Tag: WalkMassachusetts Network

July 2023 Network Meeting – “Walk the Talk: Understanding Pedestrian Behavior & Creating Analytic Tools to Aid Planning & Policy” Recording

July 2023 Network Meeting – “Walk the Talk: Understanding Pedestrian Behavior & Creating Analytic Tools to Aid Planning & Policy” Recording

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Rounaq Basu is the Manager of Multimodal Planning and Design at the Boston Region MPO, as well as a Postdoctoral Associate at MIT joined us for this month’s WalkMassachusetts Network discussion. Rounaq shared research on many of the questions he’s been studying: Why do pedestrians choose one route over others? Which street attributes are considered attractive and which ones are onerous? What should urban planners and designers be looking out for? How do we then incorporate these behaviors into a framework that allows us to understand and predict where people walk? What are the implications for Vision Zero policies?

The session was recorded, and you can view the presentation below.

The WalkMassachusetts Network typically meets every third Wednesday of each month at 1 pm. Register for upcoming Zoom calls at this link.

Anyone can listen in and participate in monthly calls!  Join the Google Group to get a reminder about these Zoom calls.

Do you have a topic that should be discussed at a future meeting? Suggestions welcome!

June 2023 Network Meeting – “Vehicle Design and Visibility” recording

June 2023 Network Meeting – “Vehicle Design and Visibility” recording

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Alex Epstein, Senior General Engineer at the USDOT Volpe Center, joined us for this month’s WalkMassachusetts Network discussion. Vehicle design and visibility from the driver’s seat are significant factors in the rise of traffic crashes and fatalities. Alex shared about global and local efforts to reduce traffic fatalities by developing a “Direct Vision Standard” for vehicles. This session was recorded, and you can view the presentation below.

Links shared during the discussion 

The WalkMassachusetts Network typically meets every third Wednesday of each month at 1 pm. Register for upcoming Zoom calls at this link.

Anyone can listen in and participate in monthly calls!  Join the Google Group to get a reminder about these Zoom calls.

Do you have a topic that should be discussed at a future meeting? Suggestions welcome!

WalkBoston is now WalkMassachusetts!

WalkBoston is now WalkMassachusetts!

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Yes, you read that correctly. After over 30 years of statewide advocacy as WalkBoston, conversations with partners and community members across the state, and a new Strategic Plan, we are changing our name to WalkMassachusetts.

Last year we reaffirmed our Mission and defined our Vision for the future: a Massachusetts where people walking—no matter their race, identity, age, ability, or lived experience—feel safe, connected, and valued on our streets and sidewalks.

To make our Vision a reality, we established 3 goals:

  • Goal 1: Advocate for inclusive, safe, and enjoyable places for people to walk.
  • Goal 2: Work in places where people walking have the greatest need.
  • Goal 3: Achieve policy and built environment change that is noticeable, replicable, and impactful.

This led to self-reflection on where and how we focus our work. The conclusion was a continued emphasis on equitably promoting walking across the state and a clear need to move forward as WalkMassachusetts.

In short, the name has changed, but the mission remains the same: making walking safer and easier in Massachusetts to encourage better health, a cleaner environment, and more vibrant communities.

This is not something that happens overnight. You will be hearing much more about this over the coming months as we roll out new branding and logos, so keep your eyes peeled.

Thank you for how you have supported us for these 30 plus years, and we hope you will join us as we walk forward as WalkMassachusetts for the next 30!

Donate Today to Support the “New” WalkMassachusetts

We have an aggressive plan to expand our reach across the state and achieve our new Vision for Massachusetts. This means a lot of hard work from our staff and board, as well as community members and municipal staff across the state. It also means we need your help!

Please donate now to help us make Massachusetts safer and more accessible for all.

PS: We actually held our first “WalkMassachusetts” Network forum meeting back in December 2018. This is a long time coming!

WalkMassachusetts Network August Meeting Topic: Public Bathroom Access

WalkMassachusetts Network August Meeting Topic: Public Bathroom Access

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The WalkMassachusetts Network meets every third Wednesday of each month at 1 pm, with the next being August 17, 2022. Our August presenter is Amith Saligrama, a high school student at the Commonwealth School in Boston passionately interested in improving our local communities. You can register for the August 17, 1pm meeting here.

He is the creator of bathroomaccess.com which maps and lists public (not private) toilets in the Greater Boston area. He found most city websites include a list of parks, trails, and even water-filling stations, but not restrooms. However, if there are no mentions of restrooms, how inclusive are we being? Over time, his goal has become equally balanced between helping people find restrooms and advocating for our local communities to acknowledge all biological needs and be welcoming to all who use our public space.

His interest in developing this map began in 2020, when his grandparents began to limit their daily walks due to a lack of restroom access. He realized that there are many people like his grandparents – parents with toddlers, taxi and delivery drivers – who need access to restrooms. This is a situation that has become more challenging since COVID-19 as private businesses have become reluctant to allow non-customers into their facilities.

Amith spoke to Grecia White from Streetsblog MASS (last month’s speaker!) about this effort: https://mass.streetsblog.org/2022/07/25/public-bathroom-access-an-undervalued-but-necessary-element-of-walking-transit-infrastructure/

WalkMassachusetts Network monthly meetings are free and open to anyone who wants to make a difference on walking efforts in their own community. We hope you’ll join us on August 17 at 1pm. Sign up here.

April 2022 Network Meeting Recap

April 2022 Network Meeting Recap

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The WalkMassachusetts Network held its third network meeting on Wednesday, April 20th. Members ranged from WalkBoston staff and board members, resident advocates from community groups, Mass in Motion coordinators, and representatives on various municipal boards and commissions from across Massachusetts.

Deputy Director Brendan Kearney gave a presentation on the WalkBoston report looking at fatal crashes in Massachusetts in 2021 as part of a continued outreach effort about the data.

Findings:

  • Of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts, 47 had a fatal pedestrian crash in 2021. Over half (40 of 75) of the deaths happened in 12 municipalities.
  • Older adults were hit and killed at a higher rate than those in other age groups: 36% of fatal crash victims were over the age of 65. In Massachusetts, only 17% of the population is over 65.  1  
  • Over half of Massachusetts’ fatal pedestrian crashes (50.67%) occurred on streets with speed limits of 30 to 35 MPH. These are neighborhood streets and main streets where more people are walking.
  • Roughly 65% of the people killed while walking were on roads owned by a city or town, while approximately 35% were walking on roads owned by a state agency (MassDOT or MassDCR).

Read the press release | Read the full report

If you haven’t already joined the WalkMassachusetts Network to hear about these monthly meetings, visit walkmanetwork.org to learn more and sign up to receive emails about upcoming events and programming. We also hope you’ll join us for our next network meeting on Wednesday, May 18th at 1 pm via Zoom. Chris Falcos from MassDOT will be joining to present on their new safe speeds programs and efforts. Have questions about the program? Please join us if you can by registering here!