Tag: Mass in Motion

Walk Audit In Worcester’s Green Hill Neighborhood – Report

Walk Audit In Worcester’s Green Hill Neighborhood – Report

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On November 2, 2019, WalkBoston conducted a walk audit in the Green Hill Neighborhood of Worcester, MA. The Green Hill Neighborhood association was awarded a Transportation Justice grant from Transportation for Massachusetts (T4MA) to “reimagine” Lincoln Street from Brittan Square to the Nativity School. As a part of this grant project, Green Hill residents hope to improve the safety and comfort of the walking environment in their neighborhood. The neighborhood association has been working with students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) to develop a re-design of Lincoln Street that makes this street a better place for all road users with enhancements that support people walking, biking, and using transit.

The goal of the walk audit was to provide recommendations to
make the Lincoln Street corridor of the Green Hill neighborhood a
safe, comfortable place to walk. The Green Hill Neighborhood
walk audit was conducted along Lincoln Street from Harlow Street
to Catharine Street. This route was selected by the group for the
focus of this walk audit due to recent pedestrian-involved crashes
on this section of the corridor. Future plans of the Green Hill
Neighborhood Association may include additional walk audits
north on Lincoln Street to Brittan Square and around the Nativity
School.

To learn more about this walk audit you can read the report here:

WalkBoston – Worcester Green Hill walk audit report FINAL

Walk Audit in Worcester’s Green Hill Neighborhood

Walk Audit in Worcester’s Green Hill Neighborhood

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On Saturday November 2nd, WalkBoston conducted a walk audit along Lincoln Street in Worcester with the Green Hill Neighborhood Association and WalkBike Worcester. The Green Hill Neighborhood Association was awarded a Transportation Justice grant from Transportation for Massachusetts to “reimagine” Lincoln Street from Brittan Square to the Nativity School. Walk audit participants included residents of the Green Hill neighborhood, members of WalkBike Worcester, Worcester Division of Public Health – Mass in Motion staff, Central Mass Regional Planning Commission, and students from WPI. Following three recent pedestrian fatalities in the neighborhood, Green Hill residents have been organizing to make Lincoln Street a safe place to walk. The Green Hill neighborhood is a diverse, vibrant community with a 480 acre public park and many local businesses along Lincoln Street. WalkBoston was excited to conduct this walk audit to support the residents’ efforts to improve the walkability of their neighborhood.

For more information follow the links below:
T4MA Transportation Justice
WalkBike Worcester
Telegram & Gazette news article about the walk audit 

Lowell – Drum Hill Walk Audit

Lowell – Drum Hill Walk Audit

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On Friday, July 19, 2019, WalkBoston conducted a walk audit starting at the Greater Health Alliance office on Technology Drive in Lowell, MA and continued down Drum Hill Road/Westford Street to the intersection at the entrance of the Walmart retail plaza in Chelmsford, MA. This walk audit was completed through the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Mass in Motion program, which provides grant funding and technical assistance to help communities eat better and be more active.

Read the full report here:

WalkBoston-DrumHillWalkAuditReport-Lowell

Looking for a place to cross in Lowell

Looking for a place to cross in Lowell

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At the Lowell/Chelmsford line, a group of 15 of us walked for more than 1/4 mile to cross Westford Street. As part of WalkBoston’s Mass in Motion technical assistance, we conducted a walk audit with members of the Greater Lowell Health Alliance’s Healthy Eating and Active Living Task Force, Lowell city staff, and other concerned residents in Lowell’s Drum Hill neighborhood.

“It’s very threatening. I certainly wouldn’t choose to go for a stroll along Westford Street,” said one walk audit participant. Traffic noise and narrow, disconnected sidewalks make people walking feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. Residents in nearby apartment buildings and employees in office buildings along Technology Drive cannot safely walk to the shops and restaurants across Westford Street. Stay tuned for WalkBoston’s recommendations on how to make this auto-dominated environment safer and more welcoming to people walking.

Walking in Manchester by the Sea

Walking in Manchester by the Sea

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Photo credit: Dan Watkins

On one of the few beautiful days this spring, WalkBoston led a walk audit in Manchester by the Sea (MBTS) to evaluate the walking routes students use to reach Manchester Memorial Elementary School and Manchester Essex Regional Middle and High Schools. Walk audit participants included the elementary and middle/high school principals, the Town Administrator, the Cape Ann Mass in Motion Coordinator, and representatives from the police department, town departments of public works and planning, and the MBTS Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee. Together, we identified areas where pedestrian safety can be improved using low-cost traffic calming strategies.

It is worth noting that MBTS instituted a 20 mph speed safety zone within 1 mile of the MBTA commuter rail station in September 2017. While we did not record speeds on our audit, it was clear that not all drivers were respecting the 20 mph limit. Setting lower speed limits and redesigning our streets are critical to safer, more walkable communities.