Typically it’s easy for this blog to be critical of the constant half hearted delivery of services to the neighborhood of Dorchester, particularly with an eye towards the inequity for bicycle infrastructure. Lately it’s occured to me that ripping the city is too easy and counterproductive. So, this entry will be devoted to outlining the changes and improvements that I would make if I had the reins of State and City transportation and infrastructure planning and doing. Let’s set the bar high eh? Here’s my wish list.
The City would relook at the turn lanes and sharrowed zones on Dorchester Avenue and instead take them out put a bike lane where any turn lane existed. Then they’d remeasure the stretch from Melville Ave to Peabody Square and put at least one dedicated lane in that stretch, if not two. They could repaint Neponset Avenue to include all dedicated lanes instead of the mix of dedicated and sharrow. (I wouldn’t even dare to dream that one lane of parking be removed from the Avenue and replaced by separated bike infrastructure, but there it is…)
The T might include at least ONE bike rack in their new train stations. I haven’t noticed any to date. The piece of cement in Ashmont might get its cage one day soon too. The T and City should combine on Talbot Ave by the station to eliminate one side of parking and make it a bike lane instead of a sharrow through that busy busy busy stretch. After all, half the cars parked on the south side of Talbot from the RR bridge to New England are waiting for the car repair company to take them in. Why should the street serve as someone’s storage yard? Also there are three bus stops in that stretch so only a couple of dozen spots are affected…
They might look at Geneva Avenue by the RR bridge there too to add bike accomodation. Although Geneva in that stretch could WAY USE repaving. The stretch of Geneva from Bowdoin to Columbia is wide enough for lanes.
The Governor could find the cash to finish the segments of bike path that are missing from UMass to Mattapan Square. Instead of waiting for Federal Tiger Grants, step up and give us what had been planned 15 years ago and never accomplished. It’s not a new deal, but one that keeps getting swept under the rug.
Mass Ave from Everett Square to Melnea Cass could have a separated bike accomodation and by the way the turn lanes the state added by the train station there should be removed.
Blue Hill Ave should ignore the anti-improvement and keep cars king local reaction and just do a dedicated 28X with it serving bicycles as well.
Sharrows should be added without delay to all of Washington Street, Bowdoin, Harvard, Hancock, Dudley, Adams, Ashmont, Bailey, Melville, Park, Freeport, Fuller, Norfolk, Boston,Victory Road, River Street and any other road I can’t think about that is a normal north/south or east/west transportaion way.
Morrissey Blvd north of the UMass entrance should add dedicated bike accomodation instead of the 5 lanes going north and 4 lanes going south on that stretch.
Old Colony Blvd should have dedicated accomodation. The Columbia Road segment in Southie should have separated bike infrastructure and lanes or sharrows out to Castle Island.
Hubway stations should be added at the Red Line T stops, The new purple line stops, Codman Square, Dudley Square, Grove Hall, Franklin Park and Lower Mills this year EARLY. JP should get similar treatment.
Franklin Park through car traffic should be ended as they should close the road between the Valley Gates and the turn to the tennis courts by the hospital.
Seaver Street should have separated bike accomodation.
The broken bike racks in Peabody Square should be replaced with the specified metalic finish. The plastic bollards that are half mowed down should be replaced with cement filled steel ones that would stand up to a car not just snap.
The disc golf course DCR designed and owns the baskets for at PJPII Park should be immediately installed. (oops, non-bike dream creeping in…)
I imagine there are a number of ones I haven’t thought of, but you get the idea. The city is basking in the lime light with Hubway and 50 miles of dedicated bike accomodation (which is stretching the truth because it counts sharrows), but obviously just in Dorchester there is plenty to do.
Reading back on that it’s no wonder we get frustrated at what we see is progress that is haltingly slow and frustratingly uninispired. We can see so much more for Dorchester and why not?
