Most Somerville Residents Surveyed Wanted Protected Bike Lanes On Powder House Blvd

From the email:

City staff just released their survey data and it shows that, according to online survey results, more than 70% of Somerville residents wanted protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd as their most preferred option.

That’s right — not only did city staff decide against protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd, they did so despite learning that more than 70% of surveyed residents wanted them. Somerville says that Vision Zero is a top priority, that they want to reduce the number of residents using cars, and that catastrophic climate change is an emergency. But when it comes time to make a decision, they choose to keep parking no matter how this impacts their other goals.

Please go to the meeting this July 31st at 6:30pm at West Somerville Neighborhood School and speak up for protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd. Be vocal and speak your mind to city staff. Protected bike lanes save lives and we must show them why they made the wrong decision. Also, at the meeting ask city staff to share what they learned regarding the opinions of people living on Powder House Blvd.

Many volunteers and neighbors had reached out to others on Powder House Blvd to learn what people and organizations needed and how their needs could be met. However the city was somehow unprepared for the quick pace of road work, despite the lengthy public process, and had to scramble to choose an option. They chose a painted bike lane in one direction to test for the next 12 months instead of the safest option preferred by residents. It is sad to see Somerville throw away their volunteers’ hard work.

Mayor Curtatone replied to some emails saying that they need more public process to make a decision. Let us be clear: the city is in charge of its public process and whether they build protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd. If the process ignores that more than 70% of surveyed residents were in favor of protected bike lanes, the process is broken.

The survey also says that more people who attended the May 22 meeting opposed protected bike lanes. Mayor Curtatone encouraged people to attend a different meeting for lowering the McGrath Highway at the same time as the Powder House Blvd meeting. That is a laudable goal and meetings sometimes conflict. But this highlights that safety decisions should not be made based on who can make a meeting.

These are difficult decisions to be fair, but these decisions need to be made. Somerville committed to reduce the number of serious injuries and deaths to zero and to reduce the number of people driving cars. That means making it safe and comfortable for people to bike to wherever they need to go. A parent should feel safe biking with their kid to West Somerville Neighborhood School. We need to make sure city officials remember how this decision went and how unhappy residents were with their actions.

Thank you to everyone who emailed city officials and told them how you felt about this earlier this week — this really makes a difference. If you haven’t yet, email transportation@somervillema.gov, [email protected], [email protected]and CC somerville@cambridgebikesafety.org and tell them how disappointed you are that they chose not to build protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd.

You might have noticed that this email is coming from Somerville Bicycle Safety. We have created it to be a sister organization to advocate for protected bike lanes in Somerville. If you are interested in flyering or other advocacy, respond to this email and let us know.

Finally, there is an election fast approaching. The mayor and at-large city councillors all have competition. Let’s make the best use of it and demand activist leadership for building more protected bike lanes in Somerville.

Sincerely,

-your neighbors at Somerville Bicycle Safety

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When We Fight We Win! Support the Boston Cyclists Union In There Important Work!

From the Email:

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Bikes Not Bombs July Update

SPECIAL UPDATE: 2 BNB events happening next week you don’t want to miss! Get Into Gear with BNB on Thursday, July 25th 6-7:30pm @Flat Top Johnny’s in Cambridge Bikes Not Bombs (BNB) will be at Flat Top Johnny’s at 1 Kendall Square in Cambridge on Thursday, July 25th from 6-7:30pm. We will be recognizing the hard work that our fabulous Earn-A-Bike participants and Youth Apprentices have accomplished so far this summer. This is a great opportunity to learn more about BNB and meet other like-minded people, while enjoying complimentary appetizers and free pool. Cash bar. You won’t be asked to make any financial contribution, but we would welcome your feedback following the party. Bring your friends and introduce your networks to our inspiring mission to use the bicycle as a vehicle for social change through empowering youth development programs and international partnerships. Feel free to share the Get Into Gear Facebook Event with your friends! Container Loading to CESTA in El Salvador @ BNB Warehouse at 10 Harvard Street in Dorchester PRE-LOAD: Saturday, July 27th 10am-2pm MAIN LOAD: Sunday, July 28th 9am-5pm PRESS CONFERENCE: Sunday, July 28th 1:30pm Help load 600 donated bicycles into a shipping container for CESTA, our partner in El Salvador: The El Salvadoran Center for Appropriate Technology (CESTA) is leading the struggle for environmental conservation, sustainable transportation and community-led resource management in El Salvador. CESTA’s youth programs teach bike mechanics while building pathways for young people to access paid leadership roles and increase affordable, environmentally sustainable transportation options. Register to volunteer for PRE-LOAD on Saturday, July 27th and/or MAIN LOADING on Sunday, July 28th for any amount of time. Walk-ins are welcome, too! Join us for a press conference on Sunday, July 28th at 1:30pm and support citizen demands to end US detention camps, to adopt a humane immigration policy, and to release asylum seekers and immigrants awaiting case hearings. Speakers include: Nancy Kelly of the Greater Boston Legal Services, an immigration lawyer and human rights activist. Dr. Ricardo Navarro, Founder of CESTA & President of Amigos de la Tierra, a renowned Salvadoran environmental activist working on alternative strategies for El Salvadoran and Central American pathways to sustainability. In addition to escaping violence, many seeking US refuge are fleeing drought and conditions making it impossible to grow food and find work. Globally, cities, towns, NGO’s, and thousands of organizations are committing to mutual aid to address climate change, and to develop a sustainable, healthier future. Global solidarity and peace is the only way to change the current paradigm, TOGETHER! For more information contact our Director of International Partnerships, Carl Kurz at [email protected].

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Somerville Says NO To Protected Bike Lanes On Powder House Blvd

From the email:

The city published an update Friday evening saying that Powder House Blvd will not get protected bike lanes this year. Instead they will paint a single painted bike lane in only one direction and that’s it. This decision unacceptably sacrifices the safety of people biking on Powder House Blvd. They say they will use temporary paint for the bike lane and revisit the decision in 12 months, but this decision will not be any easier to make then, and could be easily further delayed without notice.

Please email transportation@somervillema.gov, [email protected], [email protected], and CC somerville@cambridgebikesafety.org. Say that protected bike lanes save lives and that you are disappointed and angry with their decision on Powder House Blvd. Also, since election season is just starting to heat up, it is a great time to tell elected officials that safe streets are important for your vote in the election this November. There is also a meeting on July 31 @ 6:30pm at the West Somerville Neighborhood School on Powder House Blvd if you want to hear city staff explain their decision or voice your frustration in person.

We have to voice our anger now so that city officials feel a backlash at least as bad as any backlash from removing parking. Volunteers have spent many hours working on this project, talking to residents and stakeholders. We cannot make it easy for the city to throw away this hard work. When city officials avoid building protected bike lanes they must hear from all of us how disappointed we are with them.

As you may have heard a woman from Somerville was killed crossing Mystic Ave near the Stop and Shop in a hit and run crash. While this street is owned by MassDOT and not the City of Somerville, this tragedy should be a wake-up call to city staff that taking shortcuts on safety infrastructure can have terrible consequences. Advocates have complained about this intersection repeatedly and MassDOT has a project scheduled for safety improvements — unfortunately too late for her. Safety improvements always seem to come too little and too late. That’s why it is so important for the city to make the right decision when it can. And that is why we need to write to city officials and voice out anger with their decision.

Please email city officials and tell them that protected bike lanes save lives and that you are disappointed with their decision not to build protected bike lanes on Powder House Blvd. There are many Somerville residents on this list and we can make a big impact when we all speak up.

Sincerely,

-your neighbors at Cambridge Bicycle Safety

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Feedback For Memorial Drive

From Cambridge Bike Safety:

Thanks to everyone who came out to protest DCR’s plans despite the pouring rain! Almost 100 of us attended the rally where speakers advocated for more space for people walking and biking and more trees and greenspace.

Now we need to get to work. DCR needs to hear from all of us by this Thursday July 25th

that keeping four lanes on Memorial Drive is not in line with a safer, more sustainable riverfront. To maximize our impact we need to comment on DCR’s feedback form and also email our state elected officials.

We have two main asks:

1. A protected bi-directional bike path, replacing two travel lanes.
2. Protect existing trees and plant new trees wherever there are gaps.

Please comment on DCR’s site here, select “Memorial Drive Greenway Improvements Phase III”, and write your thoughts, then email [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

and CC

[email protected] with your comment.

Please also check out the Boston Cyclists Union’s suggestions for Memorial Drive and add any other concerns you have about Memorial Drive or the greenway. This project will renovate the part of Memorial Drive and the greenway between the Eliot Bridge and the BU Bridge (including the rotary). This renovation is a once in a generation opportunity to remake our riverfront so we need to make sure DCR gets this right.

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