandford more walkable, conducted a masked, in-person walk audit in Blandford’s Village Center on Friday, April 30. Residents are interested in improved walking connections between key destinations in the village center – including the library, the Country Store, and Town Hall – with Watson Park, the White Church, and the Town Common. Next steps include preparing a summary report which will be incorporated into the other planning activities in Blandford including the Blandford Resilient Master Plan and and Open Space and Recreation Plan.

The Hilltown CDC, together with Healthy Hampshire and WalkBoston, are leading a 5-year grant project to promote Age-Friendly Walkability in the Hilltowns Village Centers, funded by the Dept. of Public Health’s Healthy Aging Fund. In partnership with community residents and leaders, the team will be conducting a series of walk audits in partnering Hilltowns villages. The goal of these walk audits is to identify infrastructure improvements and policy changes to make village-center walking safe and enjoyable for people of all ages in the Hilltowns. The town of Blandford is one of the partnering communities in this grant project.