Author: walkup

Gateway Path Tour June 2016

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A highly dedicated group of over 15 walkers/cyclists attended the WalkUP Roslindale/Rozzie Bikes led tour of the proposed route of the Roslindale-Arboretum Gateway Path as part of the ongoing LandLine tour series this summer. Photo gallery below.

We (your co-hosts, Alan Wright and Matt Lawlor) were honored with the presence and commentary of Nina Brown from the Arboretum Park Conservancy, who spoke about APC’s efforts on extending the Blackwell Path, and from Matthew Jordan (Director of Finance) and Andrew Gapinski (Manager of Horticulture) from the Arnold Arboretum, who gave us a sense of the Arboretum’s perspective and continued support for the RAGP concept. Peter Sutton, from MassDOT Planning, represented the LandLine Coalition.

We started at the northern end of the Blackwell Path, across from Forest Hills station, and wound our way down the Blackwell Path, its proposed extension route, and then up Peters Hill and into the densely-wooded MBTA property adjacent to the Needham Line tracks to the shelter at the southern end. We owe special thanks to Peter and key MBTA staff, especially Mark Boyle (Director of Real Estate), for allowing us to access this portion of the route on very short notice. We concluded our tour at the recently-installed bike corral on Cohasset Street in Roslindale Square, which is getting brisk use along with the adjacent parklet. We look forward to more opportunities to walk/bike the proposed Gateway Path route with neighbors and friends from Roslindale and around the region.

Shape the Go Boston 2030 Action Plan

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Go Boston 2030

GoBoston 2030, a citywide effort to develop and implement a vision for the next 5, 10, and 15 years on a variety of transportation issues, has collected 3,700 ideas and grouped them into four possible “futures,” and is now soliciting public feedback to create a final Action Plan. We want walkability in and around Roslindale to figure prominently in the plan, and urge all supporters to spread the word and participate in the survey.

RVMS Bike Corral Ribbon Cutting June 6, 2016 6pm by Fornax

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After many months of effort and advocacy, Roslindale is finally getting its first bicycle corral, to be installed near Fornax Bakery at 27 Corinth Street. The corral is fashioned out of recycled shipping pallets and steel pipe and will be stationed alongside the Fornax parklet. It will be dedicated to Roslindale resident and prolific bicycle advocate George Ulrich, who passed away earlier this year. George was a stalwart of Rozzie Bikes and frequently staffed the free bike repair and bike information tent at the RVMS Farmers Market.

Aside from bringing much-needed bike parking to the village, the corral will also send a message to everyone that bikes are welcome, and that we are willing to put our money where our mouth is and start investing in real infrastructure for active transportation. This is one step of many that are needed to achieve our vision of making Roslindale the most walkable neighborhood in Boston.

Please join RVMS, Street Ops, Rozzie Bikes, and others for a ribbon cutting ceremony on June 6, 2016, at 6pm. After celebrating the installation with music and refreshments, there will be an informal gathering and drinks afterwards at Sophia’s Grotto.

WalkUP Testimony at City Vision Zero Hearing

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The Boston City Council held a hearing today on Vision Zero and traffic calming in the city. WalkUP Roslindale attended and submitted testimony, reproduced below and available as an official PDF. The preliminary take-home is it’s going to take a lot of work and pushing our officials zealously to really turn the ship in the right direction.

Update 1: Video of the hearing now available.
Update 2: Check out this comment letter from our friends at the Longfellow Area Neighborhood Association.
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Community Vision Report for Gateway Path Complete

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Gateway Path Report
Gateway Path Report
We are delighted to make public today a nearly-100 page report created by Tufts UEP students Jaissa Feliz, Liz Pongratz, Alexandra Purdy, and Mason Wells. The report culminates several months of collaboration between Tufts UEP, Livable Streets, WalkUP Roslindale, and many individuals and organizations in and around Roslindale. The executive summary is reproduced below; be sure to check out the whole report for data, images, and other key details. We believe this document will be invaluable in moving the project to implementation, and are grateful to the Tufts students for their hard work, insight, and commitment to this effort. Please spread the word.
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Two Immediate Opportunities to Speak Up for a More Walkable Roslindale

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To achieve our goal of making Rozzie the most walkable neighborhood in Boston, we need to seize every opportunity to speak up. We are leading some efforts ourselves (such as the Gateway Path initiative) but others require attention, leadership, and vision from our Mayor and City Councilors. Two upcoming events present opportunities to be heard on important walkability issues:

  • Mayor Walsh recently announced the dates for his 2016 “coffee hour” series, where the Mayor will visit each neighborhood to hear from residents. All participants will enjoy coffee[1] and breakfast provided by Dunkin’ Donuts and fresh fruit from Whole Foods. In addition, each family in attendance will receive a flowering plant grown in the city’s greenhouses and a raffle prize from Dunkin. The Roslindale event is this coming Wednesday, May 18 at Adams Park, from 9:30am-10:30am. Show up and tell the Mayor we need safer streets for walkers, better transit and bicycle infrastructure, improved parks, and the like!
  • The City Council hearing on the city’s Vision Zero efforts is scheduled for this coming Monday, May 16th, at 3pm in the Iannella Chamber, 5th Floor, City Hall. The order for hearing was sponsored by Councilor Matt O’Malley. The docket to be discussed is item 0509, “order for a hearing regarding traffic calming measures and the Vision Zero Boston program.” Show up to testify if you can; written comments may also be made part of the record and available to all councilors by sending them to ccc.prt@nullboston.gov and daniel.shea@nullboston.gov.
Footnotes    (↵ returns to text)

  1. Speaking of coffee: Roslindale just took a big step up, going from zero to two full-blown coffee shops. Both P.S. Gourmet Coffee and the Green T Coffee Shop opened in the past week or so. Be sure to visit both by foot or bicycle and welcome them to the neighborhood!↵

Roslindale Village Walkable Film Series – This Changes Everything – Saturday, May 7, 2016 @ 2:00pm

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This Changes Everything
This Changes Everything
Wrapping up our six film run, the final presentation will be This Changes Everything, this time sponsored by GreeningRozzie. The movie was inspired by Naomi Klein’s book of the same name. Filmed over 211 shoot days in nine countries and five continents over four years, This Changes Everything is an epic attempt to re-imagine the vast challenge of climate change.

The film will be shown at the Roslindale Community Center at 6 Cummins Highway, starting at 2pm this Saturday, May 7, 2016. Discussion to follow. Hope to see you there!

Roslindale Bulletin on 20 MPH City Speed Limit

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City Speed Limit could Fall to 20mph
Roslindale Bulletin: City Speed Limit could Fall to 20mph
We appreciate how well the Roslindale Bulletin continues to cover WalkUP Roslindale’s core issues. Earlier this month, Christopher Roberson wrote this piece about the Boston City Council’s move to set the default Boston speed limit to 20 mph. This will save lives, as the survivability of a pedestrian-automobile crash is mainly a function of speed: 90% of
pedestrians hit by cars die when struck at 40 mph compared to 5% at 20 mph.

Our own District 5 City Councilor Tim McCarthy had some nice quotes in the piece:

District 5 Councillor Timothy McCarthy said the last speed limit change was implemented by a transportation commissioner who was from Ludlow, where higher speed limits are more common.

“If you go 20 mph in Ludlow, you probably wouldn’t get out of Ludlow for a few days,” said McCarthy. “But in our area, 20 mph is plenty.”

He said that West Roxbury Police Sgt. Michael O’Hara has done demonstrations in the past to show the actual speed of a vehicle traveling 30 mph relative to a pedestrian. He said O’Hara would ask residents to stand on the side of the road while a he drove by at exactly 30 mph.

“If you’re standing on the edge of the road and a Crown Vic goes by at 30 mph, you might as well be at NASCAR, you’re not getting out of the way,” said McCarthy.

Kudos to Councilor McCarthy for helping push this walkability initiative.

See also this video of the City Council’s Government Operations committee hearing on the initiative from last week.

We should remember that setting a safer speed limit is only a starting point. Most drivers will follow road design more than posted limits, so the ultimate solution must involve safer road design including narrower car lanes and other traffic calming measures (all key aspects of Vision Zero). A recent letter to the editor in the Boston Globe makes this same point. But we need not let these broader infrastructure challenges get in the way of a common-sense first step.

Breaking news (4/27/16 afternoon): From City Councillor Michelle Wu‘s summary of today’s city council meeting:

Speed Limits: We voted unanimously to pass Councilor Baker’s home rule petition to lower the default unposted speed limit from 30mph to 20mph in thickly settled areas and business districts and from 20mph to 15mph in school zones, as well as giving the City the authority to post speed limits without state approval and the requirement for a traffic study. Councilors Baker and Flaherty noted that speeding is one of the top issues councilors hear from residents. The matter now goes to the Mayor for his signature and then the state legislature for approval.

Roslindale Village Walkable Film Series – The Thread – Thursday, April 28, 2016 @ 6:30pm

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The Thread - Original Art by Andy Cross
The Thread – Original Art by Andy Cross

We’re now ready for the fifth installment in The Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series. Next up is The Thread, a film by Greg Barker that documents the role of social media in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. The film was described by the Boston Globe as a “brisk, stimulating documentary,” and runs only about an hour.

Check out the poster, original art again courtesy of Andy Cross.

The film will be shown at the Roslindale Branch of the Boston Public Library. RSVP to secure a spot and get a reminder near show time.

Questions or comments to film@nullwalkuproslindale.org.

Roslindale Bulletin on Gateway Path Visioning Session

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As usual, Jeff Sullivan at the Roslindale Bulletin has the scoop on the Gateway Path. Check out their latest front-page article reporting on our Visioning Meeting, Many in favor of Roslindale JP Gateway.
2014-04-06 Roslindale Bulletin on Gateway Path