We all know river street and western ave need some work, the bike lanes are lakes (frozen at this time of year) and pot hole central (I may or may not have broken my collar bone on one). Go tell these people you want bike lanes, and bike accommodations on river street, western ave, and the bridges! These are major bike corridors and need a lot of improvement.

Press release below

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The Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s Highway Division Invites You to a Public Information Meeting for the River Street Bridge/Western Avenue Bridge Rehabilitation Project

Wednesday, February 3, 2010
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Honan-Allston Branch Library
300 North Harvard Street, Allston, MA

The purpose of this meeting is to provide an overview of the proposed rehabilitation of the historic River Street and Western Avenue Bridges, introduce MassDOT’s design team, answer questions and gather comments.

The River Street Bridge/Western Avenue Bridge Rehabilitation Project is being undertaken by MassDOT as part of the Commonwealth’s Accelerated Bridge Program. The goals of the project are to improve structural integrity and enhance accessibility. The main objectives are to repair deteriorating elements of the bridges, upgrade structural capacity and improve local street connections and accessibility. The proposed rehabilitation will respect the documented historic status of these landmark structures and preserve as many of the original elements as possible. The River Street Bridge was constructed in 1926 and the Western Avenue Bridge was constructed in 1924. Both bridges are listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places and serve as primary connections between Cambridge and Boston.

If you have questions or would like more information about the project, please contact Robert Antico, MassDOT Highway Division Project Manager, Robert.Antico@state.ma.us.

To be added to the project email or US Mail distribution lists, please contact Stephanie Boundy, Public Outreach Coordinator for MassDOT’s Accelerated Bridge Program, at 617-973-8049 or Stephanie.Boundy@state.ma.us.

The library is accessible. To request language or access accommodations, please contact Stephanie Boundy at the above email address or phone number at least 10 days in advance. In case of inclement weather, meeting cancellation announcements will be posted on http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/Highway/.

Please share this notice with others who may be interested in the project.

There’s important meeting tonight, the City of Boston will propose installing bike lanes on Comm Ave from Kenmore to the Public Garden.

The meeting is on 8/31 at 6PM at the Boston Public Library. (THAT IS TONIGHT!!!!)

For the success of this project, it will be particularly critical to have as many project proponents as possible that live or work on the street or in the neighborhood (or commute on Commonwealth Avenue on a regular basis by bike). I have it on good authority that a certain neighborhood group is planning on opposing this bike lane. This bike lane would be a valuable addition to bicycle infrastructure in this city. If you support such a thing go and make your voice be heard!

Got the following today, perhaps someone could go tell these people that we would like to see some way to take bikes on the green line, especially if they are going to take an already woefully bad line and make it bigger…

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Monday, March 9th Brooks elementary school, 388 high street Medford
Wednesday, March 11th Somerville High School, 81 Highland Ave somerville

5:30 project open house
6:30-8:30 meeting presentation and questions

The Green Line Extension Project is an initiative of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation in coordination with the MBTA. The project will extend existing MBTA Green Line service from Lechmere station through the communities of Cambridge, Somerville, and Medford with an extension of the main line to Route 16 and an adjunct line to Union Square.

EOT will present an overview of the project, an environmental analysis, recommendations for station sites, and the preferred project alignment.

You are invited to attend either of the meetings public input results in better projects.

To request access of language accomodations, please call Regan Checchio at 617-357-5772 at least ten days in advance.

Directions and more project information are available at www.greenlineextension.com

As anyone who has ridden over this thing can tell you, it can be a bit of a hard slog. It would be great to see some improvements made for bikes…and to have that f-ing HUGE pothole fixed (on the Quincy side of the river heading north…holy crap is it big). I would also be down with fixing up the sidewalks so people wont break a leg when walking over it…maybe some bike lanes….you know that sort of thing. If you think the same way I do get your butt to this meeting and let the DCR hear about it!

(thanks Dotbike for the heads up)

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Replacing the deck on the Neponset River Bridge between Dorchester and Quincy will be on the agenda at a Department of Conservation and Recreation meeting next Tuesday. The rehabilitation is part of Gov. Deval Patrick’s Accelerated Bridge Program, which will spend $3 billion statewide and $906 million on DCR bridges. The work on the Neponset bridge is set to begin in late 2009. The public is invited to give input on the project on Tues., Feb. 10, 6 p.m. at Quincy City Hall, 1302 Hancock St., Quincy.

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.