Category: Safety

Poplar Street Walk Audit – 7 May 2022 – 9 am – BE THERE!!!

Matt Lawlor 8 Comments

 

For our first walk audit in a bit more than a year, we’ll team up with WalkBoston to take stock of existing conditions and think about street safety improvements on Poplar Street, all the way from Roslindale Square to the intersection with Hautevale Street. Everyone is welcome to come, learn about street safety, and help us think about ways to make our neighborhood a safer, more welcoming place for everyone who wants to use this critical neighborhood street.

Here’s the route we’re planning on auditing:

The walk will start with an intro presentation at WorkHub at the Substation (corner of Cummins & Washington) at 9 am. Please check out and sign up at our facebook event page so we can try to do at least a little of numbers planning. More to come soon. Thanks!

Feedback Opportunity – South/Robert Intersection Safety Improvements – LANA Meeting 14 March 2022 @ 7:00 pm

Matt Lawlor 1 Comment

From time to time, specific street intersections come up for redesign and improvement to promote their safety. We understand that one such case is underway now for the intersection of South and Robert streets in the Longfellow Area Neighborhood Association‘s part of Roslindale, directly adjacent to Fallon Field. It’s an intersection that is used fairly frequently by folks on foot to access the playground and other facilities at Fallon, especially smaller children and their families. It also sports one of the more notorious slip lanes in the neighborhood, used by drivers to go from Robert onto South, with a stop sign that, based on this observer’s personal experience, is actually complied with less than 10% of the time. Thankfully, LANA have been advocating for many years for changes here and we understand that the Boston Transportation Department will be unveiling 25% design plans and seeking feedback this coming Monday evening, 14 March 2022, at LANA’s regular board meeting (which will also reportedly feature an appearance by new District 6 City Councilor Kendra Lara). You can sign up to attend the meeting HERE. Hope to see you there! mjl

 

Letter to Transportation Committee re American Legion Parkway

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Today we sent a letter to the Massachusetts State Legislature Joint Committee on Transportation supporting an act that would change the name of American Legion Highway to American Legion Parkway which we believe would send a better message about traffic safety, particularly when coupled with physical design changes and speed-limit enforcement. Our full letter is available as a PDF and reproduced below.

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World Day of Remembrance 2021 – Contact the MA legislature to support bills for safer streets

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Today, in advance of this Sunday’s World Day of Remembrance, we joined our many partner organizations in the Vision Zero Coalition to demand that the Massachusetts legislature pass several bills that will prevent unnecessary deaths and injuries due to unsafe streets. On Sunday morning, members of the Coalition will lay down over 4,000 yellow blossoms on the steps of the State House — one blossom to represent each life impacted by a fatal or serious traffic crash in 2020 and 2021. The memorial will be there throughout the day for people to lay down their own flowers. You can help support our efforts with any of these actions:

  1. Stop by the Vision Zero memorial display at the State House on Sunday, November 21st.
  2. Look up at any of the following structures on Sunday night that will be lit up in yellow: Zakim Bridge, Longfellow Bridge, Burns Memorial Bridge, Fore River Bridge, Boston City Hall, and Government Center MBTA Station.
  3. If you live in Springfield (or know people who do), advocates are organizing a vigil to honor members of the community who have been lost to traffic violence this year. You can also hold your own vigil in your town or city to honor those who have been lost to traffic violence in your community.
  4. Call on the MA Legislature to take action on important road safety legislation by using this letter template. You can find your legislators and their contact info here.

Our letter to the legislature is reproduced in full below.

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WalkUP Roslindale Congratulates Mayor-Elect Michelle Wu

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Today we sent a letter to Mayor-Elect Michelle Wu, congratulating her on her decisive victory and offering some ideas for initial priorities in line with WalkUP’s mission. Our full letter is below, also available as a PDF.
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Comment letter on proposed Massachusetts legislation for automatic traffic enforcement

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Back in October, we submitted a comment letter supporting legislation that has been proposed up on Beacon Hill to allow for automated enforcement of bus lanes and speeding. The relevant bills are S1545, H2426, and H2494. We generally support these efforts and hope our state legislators will move forward with these and other measures to help reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries caused by dangerous driving behavior. If we get any updates on any of these bills, we will publicize them here.

Our full letter is reproduced below. Please contact your own legislators and ask them to lend support as well!

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Cummins Missing Middle Walk Assessment Report Released

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It took some time, but the Cummins Missing Middle Walk Assessment Report has finally been released. The full report is below and also available as a PDF. We’ll be using this report to organize around and advocate for pedestrian and other non-auto safety improvements on this critical “link for people” in our neighborhood. Thanks!

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Advocacy Opportunity – Boston City Council Sidewalk Snow Clearance Hearing – 10 am, March 16 via Zoom

Matt Lawlor Leave a comment

Yes, the hearing – under the subtitle “Supplemental Sidewalk Clearance Program During Snowstorms in Boston” – will be held by the council’s Committee on City and Neighborhood Services during the day, but it will be over Zoom. Anyone interested in testifying or offering public testimony should send an email to committee liaison Juan Lopez (email juan.lopez@nullboston.gov) to request the zoom link, sign up to testify at the hearing, and/or to submit written comment separately. Your friends here at WalkUP Roslindale will be there, with bells on, and we’ll post our written testimony after the hearing. We have long-standing, well-documented thoughts about the consistently awful, incredibly short shrift our city gives to people walking, biking, and taking transit during and after any significant snowfall. This is the first opportunity we can recall where the public is being invited to speak to our city’s administration about just how bad it is out there and what we believe can and should be done. We hope you can participate! PS And we’d like to give a special note of thanks to Councilor Bok for issuing the call for this hearing. It’s way, way, way past time to do better in what is supposed to be “America’s Walking City.”

WalkUP Roslindale Snow Clearance Collaborative, Version 4.3 – You know the drill by now…

Matt Lawlor Leave a comment

We have snow falling again this afternoon and though it isn’t yet sticking on the motor vehicle travel lanes of our streets, it does appear to be accumulating on sidewalks and other paths. We are accordingly calling out our forces again – If we hit 4″ (10cm), please do what you can to clear out bus stops, crosswalk ramps, and other paths for our neighbors. If you make it out and get it done, send us before and after pictures (email Matt at mlawlor@nullrc.com) and make yourself eligible for $10 in Rozzie Bucks from our good friends and sponsors at Roslindale Village Main Street. It is worth noting that we here at WalkUP Roslindale are aware that there is an ongoing debate and plenty of advocacy ground to cover as to how priorities are set and how we as a city clear snow and ice. We acknowledge that this collaborative is barely scratching the surface of what is needed. But we think we have to start somewhere and take action.

WalkUP Roslindale Snow Clearance Collaborative – Version 4.2 (Virtually, Socially Distanced Yours)

Matt Lawlor 1 Comment

Friends, yes, we are lined up for some significant snowfall this afternoon/evening and overnight tonight. And so, once the snow has stopped flying, we are calling out all of our WalkUP Roslindale Snow Clearance Collaborative Version 4.2 forces in a virtual, socially distanced way to don a face covering, pick up a shovel, and safely and calmly dig out a bus stop, a curb ramp, or a neglected sidewalk or bike lane wherever in Roslindale they may be, then send us a picture of the dug out locations at mlawlor@nullrc.com. We’ll be happy to give you our deep, undying thanks and connect you with $10 in Rozzie Bucks from Roslindale Village Main Street as a reward. Thanks!