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Action Alert (x3!)

Written by Boston Biker on May 05

Via Livable Streets:

This is a busy week in Boston, despite the stay-at-home advisory. Here are three ways you can take action for safer streets and better transit:

1. Send an email to speak up for a people-first Northern Ave Bridge

The City of Boston is holding a virtual meeting this Wednesday, May 6th to share an updated design for the Northern Avenue Bridge project. Despite significant public support, the City has not committed to ensuring the bridge is reserved for people walking, biking and emergency use only.

Take 5 minutes now to let the project team and City Council know that this project should not be approved in the budget until the City commits to a Northern Avenue Bridge that prioritizes people and respects the historic legacy of this iconic structure — email the City of Boston and at-large city councilors by Wednesday, May 6th (see suggested template in the orange box at link). 

2. Register for our third Virtual StreetTalk this Wednesday at 6pm! 

Once jobs and businesses begin to re-open, how can the MBTA continue to allow people to be safe and feel comfortable getting back on transit? Join us for our third virtual StreetTalk as we explore what is happening globally as transit systems in other countries begin to welcome non-essential riders back and discuss what we can learn from their experiences. To explore this topic in depth, we’ll be joined by Heather Thompson from ITDP (Institute for Transportation & Development Policy) and Steven Higashide from TransitCenter.

Event Details:
StreetTalk: Keep Transit Moving
Wednesday, May 6, 6:00pm – 7:00pm
@ Virtual Zoom Conference
Register here 

3. Speak up for safe streets and better transit at the Boston Transportation and Public Works Departments budget hearing on Thursday.

Join us at the “streets” budget hearing to thank Mayor Walsh for proposing budget increases for Vision Zero programs and the bike network, and to comment in support of the City Council approving the proposal.

As outlined in our recent Go Boston 2030 progress report, we know the City needs to pick up the pace on critical projects, including the bike network and the Columbia Road redesign. Projects like the protected bike network and walk- and bike-friendly Main Streets are even more important in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we hope to see the City make significant progress this year. Check out our report and recommendations, and let the City Council know that Go Boston 2030 goals and projects are important to you. 

Event Details:
Boston Transportation + Public Works Departments Budget Hearing
Thursday, May 7, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
@ Virtual Zoom conference (Meeting ID: 359 230 088 | Password: 018142)

If you aren’t available during the hearing to testify live via videoconference, you can send in written testimony or pre-recorded videos to [email protected].

 

Sincerely,

LivableStreets

http://www.livablestreets.info


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Action Alert: Two Opportunities This Week To Stand Up For Cyclists On DCR Roadways

Written by Boston Biker on Jul 16

Tell DCR: Protect cyclists on your roadways

Last Thursday, we sent a powerful message to the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) that we need more protected spaces for cyclists on our roads — and we need them now. Around 125 people stood ground on Fenway and Brookline Ave. to highlight the dangers of DCR’s unprotected bike lanes on those roads, proving in the process that even during rush hour cars can move just fine along Brookline Ave. with one less lane for vehicle traffic. Thank you to all of you who took time out of your day to be there! (If you missed it, here are some photo highlights.)

We urge you to now help us carry on our momentum from that demonstration with two actions this week aimed at convincing DCR to modernize its approach to bike safety and street design.

Images from last Thursday’s people-protected bike lane action (Images courtesy of Donrick Pond)
On Wednesday, a coalition of advocacy organizations called the Memorial Drive Alliance will rally to call attention to the need for a road diet along Memorial Drive as part of the redesign process currently underway there. Following the rally, there will be a critical mass-style ride along Memorial Drive, from JFK St east to the BU rotary, to show how the road could be transformed with one less lane for cars in each direction.

Despite overwhelming public comment in support of improving the corridor for walking and bicycling and expanding green space, at the last public meeting DCR presented a plan which retains four lanes of motor vehicle traffic for most of Memorial Drive, including the parts where these improvements are most needed.

Wednesday’s ride will be a highly visible way to try to change these plans before they are finalized.
Rally and Ride
Wednesday, July 17 starting at 5:30pm
Intersection of Memorial Drive and JFK Street
RSVP

As last week’s demonstration showed, if we speak up publicly we’ll be heard. Thursday’s action received significant favorable coverage in the press, got more elected officials at the state level engaging in the conversation, and renewed attention from the City of Boston to continue expediting new protected infrastructure on Boylston St and, together with DCR, at intersections with Park Drive.
In addition to attending the rally Wednesday, it is critically important to write to DCR – even if you previously wrote in – to ask them to change their plan. To submit comments, visit their website and choose “Memorial Drive Greenway Improvements Phase III”. Key points to include:

Replace 2 vehicle travel lanes with a protected bi-directional bike path. (Retain existing paths and sidewalks for pedestrians).
Protect existing trees and plant new trees wherever there are gaps.

The second activist opportunity this week is DCR’s Stewardship Council on Thursday morning, where you can share feedback directly to the Commissioner and members of the Council about Memorial Drive and Park Drive/Fenway, as well as the agency’s general unwillingness to implement physically separated bike lanes.

DCR Stewardship Council Meeting
Thursday, July 18 from 8:30 – 11am
Dillaway-Thomas House, 183 Roxbury Street
Roxbury, MA 02119

The public comment period is toward the beginning/middle (full agenda) of this meeting, and then the public can join a working group to continue to talk with council members. If you plan to speak and have something written, please bring 10 copies. Talking points you could include:

DCR roadways where you travel, and safety concerns that you have experienced on them (including crashes)
Positive experiences you have had traveling in protected bike lanes, and an ask to start using protected bike lanes on DCR roadways
In general, why it is important to you for DCR to prioritize walking/biking/green space on and along their roadways
Particular comments related to Fenway/Park Drive and their intersections, the Arborway in Jamaica Plain, or Memorial Drive

These meetings rarely happen in Boston, so this is a unique opportunity to address DCR directly. We hope you can join us!


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Memorial Drive Protest Ride and Rally July 17th, Plus Write In Campaign!

Written by Boston Biker on Jul 12

From Cambridge Bike Safety (But I fully agree, protest works!  Lets get in the streets for justice!)

In summary: Rally and protest ride Wednesday July 17th at 5:30 at JFK and Memorial Drive. RSVP on Facebook, make a plan to attend the rally, and spread the word.

At the Memorial Drive meeting last month, DCR presented their plan for Memorial Drive. Despite overwhelming public comment in support of improving the corridor for walking and bicycling and expanding the green space in this park, DCR presented a plan which instead prioritizes keeping four lanes of motor vehicle traffic on the parts of Memorial Drive where these improvements are most needed.

It’s time to protest. Wednesday July 17th, we are rallying with other members of the Memorial Drive Alliance to show DCR that they cannot make a mistake on this once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve our riverfront. Following the rally we will have a group ride along the part of Memorial Drive east of JFK St to the BU rotary.

Rally Details:

  • Wednesday, July 17, 5:30pm at Memorial Drive and JFK Street.
  • RSVP and share the post on Facebook.

In addition to attending the rally, it is critically important to write in again to DCR – even if you already wrote in previously – to tell them their current plan is not acceptable. To do so, click here to comment on DCR’s plans for the Memorial Drive renovation (make sure to choose “Memorial Drive Greenway Improvements Phase III”). The most important points to make are:

  1. Memorial Drive should be shrunk to two lanes along the whole length of the project.
  2. The reclaimed space should be used to create separate bike and pedestrian paths and to plant more trees along the river.

Just a quick comment is perfect. But for more ideas to include in your comment, consult the Memorial Drive Alliance’s key asks. The Boston Cyclists Union previously wrote a post with suggestions on issues to comment on. In addition, DCR’s presentation has three options for updating the BU rotary, so you can also specify which you prefer and include other details you would like to see addressed. After you comment, please email [email protected]and your MA senator and representative with a copy of your comment.

 

DCR has been responsible for terrible road design, contributing to the deaths of two people biking on their streets over the last year. Yesterday the Boston Cyclists Union organized a people-protected bike lane to call attention to the complete lack of bike infrastructure on the intersection where Paula Sharaga was killed despite recent work done on the intersection. Advocates told DCR that the intersection needed bike infrastructure and they did nothing. It is clear DCR needs to change how they think about bicycle infrastructure.

If you are fed up with DCR’s inaction across the region, another point of input is to go to the DCR public meeting on July 18 from 8:30am-11am, the morning after the rally. There will be a public comment portion and you can tell DCR commissioner Leo Roy and other officials that the lack of bike infrastructure in their projects is an urgent problem. Public comment is at the end of the meeting but even just sitting in the audience holding a sign at the beginning can send a powerful message.

Protest works. We have protected bike lanes on the Longfellow Bridge and soon the Craigie Bridge because we protested. We showed up in huge numbers to the people-protected bike lane yesterday morning, and if we keep showing up, we can make our region safer for people who bike, even on DCR streets.


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Action Alert: People-Protected Bike Lane on Fenway THIS THURSDAY

Written by Boston Biker on Jul 09

From the email:

Tell DCR: Protected Bike Lanes Save Lives

New bike lanes coming soon to the Fenway area will leave cyclists vulnerable unless the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) tweaks plans to include some form of physical separation. With lane striping set to begin any day now, we ask you to join us this Thursday for an urgent demonstration calling on DCR to protect these bike lanes and improve conditions throughout this busy corridor for people who bike.
People-Protected Bike Lane on Fenway

People-Protected Bike Lane on Fenway
Thursday, July 11
Intersection of Fenway and Brookline Ave. (see map here)

RSVP

An image from the first people-protected bike lane demonstration in Boston,
on Congress St in December 2017.

Protected bike lanes (PBLs) are nearly twice as effective as painted bike lanes, and are the accepted safety standard for roads like Fenway and Park Drive; the MassDOT Municipal Resource Guide for Bikeability recommends PBLs on any road with more than one lane of traffic in each direction. However, DCR has decided to leave new bike lanes on Park Drive and Fenway unprotected, and has neglected to improve the intersections between those roads and Brookline Ave.

The Park Drive bike lane will be between on-street parking and two lanes of fast-moving traffic. Putting cyclists in the door zone on busy Park Drive is putting them in danger. And while the unprotected bike lane on Fenway isn’t designed in a door zone too, DCR’s refusal to add a physical barrier to that paint-buffered bike lane — DCR claims that it gives bicyclists a “false sense of security” — is completely backwards. During Boston’s budget hearings this spring, a cyclist shared her story of being hit from behind on Park Drive — a problem that could still happen with DCR’s unsafe designs. February’s crash that killed Paula Sharaga as she biked through the intersection of Brookline Ave. and Park Drive made the need for protection painfully clear.

DCR’s design decisions are made more frustrating by the fact that the Boston Transportation Department has already begun building PBLs on Brookline Ave., and has committed to significantly expediting the timeline to add protected bike lanes to an abutting section of Boylston St.


Preliminary striping shows a paint-buffered bike lane on Fenway (top)
and a door-zone bike lane on Park Drive (bottom).

We need your help to convince DCR to change course now, before the unprotected infrastructure is implemented!

  • Join the people-protected bike lane — This Thursday, stand in support of protected bike lanes on Park Dr. and Fenway. In addition to these roads, we are also calling on DCR to make PBLs the norm for similar areas; recent DCR projects, and plans for future ones, also include unprotected bike lanes.
  • Save the date — DCR’s Stewardship Council meets next week on Thursday, 7/18, at which you can share feedback on the agency’s approach to PBLs and other bike infrastructure. If DCR ignores us now, this meeting will be our next opportunity to apply pressure about PBLs.

“If Paula were here, she would say, ‘Don’t mourn: Organize, and make sure this doesn’t happen to anyone else,” Todd, a long-time friend of Paula Sharaga’s, said at her ghost bike ceremony. That time to organize and push for change is here.

We hope you’ll join us in telling DCR that protected bike lanes save lives.

Support the Bike Union!
The Bike Union relies on membership and donations to support our work. The more dues-paying members we have, the more we can do on behalf of you and everyone who bikes in Metro Boston.
JOIN, RENEW, OR DONATE TODAY!


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Fill Out Somerville’s Survey About Powder House Blvd

Written by Boston Biker on May 31

From the CBS:

The city has created a survey regarding bike infrastructure on Powder House Blvd. Fill out their survey and vote for the options which you feel are the safest for all users of the street. We need as many Somerville residents as possible to fill this out so the city has a good idea what public sentiment is on this issue, so please share the link to the survey widely. Please note that Option C is the safest option and that a ‘1’ rating indicates the strongest preference for an option.

The meeting on Wednesday was tense but it shows why it is so important that the city sees strong, broad support in favor of protected bike lanes and traffic calming infrastructure on Powder House Blvd.

Thank you all who could attend the meeting. Public meetings often aren’t fun but they are important because the city uses them as one way of measuring public sentiment on bike infrastructure. When we voice our support for protected bike lanes, whether it’s at a meeting, by a petition, by a survey, or with an email to the city, it reassures them that they are acting in the public’s interest by prioritizing safety in street design.

We have an opportunity with Powder House Blvd to draw a line in the sand on people getting hurt or killed on our streets. We are fighting for infrastructure because protected bike lanes save lives. While some bike infrastructure projects are controversial, we are fighting for our safety and the safety of our loved ones so we must do all we can to make these projects happen.

Again: please fill out the survey and then share it with your other friends in Somerville.

Thanks,

-your neighbors at Cambridge Bicycle Safety


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The Word On The Street

  • RSS Here is what people are saying

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    • Where bicycles are prohibited in Massachusetts August 16, 2023
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    • Run The Jewels Lead Free Pewter Hand Carved And Cast Pin Set January 3, 2021
      Made these lovely RTJ fist and gun pin set. Hand carved in wax, and then cast in lead free pewter.  Because these are made by hand you can do fun things like add an extra small pin so that they sit just so (also means they have “customized” brass back plates to accommodate the extra […]
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    • Boston’s Invitation to Improve Biking in Boston: Draw on Some Maps! December 14, 2020
      TweetSometimes, the best way to gather ideas and feedback is to let people draw on some maps. Last night, at the Bike Network Open House, pedallovers unveiled a draft for their upcoming plans for a more connected biking network infrastructure … Continue reading →
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    • Boston’s Invitation to Improve Biking in Boston: Draw on Some Maps! December 14, 2020
      TweetSometimes, the best way to gather ideas and feedback is to let people draw on some maps. Last night, at the Bike Network Open House, pedallovers unveiled a draft for their upcoming plans for a more connected biking network infrastructure … Continue reading →
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    • Boston’s Invitation to Improve Biking in Boston: Draw on Some Maps! December 14, 2020
      TweetSometimes, the best way to gather ideas and feedback is to let people draw on some maps. Last night, at the Bike Network Open House, pedallovers unveiled a draft for their upcoming plans for a more connected biking network infrastructure … Continue reading →
      greg