Centre/South Street Transportation and Streetscape Action Plan

Citizens’ Advisory Group
July 09 Meeting Notes and action items from Lauren Ockene, our citizen representative.

(Scroll down to the bold face for what you can do to help get better bike access on Centre and South Streets!)

In June, the Boston Transportation Department (BTD) presented us with two transportation consulting groups, which made presentations to the CAC. I was more inclined to go for the one (Howard Stein Hudson) that no one else really wanted and that did not get chosen. My main reason was that they have a formal relationship with Tool Design, who is a bike transit design group, and I have heard very good things about Tool’s work. They were not chosen, and instead we have a group called McMahon Transportation Engineers and Planners. However, Vineet Gupta from the Boston Transportation Dept. (who seems to have come very far with his regard for pedestrian and bike access issues since I worked with him around traffic calming in 1999-2002) assures me that Tool Design will be included in the process either way. McMahon included bike lanes in their talk, but had no experience with real bike –friendly planning to point to. One of the people on the team was part of the Dorchester Avenue redesign (not fully implemented yet) where the bike planning seems to have been an afterthought, and she also pointed to her involvement with bike access planning on the Rose Kennedy Greenway (where no bike paths or lanes exist).

The July meeting included an invitation to the public (in the JP Gazette), and I regret that I neglected to put out the word to you. I will do better next time (next meeting, Sept. 16 – be there!). At the July meeting the McMahon group presented their ideas so far and asked for comments both from the CAC and the other people who were there. Again, they spoke to the need for bike lanes or shared lanes (if there is not enough room for true bike lanes). What was very exciting to me was the fact that there was no one in the room (of about 8 CAC members and maybe 30 other residents) who spoke to the perceived need for more parking. There were several individuals who spoke up about bike lanes, and many who spoke up about pedestrian access and the need for raised crosswalks, “bumpouts” on corners to make easier crossings and less paved space, and the need for less paved space in general, such as narrowing the roads near the monument and making more public space instead.

Another thing I am encouraged by is that the consultants and the BTD together have decided to use a recommendation I made and to change the way they usually do “surveys” before making designs. Instead of including just how long people park cars and in what places (the usual survey), the idea, taken from a very interesting Toronto study, is to also see: a) how transportation modes relate to people's spending (in Toronto bicyclists and pedestrians spent more!!! Merchants who advocate for parking – this is often the case here- need to see this if it's true here too...), and b) to see what people think would help them decide to go JP center without a car, if anything. In Toronto the results of these studies in one shopping district led to the removal of a parking lane in order to put in bike lanes! I am looking forward to seeing the proposed survey questions and commenting on them (you can too) at the next meeting.

So, things are looking OK for bikes being included in this process but I believe that we need more bicyclists speaking up and making sure that the BTD, BRA (Boston Redevelopment Authority) and the McMahon group understand that we are numerous and serious, and that they understand how bicycling on Centre Street could be seriously improved (mainly, I think, real bike lanes), as well as what it will take to get more choosing to bike instead of drive (mainly, I think, real bike lanes). The McMahon group also had a slide that said “increase supply” under the heading of parking, and qualified this without much clarity when I questioned it. I think it is important that they hear that both bike lanes and safe bus access are more important than the preservation of parking spaces, and more free parking only encourages more driving.

Please see if you can do one or both of the following:

1. Send your comments about how bikes should be included in the Centre/South Street Transportation and Streetscape Action Plan. Send your comments to both Vineet Gupta at the Boston Transportation Department Vineet.gupta(at)cityofboston.gov and to Ines Palmarin of the BRA Ines.palmarin.BRA(at)cityofboston.gov. Please cc Lauren Ockene at lockene(at)mac.com.

2. Show up and say something for bikes at the next CAC (citizens’ advisory committee) meeting. It is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, September 16 in the evening, at Curtis Hall.

See more info on the BRA website

You can also download a pdf of the official BRA notes from this meeting.