Massachusetts Department of Transportation

TRAFFIC ADVISORY

Evening/Overnight Bridge Closure Boston University Bridge

On Sunday, February 21, 2010 through Thursday, March 4, 2010 the Boston University Bridge, which carries traffic over the Charles River between Cambridge and Boston, will be closed to traffic from 9 PM to 5 AM each week (Sunday to Thursday.) The upstream sidewalk will remain open during the bridge closure for bicycle and pedestrian access. Drivers are encourages to plan ahead and seek alternative routes during the closures.

MassDOT crews will be completing demolition work as part of the first phase of construction on the Boston University Bridge Rehabilitation Project. All Cambridge-to-Boston traffic and Boston-to-Cambridge traffic will be detoured to the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge. Buses and emergency vehicles will be permitted to cross the bridge.

For transportation news and updates visit the MassDOT website at
www.mass.gov/massdot
the MassDOT blog at
www.mass.gov/blog/transportation
or follow MassDOT on twitter at
www.twitter.com/massdot

From the NYT Freakonomics blog:

The city of Vancouver has turned one lane of traffic on the busy Burrard Bridge into a bicycle route. Critics predicted chaos, but the first day of the experiment found traffic moving smoothly. This seems to be in line with recent studies suggesting that road closures actually lead to fewer traffic jams.

Wait a minute, a bridge is losing a car lane to bike lanes? Critics predicted chaos? Hmm, something about all this this sounds too familiar.

In fact, the Burrard Bridge in Vancouver is not too unlike the BU bridge: it’s a busy commuter bridge, with a geographical locale not too unlike Boston’s:

Though, unlike the BU bridge which has four lanes, the Burrard bridge has six lanes, and the lane closure conversion to a bike lane is just a non-permanent six-month experiment until the next round of planning as opposed to the immediate permanent painted bike lanes the BU bridge is getting. The other major difference is that the Burrard bridge bike lanes are configured differently:

The entire width of one of its two sidewalks is a dedicated northbound bike lane, while the entire width of the car lane is the other directional bike lane. And best of all, both of these bike lanes are protected from moving traffic by concrete barriers. Compare that to the unprotected lanes the BU bridge is getting:

Since the Burrard Bridge lane openings last Monday, there have been indeed mixed feelings since last week’s opening of the bike lane about whether traffic has improved or not. Regardless, it will be interesting to see further effects of the lane closure over the next six months as a possible indicator of what could be the shape of things to come here in Boston.

The research paper mentioned in the Freakonomics post makes an interesting case for road closure actually causing more efficient traffic, seemingly counter-intuitive to the notion that road closures always cause delays. This article sums up the point that “when individual drivers seek the quickest route, they sometimes end up slowing things down for everybody.” Defining traffic inefficiency as the “Price of Anarchy”, a ratio of equilibrium flow of traffic to  the socially optimal flow of traffic,  the authors of the paper suggest that by closing certain roads, the Price of Anarchy would decrease; people would be forced to take a less selfish route, improving overall traffic flow for everybody.

Boston was actually one of the cities chosen for theoretical analysis:

Using Google maps, some assumptions such as constant traffic of 10,000 cars/hour on each point-to-point road and a speed limit of 35mph, the authors ran some mathematical analysis, they found that closing the roads indicated by the dotted lines in the map above would actually improve overall traffic going from Harvard Square to Boston Common. In other words, shutting off that entire dotted section of Mass. Ave. in Cambridge would actually improve overall congestion and reduce overall delays. On the other hand, shutting off the Comm. Ave Section colored in red would worsen overall congestion and increase delays. All the roads in blue are neutral to road delays if closed off, meaning that theoretically the BU bridge could be shut off and traffic would neither flow worse nor better, with zero delays

Based on the evidence from the research, could we infer that perhaps overall congestion in Boston isn’t affected much by the BU bridge’s cut to three lanes from four, and won’t be any worse when it’s cut to two during renovation or when it eventually turns into three plus two bike lanes? Maybe. Although, the research makes the case for road closures, not lane closures, meaning a road has to be shut off for drivers to seek alternate routes. So theoretically closing the bridge completely during rush hour wouldn’t have any effect on overall traffic flow. Motorists might grumble, but they’d get home in same amount of time if they knew alternative routes.

As a cyclist, my advice to car commuters in the Boston area to avoiding traffic congestion would be to simply get on a bike and bike-commute to work, like it appears many motorists in Vancouver already have since last week. Some of the motorists who spoke at the last DCR meeting to complain about the lane reconfigurations drove from Brookline to Cambridge on a daily basis, a very easily biked distance.  Bike lanes are coming, so why not join the fun?

On June 30th, the Boston DCR held its fourth meeting about the “final design, construction plans, and traffic impacts” for the rehabilitation of the BU Bridge.”

I will only discuss the plans for the bike lanes, but if you’re interested you can view full presentation that touches on other considerations here.

In case you haven’t heard, the BU Bridge will be losing a car lane and gaining two 5-foot wide bike lanes (one in each direction) as part of the BU bridge rehabilitation project, first proposed back in October. The lane reconfiguration chosen since then will turn two lanes of traffic each way into one midway on the bridge, which will look like this:

Other bike lane designs were taken into consideration were not chosen such as barrier separated bike lanes (to not exclude bikers from being able to change lanes), bridge cantilever extensions (physical modification not allowed since bridge deemed a historical monument), so this three-car-lane/two-bike-lane design is what will be put in place.

And the intersection of the bridge with Memorial Dr. on the Cambridge side will be redesigned from its current chaotic lane-less rotary:

to a more organized “roundabout”:

The DCR hired engineering consultants who found that one major source of congestion over the bridge is traffic in and out of the rotary: In its current state the rotary is wide and lacks any sort of lane markings, encouraging drivers to drive fast around it, making it unsafe for cars and cyclists merging into/exiting the rotary and pedestrians crossing the paths of vehicles coming in and out of it.

The redesign into a “roundabout” includes narrower car lanes which will be clearly marked/painted to keep cars in the rotary moving slower, allowing incoming and outgoing vehicles to exit more easily and efficiently than before. The DCR stated traffic engineering simulations show this redesign will improve traffic flow. Slower car traffic will also make the intersection safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

The renovation will take place in three different phases based on three different working sections, and the renovation time line looks like this:

During each phase only two lanes of traffic will be open (one lane per direction), while the other two will be occupied by construction crews. The proposed plans to accommodate cars and cyclists during construction is to paint sharrows and post signs informing that cyclists can and should take up the entire width of a lane as needed.

The 45 minute presentation was followed by over an hour of Q&A. Some points I noted from the Q&A were:

• The lack of redesign of the intersection of Commonwealth Ave. on the Boston side. There was one slide on this intersection with no current changes. Not much could be done to this intersection since it would have been a much larger project than just renovating the BU bridge.
• The “bridge” effect, or the tendency for drivers to accelerate over bridges with a “hump” or a “bow”, making it unsafe for cyclists. While bike lanes help by giving cyclists their own space, their usefulness only extends as far as the safety they bring, which is not very much as long as cars speed by the narrow bike lane. Some way to physically separate cyclists from cars or slow cars down by way of signs/slowers/flashing yellow lights would help make the bridge safer for cyclists.
• Permanent signs or light indicators to let drivers know to slow down or share the road.
• A trial run of the all the planned traffic changes before they become permanent and a study of how these changes affect traffic conditions rather than just simulations.
  In previous meetings the DCR has actually pointed out that they had in fact been doing several “trial-runs” of some very specific changes, such as adding cones to narrow the lane of the merge onto the bridge off Memorial drive. They never officially reported the effects of this change, though. As for the four lanes into three change, the bridge is set up with three lanes right now as sidewalk renovation is currently happening, but the DCR rep did not say whether the traffic has worsened or not since the lane closure.
• At the intersection with Memorial drive, the redesign plan indicates no bike lane at the intersection since it only extends across the bridge. Instead there is just a sharrow(arrow indicating drivers to share the lane with bikers). This intersection could use bike boxes and extension of the bike lane to this intersection.
• The narrowing of the entrance lane leading to the merge off Memorial Dr. onto the BU bridge poses a problem for cyclists also merging onto the bridge.
  the shoulder on Memorial drive turns into a sharrow before turning into a bike lane. Instead of widening the sidewalk, why not extend the bike lane all the way down to Memorial Dr. so cars wouldn’t have the tendency to ignore the sharrow and cut into the narrow shoulder remaining for bikes?

Galen went up and expressed a few concerns we had as student bike commuters. First, that the bike lanes would inevitably draw inexperienced cyclists to it as any bike lane would, and that considerations such as bike specific stop lights, signs for cyclists, or anything else to keep cars aware of cyclists would be a good idea in keeping the bike lanes safe rather than making them appear so. Second, bike boxes at the intersections to give cyclists space at red lights, allowing cyclists to make safe left turns and prevent cyclists from blocking pedestrian crosswalks. While bike boxes appear in the latest Memorial Dr. intersection plans, they have not yet been finalized. And finally, during the school year when BU students cross the BU bridge intersection with Comm Ave. in hordes throughout the entire day, would there be any police detail during mornings and evenings as construction goes on to people safely across?

What struck me was that after nine months and four meetings, no cycling advocate who did speak up had ever asked the DCR representatives and the traffic engineers present at the meetings, the people deciding on and designing these renovation plans, the simple question of whether they had ever ridden a bike over the BU bridge; the dangers are much more easily experienced than said. The question was finally asked during the fourth meeting when one gentleman approached the microphone and asked the DCR representatives whether they had, to which one replied sheepishly, after a brief moment of hesitation, “no.” The traffic engineers were present too, and there was indeed a bike specialist part of that team, but it is clear that many issues remained unaddressed. If the DCR is ready to take cycling seriously, perhaps it’s time to get the DCR on a bike.

Hello Bikers,

For those who may still be in town, we want your support.  Next Tuesday, June 30, is a public meeting about the BU Bridge.  “They” are going to release the plans, and the timetable, for the reconstruction of the bridge.  We’re hoping they’re going to include bike lanes in the designs.  We’re also hoping anyone who is interested will attend the meeting, and make it known that they want bike lanes on the bridge.  The more bodies in attendance, and the more voices speaking out, the better our chances for “them” actually listening to us.

Time: Tuesday June 30, 6:30-8 pm
Where: Photonics Building, 8 St. Mary’s Street, big auditorium
Who: Put on by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) (they’re rebuilding all the bridges in the Charles River basin except Mass Ave)
Why: Because we need a bridge that allows for the mass amount of bike traffic (many hundreds, maybe thousands, of bikes) that crosses BU Bridge every day.

* work is expected to begin in the next couple months.  it could last potentially 3 years.  this is smack in the middle of our campus. please spread the word. *

-bikes

ps. Never Forget Comm Ave Beautification

The BU Bridge is one of the most heavily traveled routes between Boston and Cambridge, affecting thousands of cyclists and pedestrians daily. Last Friday, the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) announced an unexpected closure of the downstream sidewalk and the adjacent Cambridge-bound travel lane in order to perform urgent structural repairs. The travel lane is expected to reopen in three weeks, but the sidewalk will remain closed for the duration of full bridge rehabilitation expected to begin later this year. The upstream sidewalk is already closed for repairs and is expected to reopen later this month.

What this means for bicyclists: Bicyclists, along with motor vehicles, may continue to use the remaining travel lanes. In addition, bicyclists may use the closed Boston-to-Cambridge travel lane. Because the closed travel lane will serve as a temporary sidewalk during the repairs, We recommend that bicyclists exercise caution to avoid pedestrians and oncoming bicycle traffic. Extreme caution should be taken by bicyclists re-entering the traffic flow from the closed lane.

What this means for pedestrians: As neither sidewalk is currently open, pedestrians must use the closed travel lane to cross the bridge in either direction. Pedestrians should be aware of bicyclists traveling in both directions in the closed lane.

When I began my training for my upcoming century ride I recognized in the back of my mind the need for a contingency plan.

I had no idea how feasible it would be for me to build up to and actually ride 100 miles before June. I now think I am in a very good position to do that in the next couple of weeks, but I still feel it necessary to have a “fallback” ready.

For example: what if my bike breaks down? What if I hurt myself training and can’t do the ride? Maybe the weather will turn for the worst and blizzards will strike every weekend until June. (Hey, it’s New England, it doesn’t hurt to consider every weather possibility.) If something happens and I can’t do the full 100, how will I cheat/accomplish my goal and not bruise my precious ego too much?

Here is where I rationalize things and conclude that a one-off solution can be, under the right circumstances, considered a successful completion of task. If it comes down to it a metric century, which is to say 100 kilometers or roughly 62 miles, would “count” as achieving my goal if I found 100 miles to be out of reach.

Well, today I feel very good (and a bit weary.) Yesterday (Sunday) I achieved a major milestone in my training which accomplished my contingency plan by completing a metric century. Actually I managed to do a bit more and clocked in 68.35 miles for the day. Woo hoo!
(more…)

The latest article from Boston.com is set up as a sounding board for all road users who use the bridge.

The biased title “BU bridge plans could spur road rage” comes from the prediction of Stanley Spiegel, you’ll see the quote in the third paragraph on the page. The article itself gives fair play to both sides of the story, then opens up for discussion among the community.

So, pay a visit, maybe even make your voice heard. Don’t get into too much of a tizzy over the comments, it’s not worth raising blood pressure over, but do try to read them and keep yourself informed. This is a microcosm of the daily struggle that a lot of riders face in the Boston/Cambridge area. I found that after a certain level of detachment is reached a comical sadness can set in.

Update

A genuine-appearing comment from DCR Commissioner Rick Sullivan offers up an e-mail address targetting public response for the Accelerated Bridge Program, of which the BU Bridge reconstruction falls under, and encourages people to contact them with their comments.

I think I might leave a couple there myself. Anyone else care to voice up?

As Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), I am sensitive to the varying perspectives that surround this and other DCR bridge projects. We are extremely fortunate that Governor Patrick has made repairing the state’s bridges a high priority through his Accelerated Bridge Program, and we are working hard to balance the public’s many viewpoints and interests as we move forward on all our projects statewide. Regarding the BU Bridge, we are still trying to find the best ways to accommodate all traffic – including cars, trucks, buses, bicycles, and pedestrians – and I would urge anyone who would like to comment on the plans to contact the agency directly at dcr.updates [at] state.ma.us. That e-mail address has been set up specifically for feedback from the public on the Accelerated Bridge Program, so you can send your comments there for any bridge project. Also let us know if you would like to receive regular updates and notices of DCR public meetings on the agency’s bridge projects. We are doing our best to create a transparent process so that everyone’s concerns can be heard.
Rick Sullivan

The comment can be found on page 13 of the comments for the article.

see http://www.mass.gov/dcr/projects/pdf/BU%20Craigie%20Follow%20Up.pdf for DCR’s presentation about it’s current plans for the bridge renovations/rehab.

For those of you interested in the Craigie Bridge and BU Bridge presentation but didn’t want to go Tuesday, here is their presentation.

Click here for pdf.

BU and Craigie Bridges Update: January 27, 2009

Boston-Area Cyclists: Please Attend This Meeting!

The DCR is holding this follow-up meeting for the first two projects in the Accelerated Bridge Program. The initial public meetings on the BU and Craigie Bridges were very well-attended by the cycling community. When the DCR presented plans that did not adequately address bicycling, the negative response from cyclists was immediate, and the DCR heard you! The DCR has now promised a series of steps to ensure that bicycling needs are better addressed on these bridges and throughout the rest of the program. At this meeting, the DCR will show us their revised plans. We need lots of bicyclists at this meeting to give a strong response to whatever we see, good or bad. Tuesday, January 27, 2009, 6-8 pm, Kirsch Auditorium, Stata Center, MIT, 32 Vassar Street, Cambridge.

Hello Bikers!

And welcome to the new semester! We are excited about all the activity buzzing these days, and are surprised and pleased to see bikes still chained up around campus even as temperatures dip into single digits and snow piles drive bikers from the curbs. We’ve a lot going for Spring ‘09, projects big and small, so keep an eye out for us on campus and check out our meetings and a posting of minutes (in case you can’t make it to our get-togethers). Our first gathering of ‘09 will be Thursday (tomorrow) Jan 15, at 4 pm in the greenhouse.

2008 was a big year citywide, nationwide, and worldwide for bikers. Everyone’s been abuzz about biking – judging by the number of newspaper articles from the Globe and the Freep and the NYT, even National Geographic had a letter from the editor this month about the Bike Boxes in Portland, Oregon. On a more local level, Comm Ave got the City’s first bike lane (all 7/10ths of a mile of it!), Mayor Menino jumped on a bike and realized what how it feels to be constantly on the brink of being indiscriminately killed, Obama’s transition team has promised major funding toward “green” transportation and everything else, and people everywhere seem to be wising up to the fact that the car-as-we-know-it is going the way of the dinosaur so maybe we should all accept bikers and not feel so antagonistic toward those who choose biking as their mode of transportation and recreation. Hope for the future, indeed!

And BU Bikes is really rolling strong from the momentum gained in our last (and first!) semester. Here’s a quick recap of what we’ve done so far:

* We had three group rides, Halloween being the biggest and best with 16 costumed-clad riders and one guy who joined us randomly along the way – but I think we can do better for our Valentine’s Day Underwear Ride (um, we’re kidding, right?).

* We helped host a movie screening with the Environmental Student Organization and LiveableStreets Alliance about urban traffic patters and how we can and really should be doing better in modern cities.

* We’ve got logos and t-shirts and designs. Soon to be for sale once we work out funding with Student Activities and vendors and the like. All proceeds go to safety gear giveaways.

* We had (slash are still having) our first helmet raffle – inclement weather prevented us drawing a name at the end of last semester (remember that nasty blizzard?), but at our first meeting, winners will be announced and money will be doled out to buy gear.

* We’re still meeting with BU’s Bicycle Safety Committee: working on placing more bike racks (lots more), writing a University policy on how to handle abandoned and mis-parked bikes, re-thinking how to re-route traffic, promoting safe and responsible biking (helmets, everyone), improve signage on campus (anybody notice the little biker logo in the bike lanes? he’s wearing a helmet), and eventually extend bike lanes and get BU Bridge integrated with a campus bike path, plus so much more its too much

* BU Bridge construction is about to get going, but thanks to pressure and the diligence of various advocacy groups in the area, the Department of Conservation and Recreation has committed to bike lanes on the bridge (under construction from 2009-2012 most likely). We will be keeping an eye on the project, if only to watch out for construction cones and gaping potholes as we ride over it every day.

Yes, projects abound, big and small. And there’s plenty of opportunity for you to contribute, if you’d like to get in on the action – to help make clothing or stuffed bike pillows, or attend City meetings for the greater good of bikers everywhere, or stand at Marsh Plaza and give out candy to bikers who ride past, or make fliers to promote bikes, or help plan your own group ride on GoogleMaps, or help make a claymation movie about proper biking practices on Comm Ave, or really anything else you’d think fits with biking, campus, and awesome (our three fundamental tenets).

So welcome to the New Year, MMIX. Keep it rolling, and get involved.

Ride safe, roll smooth,

-bikes

This just in from BUBikes

This just in from the Department of Conservation and Recreation:

On Jan 8-9, Thursday night to Friday morning, 10 pm to 5 am, Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) crews will be making repairs to the BU Bridge sidewalks. During the work, both Cambridge-to-Boston lanes will be closed, and the only traffic allowed to cross in that direction will be Boston-bound MBTA or Boston University buses. All other traffic from Cambridge to Boston will be detoured to the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge.

So, if you plan to ride the BU Bridge, be aware.

that’s all – we’ll keep you updated on anything else that comes our way.

Yes thats right, you just witnessed the rare double “this just in.” Something to tell the grandkids about.

Anyone who has ridden over the BU bridge knows that it is one of the most technically difficult intersections in the city (if not THE most). Bike lanes on the bridge, if done right, will lead to a much safer crossing for the hundreds of cyclists that go over it every day. Which is why I was pleased to get this email today.

Thanks to those of you who attended the BU Bridge hearing last Thursday. There was a great crowd of bicyclists there, including some MassBikers. Also, we heard some very heartening news from the DCR – they have committed to putting bike lanes on the BU Bridge! They will be analyzing a variety of lane configurations while reconstruction of the bridge deck itself takes place over the next three years (it’s scheduled to start next spring). They will also be looking at improvements to the bike/ped crossings at both ends of the bridge. In addition, DCR is revitalizing its bike/ped advisory group, and the DCR Commissioner is committed to looking at other improvements up and down the Charles River Basin. All this wouldn’t have happened without the efforts of MassBike and other advocacy groups!

Woo Hoo! Way to go everyone, and keep up the good work. Now we just have to hold them to this promise.