East Boston – WalkMassachusetts

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, January 2024

By WalkMassachusetts | March 1, 2024

Each month, we post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from a previous month, and share any trends that we see. For the full list of monthly posts, head here. We will be releasing a year in review for 2023 in the coming weeks to highlight common issues. You can read the year in review for 2022 here.

In our previous post, we took a look at crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in December; eight were identified as people walking. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in January 2024. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Crash Information.” Any Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

Of the 28 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in January in the MassDOT Crash portal, 9 were identified as people walking.
Similar to last month, some of the pedestrian crashes had the ‘speed limit’ field blank in the Road Inventory Viewer. We are now also using the MassGIS-MassDOT Roads layer to check for speed limit information.
The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in January was 46.1.

Date	1/1/2024, 2:47 AM
Location	55 West Housatonic St.
Town	Pittsfield
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	34
Sex	F

CBS 6 News (WRGB Albany) reported that two people were seriously injured after they were hit by a car while crossing the street early on New Year’s Day.

A 2014 Toyota Corolla driven by Nicholas Ainsley, 23, of Pittsfield, MA, was traveling eastbound on West Housatonic Street, when he hit two people that were crossing in the 50 block area, according to police. The pedestrians were identified as Shanon M. Steffey, 34, of Pittsfield, and Matthew Squires, 32, of Pittsfield. They were both taken to Berkshire Medical Center with serious injuries. Steffey was later transferred to Bay State Medical Center, as her condition was critical, according to police.

Steffey later succumbed to their injuries.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, W Housatonic St is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction and a right turn lane. There is a crosswalk at this location. There are sidewalks on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 25mph.

Date	1/3/2024, 9:25 AM
Location	Southern Artery + South St.
Town	Quincy
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	85
Sex	M

The Quincy Sun reports 85-year old John Collins was struck and killed by a 63-year old Quincy man in front of a senior living apartment complex at 1000 Southern Artery in Quincy near the intersection of South Street and Southern Artery.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Southern Artery is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction and turn lanes at the intersection. There are sidewalks on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 35mph.

Date	1/6/2024, 5:15 AM
Location	SR-116 SOUTH
Town	Hadley
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	33
Sex	M

WWLP reports that 33-year old Melvin L. Wilson was struck and killed while walking south along Rt 116. The 29-year old driver who hit him called 911 and stayed on the scene.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, SR-1116 South is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way median divided roadway with two travel lanes in each direction. There are no sidewalks. The speed limit is 55mph.

Date	1/11/2024, 5:35 PM
Location	Hathaway Rd. + Tradewind St.
Town	New Bedford
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	48
Sex	M

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

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Hathaway Road is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on one side of the street. The speed limit is 40mph.

Date	1/16/2024, 5:36 PM
Location	Washington St. + Commercial Dr.
Town	Wrentham
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	42
Sex	M

42-year old Patrick Royster was struck and killed after being hit by an SUV with a plow attached.

MassLive reports that 73-year old Gregory Stahl is being charged with leaving the scene of a collision causing death and for driving with an expired license.

From NBC 10 Boston:

Authorities are investigating the cause of the crash, but snow, slush and rain caused slick conditions in Wrentham and elsewhere across Massachusetts.

“It’s a dark section of road, as you can see, and obviously, the weather is not good, so visibility was not great,” [Police Chief Bill] McGrath said.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Washington Street and Commercial Street are each under local jurisdiction. Washington Street a two-way road with two travel lanes and shoulders in each direction. There are no sidewalks on either side of the street. The speed limit is 55mph.

Date	1/19/2024, 11:54 AM
Location	35 Oak Island St.
Town	Revere
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	59
Sex	F

WWLP reports a 59-year old Danvers woman was struck and killed around noon by an SUV operated by a 60-year old woman in Revere about a block away from Revere Beach Boulevard.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Oak Island Street is under MassDCR jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. There are sidewalks on each side of the street. The speed limit is unclear, as it is blank in the database and no speed limit signs are viewable on the street on Google Streetview.

Date	1/24/2024, 3:17 AM
Location	Massachusetts Ave. + Albany St.
Town	Boston
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	35
Sex	F

Boston 25 News reports that a woman using a wheelchair was struck and killed by the driver of a plow truck outside Boston Medical Center.

From Boston 25 News:

“It’s sad, it’s sad you know. She’s somebody’s daughter, somebody’s sister,” a woman who knew the victim told Boston 25 News. “I can’t even imagine how the driver must feel. They said he was so distraught.”

The driver of the truck involved in the crash also remained on the scene.

In a statement shared with Boston 25 News, W.L. French Jr. Trucking, the operating company of the truck, said:

“Early this morning, one of our plows was involved in an accident that resulted in a loss of life. W. L. French, Jr. Trucking and its entire team are committed to the safety of the public, our people, and our work. We are heartbroken by this tragic accident. We extend our sympathies to the family of the individual and all of those affected by this loss. W. L. French, Jr. Trucking is cooperating with authorities during this investigation.”

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Massachusetts Avenue is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with two straight travel lanes and one turn lane in each direction. (The Road Inventory only lists 2 lanes in each direction.) There are sidewalks on each side of the street. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	1/24/2024, 6:03 AM
Location	Main St.
Town	Great Barrington
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	41
Sex	M

The Berkshire Eagle reports 41-year old Niall Nordoff was struck and killed after being struck by the driver of a Chevrolet Silverado.

The Berkshire Eagle went on to give more context, including a Facebook post from Niall just months earlier:

Friends of Nordoff, a landscaper and landscape designer, said he was walking from his home off South Main Street (Route 7) — not far from where he was hit — on his way to a job interview. Police have not yet confirmed this, however.

Others pointed to a Facebook post made by Nordoff in November in which he said drivers on that straightaway were “doing 80 and barely missing me.”

“The amount of traffic on 7 from where I live to big y is out of control,” he also wrote.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Main Street / Rt 7 is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. Photos from the news article does not show any sidewalks on this section of the roadway. The Road Inventory says there is a 4 foot sidewalk on one side of the roadway; Google Streetview shows there are unconnected segments of sidewalk on one side of the street. The speed limit is 35mph.

Date	1/27/2024, 5:20 PM
Location	William F. McClellan Highway + Curtis St.
Town	East Boston
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	38
Sex	M

38-year old Ernest Partin was struck and killed on Rt 1A in East Boston near Curtis Street.

From StreetsblogMASS:

In 2021, MassDOT commissioned a new Route 1A Corridor Study whose goals were to “improve safety for people using all modes of transportation (walking, biking, transit, driving, etc.)” and to “expand and enhance connectivity for users of all modes of transportation along and across the Route 1A corridor.”

That study identified the Curtis Street intersection as a “conflict point with high crash history, including fatalities.” Drivers have killed three people in the vicinity of the Route 1A-Curtis Street intersection since 2016.

MassDOT’s Route 1A Corridor Study remains incomplete, and there have been no public meetings for a full year.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, William F. McClellan Highway (Rt 1A) is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way median divided road with two lanes / expanding to three travel lanes in each direction. There are sidewalks along either side of the street. The speed limit is 45mph.

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 2023 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 | 2023

Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021)
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2022)

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).

East Boston Demonstration Day with Caminatas Seguras

By WalkBoston | October 13, 2023

On October 3rd, the staff of WalkMassachusetts organized a demonstration day in East Boston with members of Caminatas Seguras, a walking group for residents that is convened and facilitated by GreenRoots, an environmental justice organization operating in Chelsea and East Boston. This demonstration day was a civic engagement opportunity for residents to make temporary improvements to the transportation infrastructure in their community.

The goal of demonstration days was to offer residents and other stakeholders an opportunity to understand what type of transportation changes would best impact the experience for pedestrians and other road users. During the demonstration day, participants were able to convene at Our Garden (293 Border St.), a community garden managed by Eastie Farm and adjacent to the Mario Umana Academy, which hosts the East Boston Harborside Community Center. The meeting location abutted key corridors that run through East Boston that are heavily trafficked by pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.

Members of Caminatas Seguras connected with WalkMassachusetts staff to identify and plan interventions at key intersections along Meridian Street. The participants identified the intersections of Lexington and Meridian Streets along with Eutaw Street and Meridian Street on Eagle Hill due to their frequent use by young people and families to access the schools in the area, such as the Umana Academy and O’Donnell Elementary School.

Caminatas participants gather at Our Garden near the Mario Umana Academy in East Boston.

The interventions were conducted along the two intersections, and members of Caminatas Seguras made observations and collected data at both locations. In their data collection, they counted the number of road users, which included pedestrians, vehicles, and bikers traveling through the area. Participants also collected the speed of vehicles moving through their intersections using a handheld radar speed detector. Additionally, participants engaged passerby and held conversations with individuals moving through the area to collect feedback on the road user experience.

These conversations were particularly illuminating as this demonstration day came in the wake of a community meeting of the proposed vision for East Boston, which is articulated in PLAN: East Boston. The PLAN presents recommendations for rezoning in the neighborhood, which could impact the design of the public realm. The demonstration day provided participants with the opportunity to engage their neighbors and bring awareness to the release of the initial draft, which was generated by the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA). Participants used this demonstration day to solicit feedback and encourage residents to share their opinions during the feedback period, which is open until October 27th, 2023.

Camintas Seguras participants encourage passing neighbors to share thoughts on how to make Meridian Street safer for all.

One of the implemented interventions included a simulated curb extension to the existing intersection of Eutaw Street and Meridian Street. The participants used traffic cones and high-visibility vests while conducting their demonstrations and making observations. The objective of this intervention was to decrease the length needed for pedestrians to cross the intersection.

Demonstration day participants simulate a curb extension through the use of high visibility cones.

The demonstration day proved to be successful as participants identified some of the key challenges that are found along the short section of Meridian Street where interventions were implemented and data was collected. Using pedestrian experiences as qualitative data within the public realm proves to be an effective tool to shape neighborhoods as they undergo change. Camintas Seguras participants hope to use this experience to continue to bring awareness to the pedestrian hazards that are in the built environment. This experience for participants and neighbors demonstrates that with collective organizing and data collection, feedback can be generated to transform streets like Meridian Street and make them safer for all. Caminatas Seguras will continue to work with WalkMassachusetts to advocate for key transportation changes and to share their insights with local decision-makers.

Camintas Seguras participants share a photo at the end of the demonstration day in East Boston.

This demonstration day is part of a larger program called Connecting Kids and Families to Parks and Open Spaces which is funded by Boston Children’s Hospital and in partnership with GreenRoots. Thank you for your support!

Exploring East Boston with Caminatas Seguras

By WalkMassachusetts | June 21, 2023

On June 13th 2023, WalkMassachusetts joined East Boston community members on a walk led by GreenRoots, a non-profit dedicated to improving the local urban environment and public health, with a focus on Chelsea and East Boston. The walking group Caminatas Seguras meets weekly on Tuesdays to help promote walking as a way to enjoy local public spaces, be physically active, and build connections with residents who have historically been excluded from public decision making processes.

Senior Program Manager Iolando Spinola and Summer Intern Chiara Palagi join GreenRoots and Caminatas Seguras on a walk through East Boston.

Around 25 participants, including Senior Program Manager Iolando Spinola and Summer Intern Chiara Palagi, began at Piers Park, a local space overlooking the Boston Harbor. The group engaged in lively conversations throughout the walk, with topics including new developments in the area, recent and upcoming community events, and even just catching up with one another on an individual level. Passionate GreenRoots volunteers provided historical context and relevant information about the spots along the path.

John Walkey of GreenRoots gives community members historical context on spots encountered during the walk.

The day’s route passed by landmarks such as the ICA Watershed gallery and the Navy Fuel Pier park. With a breathtaking view of the Boston skyline across the harbor, the park’s lush green spaces and well-maintained paths provided the perfect setting for our walk.

Members of the East Boston community admire the view from Navy Fuel Pier park.

Our walk culminated at East Boston Memorial Park, giving GreenRoots volunteers the opportunity to engage with the community members and share upcoming events and opportunities for involvement. Information and flyers were distributed bilingually, showcasing local initiatives, events, and programs aimed at addressing pressing issues in the neighborhood while involving and empowering residents.

Through walking, conversation, and shared experiences, the bonds between community members and activist groups grow stronger every week in Caminatas Seguras, paving the way for a more connected and engaged East Boston. WalkMassachusetts is grateful to have had the opportunity to join GreenRoots and Caminatas Seguras for this experience.

Catching up on all things East Boston!

By Ava Dimond | May 22, 2023

Yesterday, May 21st, Senior Program Manager Iolando Spinola and Program Coordinator Ava Dimond tabled for WalkMassachusetts at the Boston Athletic Association Neighborhood Fitness Series, presented by Boston Children’s Hospital. The walk/run took place at East Boston Memorial Park and featured a free 1 mile and 2 mile run/walk course for participants of all ages and abilities. The event was lively with music and lawn games, and especially well-attended by families with young children.

Senior Program Manager Iolando Spinola tabling for WalkMassachusetts

B.A.A.’s Neighborhood Fitness Series’ walk/run participants headed out at noon for their 1 or 2 mile course

We also had the opportunity to connect with participants and say hello to some walkers from Caminatas Seguras, a walking group in East Boston that convenes each Tuesday to enjoy local parks and green spaces and discuss ways to improve their neighborhood. WalkMassachusetts is partnering with Caminatas Seguras and GreenRoots on a three year grant program to improve accessibility to East Boston Parks called Connecting Kids and Families to Parks and Open Spaces. This grant is funded by Boston Children’s Hospital.

Last Tuesday, Iolando joined Caminatas Seguras for their first post-winter meeting at the American Legion playground to share food and new initiatives. GreenRoots and WalkMassachusetts then attended Mayor Wu’s Neighborhood Coffee Hours at Noyes Park in East Boston to discuss community concerns, open space and their neighborhoods (and enjoy some Dunkin’ Munchkins and ice coffee!)

Caminatas Seguras and Iolando Spinola following their walk last Tuesday

East Boston Ped101 Presentation with GreenRoots and Caminatas Verdes y Caminatas Seguras

By WalkBoston | August 9, 2022

Image: WalkBoston staff leading a Ped101 presentation to members of the Caminatas Verdes y Caminatas Seguras group.

On Thursday, August 4th, WalkBoston led an in-person Ped101 presentation for East Boston residents. The training was done in collaboration with GreenRoots, an environmental justice organization based out of Chelsea and East Boston, and the Caminatas Verdes y Caminatas Seguras walking group.

The program aims to improve safe walking access to East Boston’s parks and open spaces. The goal of the Ped101 training was to educate community members on the fundamentals of walkability and effective walking infrastructure, and give community members the vocabulary to advocate for infrastructure improvements. The presentation was conducted in both English and Spanish. WalkBoston offered an interpreter who translated the presentation in real-time using GreenRoots equipment.

East Boston community members are passionate about improving their neighborhood’s walking infrastructure, especially around parks and schools. Over 20 community members attended the Ped101 presentation. At the end of the training, community members discussed how walkability solutions from the presentation could be used in their own community. They largely focused on fading sidewalks, lack of daylighting and curb extensions, poor snow removal, insufficient walking signals, and the failure of new developments to replace walking infrastructure damaged during construction.

After the discussion, residents participated in a mapping activity in which they marked areas of East Boston that they felt were particularly dangerous for pedestrians. WalkBoston and GreenRoots will also communicate resident concerns directly to the City of Boston, both through a current conditions report and a meeting with city representatives.