Tag: walk audit

Help MassBike & WalkMass evaluate heat stress in Chelsea, Everett, Framingham, and Revere

Help MassBike & WalkMass evaluate heat stress in Chelsea, Everett, Framingham, and Revere

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MassBike and WalkMass are working with the Boston MPO to analyze corridors in Chelsea, Everett, Revere, and Framingham that have been identified as places that have both high heat and are places where lots of people walk and bike. A series of walk and bike audits took place in August 2025 to help understand how heat impacts people walking and biking along streets in our neighborhoods. To add to our data collection we’re asking people to take self-audits through the forms available for each community so you can walk or bike a route and send in your experiences. 

Are you interested in adding to our data? Please follow these links to access the walking and biking feedback forms:

Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere

(click footnote for other language options)1

What’s a walk/bike audit? 

An audit is a process where a person or group walks or bikes through a designated route (a neighborhood or commercial district) to assess pedestrian/bike accessibility and safety. Various factors are observed and evaluated, including the condition of sidewalks, crosswalks, and pedestrian signals, as well as the presence of amenities like benches, lighting, and landscaping. The goal of a walk/bike audit is to identify barriers or deficiencies that may hinder walking or biking as a mode of transport. Learn more about the walk and bike audit routes in each community below!

Why are we doing this?

Neutralizing Onerous Heat Effects on Active Transportation (NO-HEAT) is a project focusing on reducing the heat that people experience while walking, biking, or rolling. It’s a collaboration between the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), the cities of Chelsea, Revere, Everett, and Framingham, and several community partners, including WalkMass, MassBike, Bike to the Sea, and Mystic River Watershed Association.

Why should I do this? 

We appreciate your time and feedback, and we are offering gift cards to local establishments for anyone that takes part.

Audit Routes

Chelsea

Go to the form

Everett Ave (Broadway to Everett Border)  – The route is just under a mile, and crosses from the dense urban area of downtown Chelsea to the Silver Line and Commuter Rail MBTA stop, and newer residential developments along the Everett border.

Broadway (City Hall to Revere Border) – This stretch connects the businesses nearby Chelsea City Hall to the neighborhoods and parks out to Revere and the Mill Creek park. This route also crosses the Chelsea Greenway Community Path, and is a major corridor for trucking and MBTA buses.

Spruce Street (2nd Street to Route 1) – This route travels along the commercial section of Spruce St, connecting to Mystic Mall and passing by government and healthcare buildings.

Everett

Go to the form

2nd Street (From Revere Beach Pkwy to rail road tracks) – This route travels 2nd St through an industrial and commercial area that features a large apartment building.

Northern Strand Community Trail (Wyllis Avenue intersection to Waters Avenue intersection) – The Northern Strand Community Trail is the key corridor for bicyclists and pedestrians that connects Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, and Lynn. This section focuses on a particularly open segment with little shade that is susceptible to higher temperatures.

Main Street (Oakes Street to Malden Border) – Beginning at Meadows Park / Kearins Playground, this route travels through a residential neighborhood, passing through a few small commercial areas. You can also RSVP here to join a walk on September 25, 5pm.

Framingham

Go to the form

Beaver/Waverly to Beaver/Leland (Seabra Foods to Harmony Grove Elementary) – This travels Beaver & W Harmony Grove Elementary School, connecting Dennison Playground to the area near Sunshine Farm.

Irving/Loring Street (corner of Waverly Street to corner of Herring Ave) – From the major thoroughfare of Waverly Street, this route heads through the residential and business district and heads towards the South Middlesex Correctional Center, to highlight a recent ‘complete streets’ project.

Waverly Street (2nd Street to Cedar Street) – This travels major commercial corridor Waverly St, beginning near the Framingham MBTA station.

Cochituate Rail Trail – Cochituate Rail Trail is a multi-use trail that runs between Framingham and Natick, in the western suburbs of Boston. There may be a site visit to the Framingham end of the trail in late September. Email Brendan Kearney bkearney@walkmass.org to be kept in the loop.

Revere

Go to the form

Revere Street (Route 60 to Revere Beach) – This route focuses on the major destination to/from Revere Beach, and is a heavily used corridor for bicyclists to reach Wonderland MBTA station.

Washington Ave (Beach Street to Fuller Street) – This route connects the Washington Ave corridor to the Northern Strand Community Trail, passing through residential neighborhoods, religious centers, and municipal ball fields.

Malden Street (Route 1 to Vinny’s Food Market) – This route follows Malden St down a residential neighborhood between Disalvo Park at Susan B Anthony Middle School and Route 1. You can also RSVP here for a walk audit on September 17, 3:30pm. 

Please send any feedback or questions to bkearney@walkmass.org or bikeinfo@massbike.org.

  1. Other Language Options
    اَلْفُصْحَىٰ Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere
    Español Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere
    आधुनिक मानक हिन्दी Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere
    Kreyòl Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere
    简化字 Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere
    Português Chelsea | Everett | Framingham | Revere ↩︎
A Walk Audit Academy on the North Shore

A Walk Audit Academy on the North Shore

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Residents of at least eight communities joined WalkMassachusetts staff for a half-day Walk Audit Academy training seminar on the North Shore on January 25, organized with the Beverly Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC).

Carl Kooyoomjian, chair of BPAC, brought together local advocates who had collaborated before on bike lane and resurfacing projects that crossed municipal boundaries. Participants learned about improving walkability and creating safer, more accessible communities.

Building on feedback from past Walk Audit Academies in Worcester and Springfield, the North Shore training included a demonstration walk audit in downtown Beverly, so all participants could get hands-on experience before preparing to lead their own walk audits.

BPAC intends to complete a series of ward based audits informed by incident data, routes to schools, and councilor input on residents’ concerns. The goal is to materially complete the audits by early May and have a formal City Council review in late May. The initial schedule has been planned to coincide with budget discussions for the remainder of the year.

A special thank-you to Gentile Brewing for hosting us! We look forward to seeing the results of BPAC’s efforts and to collaborate more in the future.

If you’d like to follow steps on how to lead your own walk audit, check out our Walk Audit Academy series and supporting materials at https://walkmass.org/waa.

Links we promised to share: 

D.W. Field Park Walk Audit Report with Wildlands Trust’s Green Team – Brockton, MA

D.W. Field Park Walk Audit Report with Wildlands Trust’s Green Team – Brockton, MA

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A walk audit was conducted in Brockton on August 16th in collaboration with the Wildlands Trust Green Team, a youth service-learning program that employs 15 teens from the Brockton area to work on projects at D.W. Field Park. WalkMassachusetts facilitators worked with the Green Team to conduct a walk audit of D.W. Field Park, gathering insights and identifying challenges that impact walkability and pedestrian safety. The audit began on Oak Street in Brockton and continued into the park on shared-use roadways and short pedestrian trails. This report aims to provide recommendations and insights to municipal decision-makers and stakeholders connected to D.W. Field Park to make necessary built environment changes that will improve mobility for all park users, particularly pedestrians.

Read the full report.

Roosevelt Ave Walk Audit in Springfield

Roosevelt Ave Walk Audit in Springfield

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On Thursday July 20th, WalkMassachusetts joined WalkBike Springfield, Wayfinders, Mass in Motion Springfield, and local residents to complete a Walk Audit of Roosevelt Avenue. After a round of introductions, the group left from Springfield High School of Science & Technology  (SciTech), and continued down Roosevelt before turning back at the Wilbraham Rd intersection.

This walk audit was part of a bigger WalkBike Springfield effort. With support from America Walks and the Safe Roads Alliance, the group is gathering input regarding how people use Roosevelt Avenue, how safe they feel, and what changes they would like to see on the 3.3 mile stretch of Roosevelt in Springfield from Island Pond Road to East Street. This corridor reaches the East Forest Park, Upper Hill, Bay/McKnight and East Springfield neighborhoods. More info can be found here.

Walk Audit participants begin at SciTech with some introductions and friendly conversation.

This stretch of Roosevelt Ave had previously been highlighted by residents as an area of concern, given the many dangers faced by pedestrians, particularly those at SciTech. People driving frequently hurtle down the road at speeds well over 40 mph; there is one sidewalk along the street, and no crosswalk directly connects the school with the sidewalk on Roosevelt.

WalkMassachusetts Deputy Director of Advocacy Brendan Kearney uses a radar gun on Roosevelt Ave, observing speeds well over the legal limit.

Walk Audit participants identified a clear need to implement more traffic calming measures and expand the crosswalk and sidewalk network. Better maintenance of existing pedestrian infrastructure was also discussed, with overgrown vegetation both blocking walkways and obscuring driver views.

Due to Roosevelt Avenue’s high speeds and a lack of crossings, participants chose to wear high visibility vests on this walk audit.

All the written notes, observations, and conversations between WalkMassachusetts and other participants will be instrumental in generating a final report of the audit. The information will allow us to highlight pressing issues in pedestrian safety, supporting advocacy efforts to create a safer Springfield for all.

WalkMassachusetts expresses its gratitude to our collaborating partner organizations, local community members, and MAPC, the funding source for this project. The collective effort demonstrated during the Walk Audit is a significant step towards fostering a more pedestrian-friendly Springfield.

Plainfield Walk Audit

Plainfield Walk Audit

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The Hilltowns CDC, together with Healthy Hampshire and WalkBoston, are leading a 5-year grant project to promote Age-Friendly Walkability in the Hilltowns Town Centers. Together with community residents and leaders, the team will be conducting a series of walk audits in partnering Hilltowns. The goal of these walk audits is to identify infrastructure improvements and policy changes to make town-center walking safer and more enjoyable for people of all ages in the Hilltowns. The Town of Plainfield is one of the partnering communities in this grant project.

Read the full report here.