Pedestrian survey

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

The Boston Metropolitan Area Planning Committee (MAPC) is conducting a survey on conditions affecting pedestrians in the greater Boston area. The results will be used to determine which areas need improvements to make them more pedestrian-friendly, and what kinds of improvements might be needed.

You can fill out the survey online: http://www.mapc.org/pedplan/

Comments

[ron_newman]

Somerville is one of the most walkable places anywhere. Here's what I wrote in the essay section of the survey:

There needs to be an opening in the fence of Foss Park in Somerville, opposite the Stop & Shop. This would allow people who live west of the park to walk through the park to reach the supermarket.

It is very difficult and unsafe to cross under I-93 to reach Assembly Square from any other part of Somerville -- especially from the Super Stop & Shop.

A crosswalk is needed across Route 28 in Somerville, to connect the Mystic River paths on both sides of the highway. (from Assembly Square to Ten Hills).

There is currently an informal fence opening at the end of Elmwood Street in Cambridge, connecting to the Linear Park bike path. This fence should be removed entirely, so Elmwood Street is formally connected to the path.

A stairway is needed from Alewife Brook Parkway bridge (Route 16) to the Fresh Pond shopping center. Right now people have to climb a small wall and a grassy (sometimes muddy) hill!

Pedestrian grade crossings should be built across the Fitchburg railroad tracks in several places in Somerville and Cambridge -- for instance, from Rindge Towers to Fresh Pond Shopping Center, and from Cambridgepark Drive to Concord Avenue.

[anomie666.livejournal.com]

Boston in general is about as walkable as it gets. In most cities, you have to have a car because there are no sidewalks and the streets have no crosswalks, etc.

[ron_newman]

Most places around here, you don't even need marked crosswalks. It's pretty easy to cross Elm Street or Highland Avenue or even Broadway wherever you want.

One place where a marked crosswalk would be helpful (and I forgot it when writing my essay answer) is: from the intersection of McGrath Highway and Poplar Street to 'Glass Stop' on the other side of McGrath Highway. One reason people cross there is the outbound 80/87/88 bus stop on the northbound side of McGrath.

[anomie666.livejournal.com]

I cross there all the time. There is stop light, but the problem is that you have to watch for turning cars.

[ron_newman]

There's a stoplight at Medford Street and Somerville Avenue, but northbound traffic on McGrath doesn't have a light there at all. This is what I'm referring to. When you look at the aerial photo, you see a crosswalk crossing the southbound on-ramp, but it's not painted across the northbound lanes (which are under the overpass and therefore not visible in the photo).

If you get off the 80 or 88 (not 87) there and walk to Target, you'll see what I mean.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

The crosswalk at Highland and Simpson may as well be invisible, though the recent signpost that was added seems to help a little.

Regardless, I find myself having to just run out into traffic and give a scowl when I cross there.

[ron_newman]

And another place I wish I'd mentioned: approaching Sullivan Square T stop from Somerville is a horrible walking experience. Things are fine until you cross out of Somerville and into Boston. The station really needs a pedestrian entrance from the end of residential Perkins Street.

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

What's the problem? Is there no easy pedestrian route from Cambridge Street to the Sullivan station pedestrian entrance at the busway?

Would a new entrance at Perkins Street require a lot of construction to provide a pedestrian bridge over the tracks?

My big pedestrian connectivity peeves are:
1. The closure of Dorchester Avenue next to the South Station post office, making it really tough to walk or bike from Downtown to the Broadway T station area

2. The never-opened Independence Avenue entrance to the Quincy Adams station, which adds over a mile to walking and biking trips to the station from the east, south, or southwest

3. The lack of a staircase from the BU Bridge to the Esplanade path on the Boston side of the river

4. Roads like Route 1 in Saugus and Route 9 in Wellesley, which have very few places to cross but still have a lot of pedestrian destinations. Fortunately there's fewer places like this in metro Boston than in other parts of the country.

[ron_newman]

The pedestrian route from Broadway and Mt. Vernon Street to the Sullivan T station is a narrow, poorly lit sidewalk next to speeding one-way traffic, passing under I-93. Compare it with the walking paths to Porter or Davis stations.

[ron_newman]

Of course, the biggest pedestrian connectivity gap of them all is between Charlestown and Chelsea. It's way before my time, but the previous bridge before the Tobin was a low-level drawbridge, which presumably carried foot and bicycle traffic as well as motor vehicles and streetcars.

[talonvaki.livejournal.com]

Somerville is one of the most walkable places anywhere.

As long as it isn't winter, and it hasn't snowed recently. There are whole parts of Somerville (like, say Summer Street from Davis to Union Squares) that are unwalkable because people refuse to shovel.

[ron_newman]

In places like that, I just walk in the street. But yeah, I checked off "Poor snow/ice removal" as my only "Major obstacle for pedestrians in my community".

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I had some questions like that :). And if it hadn't just snowed, I wouldn't have remembered.

Generally I wouldn't have a problem walking in the street or dealing with the ice & snow, but now that I'm pushing a stroller, I'd really rather not have to walk in the street (especially when it's a major street and a business that has let a sheet of ice end up in front of it).

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I mentioned that in my comments on the survey. When it stays below freezing for many days after a snow, the ice on sidewalks becomes a *serious* hazard. It honestly makes me wonder how any wheelchair-bound residents survive around here.

[talonvaki.livejournal.com]

Last winter, I tried to walk about 5 blocks down Summer from my house to the Vet...I had to walk in the street, it was just too treacherous. To get home, I ended up walking up Elm Street.

[cutieperson]

lack of decent curb cuts & large trees blocking sidewalks make Somerville a less than friendly place to wheel in even without ice & snow.
i'd laugh at Boston being one of the most walkable cities, but it's unsurprising that folks in wheelchairs aren't factored in.

[ron_newman]

be sure to fill out the survey then, because some of the questions specifically address accessibility issues.

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

Curb cuts was one of the thigns I specifically mentioned :). Pushing a stroller around has made me rather aware of where they are and, alas, are not. It really can get annoying (and I at least have the option of lifting the damn stroller...)

[cutieperson]

yeah, it's frustrating having to choose between pushing an extra several blocks (and then back in the direction you need to be in) or crossing without a crosswalk. but, well, the curb cuts & crosswalks do not always line up.

[wallacestreet.livejournal.com]

Or, for example, the block of Elm St. between Miller and Beech on the west side. There are like 3 or 4 houses in a row there which never shovel, and it's a serious hazard for everyone walking between Davis and Porter, and it's busy enough that walking in the street is generally a bad idea.

Also, on most streets, you can forget about pushing a stroller during the winter. Like mamajoan says, I'm glad I'm not in a wheelchair.

FInally, I pointed out the intersection of Wallace and Broadway where there have been several serious accidents in the past few years due both to inattentive motorists and careless/drunk Tufts students pedestrians clothed all in black.

[ron_newman]

Is there a traffic light and crosswalk there? I can't remember.

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

There's no traffic light. I believe there is a crosswalk though.

[ron_newman]

the block of Elm St. between Miller and Beech

where the houses are in Cambridge, but I think the sidewalk is in Somerville. I'm not sure which city should be ticketing them. Try calling both.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

I agree, and I mentioned that in the survey. My walk to work, usually a pleasant 15 to 20 trip, becomes a death trap when it's icy. Entire streets are neglected, leaving me to walk in the street, and lean up against parked cars when a car comes. It's 100% infuriating, especially as walkking is my only real option for getting to work.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

I should add that streets with the worst offenders on my commute are Simpson Ave and Russell Street (half of which is in Cambridge, but I don't happen to walk on that half).

Agreed

[bobobb.livejournal.com]

I mentioned also the rotary of death, ie powderhouse square. People actually get picked off there and I have *never* seen a cop enforcing the crossing signals, stop lights etc.

Re: Agreed

[ron_newman]

That one has never bothered me, because you only cross one lane of traffic at a time.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I tried to take the survey, but at the part asking about percentages for breakdown of types of transportation taken, it kept insisting that 75 and 25 don't add up to 100...

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

hmm, did you put zeroes in the other fields?

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

I left the fields I didn't use blank and it didn't have any issues with me.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

Those surveys usually require that you put a 0 in unused blanks.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I'll try again.

[ron_newman]

My numbers were pure guesswork, complicated by the fact that I do a lot of bicycling from April through November and very little during the other four months.

[ifotismeni]

same here.

[magid.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link! I finally got to complain about the width of the sidewalks on the Boston end of the Longfellow Bridge :-)

[ron_newman]

I reposted your message to b0st0n.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

That was mean! ;-)

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Au contraire, it was very kind of Ron to spare me having to see any b0st0n replies in my email. ;)