Redefining How the Commonwealth Commutes

The Role of Pop-up Cycling Infrastructure to Support the Multi-phased Reopening
WRITTEN BY MARISSA RIVERA, TMA Operations Manager & CAITLIN ALLEN-CONNELLY1 

THE COMMONWEALTH GETS READY TO REOPEN: HAVE YOU CONSIDERED BIKING?

As the Commonwealth and its municipalities plan for a multi-phased reopening, government officials, business leaders and associations, as well as transportation experts, are thinking about the commute post-surge. They are considering a range of options to support a gradual return to the workplace that puts safety first and supports economic development, equity, and the environment. There seems to be consensus that biking and walking will be part of the solution.2 

In recent weeks, cities from Bogotá to Brookline have made headlines for their forward-thinking adoption of shared streets infrastructure to support physical distancing. For some cities, the decision to implement pop-up bike lanes or to close streets to cars has been positioned as a move to increase space for safe recreation in densely populated areas. For others, similar actions have been framed as a mitigation strategy to lessen crowding on transit while avoiding a swell in single occupancy vehicles (SOVs).

A Better City is exploring how to safeguard and expand Boston’s shared streets infrastructure for biking lanes as a reentry commuting strategy. This piece provides examples of best practices that can help inform rapid implementation and focuses on the potential role of pop-up bike lanes in safe, sustainable transportation reentry strategies for two key neighborhoods and industries represented among A Better City’s Transportation Management Association (TMA) membership: medical service providers in the South End and financial organizations in the Financial District.

LEARNING FROM OUR NEIGHBORS: BEST PRACTICES FOR POP-UP LANE INFRASTRUCTURE

The notion of pop-up bike lane infrastructure is not completely foreign to the streets of Boston and surrounding municipalities. However, most actions taken by officials in and around Boston during lockdown have mainly supported recreation. The state Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) spearheaded closures of roads bordering park space in Watertown, South Boston, and Jamaica Plain,3 while Cambridge opted to close a stretch of Memorial Drive to alleviate crowding along the Charles River.4 There are examples, however, that provide insight on how to put in place pop-up infrastructure to support a bike commute, including in Roslindale and Brookline.

ROSLINDALE 

Along a congested section of Washington Street, Boston Transportation Department (BTD) and the MBTA partnered to implement a pop-up bus/bike lane pilot in 20175 that laid the groundwork for the 2018 establishment of a permanent northbound lane6 and current plans to create a southbound counterpart.7

BROOKLINE

In the busy Coolidge Corner area, roads have been repainted to restrict traffic to the left lane and convert the right lane to parking. The previous parking lane is now a protected path for walking, cycling, and rolling.8

PAVING THE WAY IN THE SOUTH END AND FINANCIAL DISTRICT

The South End and the Financial District are two areas where pop-up infrastructure could be provided as an alternative to public transportation and SOVs.

SOUTH END

While businesses in the financial industry have adjusted to largely remote workforces over the past several weeks, medical service providers have had no such option. Adjusted windows of peak demand9 and mitigated decline in MBTA ridership along key routes for hospital workers10 show that many essential workers continue to rely upon public transportation. Additionally, discounted parking incentives from the City point to cars as an implicitly recommended transportation alternative.11 

Biking has been part of the transportation solution in the South End during COVID-19. Working with the City of Boston and Lyft, A Better City’s three TMAs have provided free 30-day Bluebikes passes to hospital workers at six medical facilities across the city, including two in the South End.12 This subsidized access has been a welcome additional support for hospital workers who want to avoid both potential peak hour transit crowds and the expense and hassle of a car. The results thus far show a favorable response: riders started 1,635 trips from one of the five stations in the immediate vicinity of the South End’s major medical facilities in March 202013, a slight increase from March 2019 usage at the same stations despite a sharp decrease in usage at most stations throughout the City.14

The use of responsive, flexible pop-up infrastructure to support and protect cyclists in the South End could provide a healthier and more sustainable Boston by drawing commuters to an alternative non-SOV option as the multi-phased reentry begins and the area welcomes the return of traditional medical and non-medical workforces.15 The Roslindale BTD/MBTA partnership example provides insight for creating the temporary infrastructure necessary to protect today’s South End commuters and incentivize those currently working from home to consider cycling as the region reopens. Implementing a similar measure along a portion of the Mass Ave corridor within the South End could allow for more frequent bus service while enhancing cyclist safety.

Alternatively, City officials might consider restricting traffic along strategic side streets to allow for cyclists to detour through a protected network of temporary cycle paths.16 The best approach will ultimately be one determined in collaboration with the community of residents and workers who use the affected spaces17 using the variety of community engagement tools, approaches, and collaborators available to the City during this time.18

FINANCIAL DISTRICT

The Financial District of late March and April has shared little resemblance with the bustling city center that has long attracted headquarters and East Coast offices for a crowd of financial organizations. Streets usually packed with commuters are instead nearly empty as workforces commute from their laptops. While clean air and traffic-free streets are a welcome change from the norm, the physical environment of the Financial District and its many offices is an essential source of value to its business inhabitants. Workforces will need to come back to the neighborhood at scale – though when and how is still uncertain19– and it is important to provide safe, non-SOV alternatives so the City can continue to make progress toward the mobility goals set forth in GoBoston 203020 and the larger commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050.

To encourage commuters away from driving while containing the potential for rush hour MBTA crowding, employers and the City must collaborate on ways to encourage and validate options such as cycling and walking. Infrastructure that supports and protects these modes is a key tool. Though the streets within the Financial District have historically posed less traffic-related danger to cyclists than those of the South End21, pop-up cycling infrastructure could diminish the appeal of new SOV commuting habits by restricting road space for cars while opening it up for alternatives.

The growing Park & Pedal network,  a collaborative effort with businesses, non-profit organizations, and local governments led by Montague Bikes and DCR, provides a number of options for commuters from Boston’s suburbs to drive partway and cycle the last couple of miles into the Financial District,22 further legitimizing the option for commuters to leave their car outside of the City’s major employment center. Brookline’s recent approach to pop-up open streets infrastructure provides one example of how downtown lane closures could unfold. In the busy Coolidge Corner area, roads have been repainted to restrict traffic to the left lane and convert the right lane to parking. The previous parking lane is now a protected path for walking, cycling, and rolling.23

The Commonwealth Commutes Safely, Together

The Commonwealth is preparing to commute safely, together. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, more than 500,000 residents in Massachusetts relied on the MBTA to get to work every day.24 It is unclear how many people will take public transportation when they return to the workplace or find a new job. Responsive, safe, flexible pop-up infrastructure has a role to play and will be part of the new commuting solution.

In support of the four-phased reopening proposed by Governor Baker, A Better City recommends that pop-up bike lane infrastructure be considered as part of the commuting solution. Pilots in the South End and the Financial District where A Better City has active TMA programs could help the City of Boston assess the viability of this mitigation measure in particular as relates to safety and equity.

If pilots are implemented, the A Better City TMA programs in both areas could help communicate the initiative to its members, encourage use of the lanes as a commuting option, and potentially help collect data on user response.


SOURCES:
  1. 1The authors wish to underscore that the use of pop-up infrastructure must be equitable and ensure safe mobility spaces throughout the city and for all segments of the population. Their use should outweigh the need for, or support, dedicated bus lanes to facilitate rapid transit, and no neighborhood across the lanes served should lack adequate access to bikes. Further, cyclist and walkers should adhere to the physical distancing, PPE, and hygiene protocols for the reopening to ensure safe passage for all (see best practices from Bluebikes: Wash your hands before and after riding; Wear a face covering; and Stay at least six feet apart from others)
  2. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/05/12/portents-of-a-post-pandemic-walking-and-cycling-boom/
  3. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/04/10/dcr-to-block-drivers-from-more-parkways-in-boston-watertown/
  4. https://www.wgbh.org/news/local-news/2020/04/15/cambridge-closes-memorial-drive-to-cars-giving-more-space-for-outdoor-recreation
  5. https://usa.streetsblog.org/2017/12/12/boston-tests-faster-bus-service-simply-by-laying-out-orange-cones/
  6. https://www.boston.gov/news/permanent-bus-lane-be-established-washington-street-roslindale
  7. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/01/21/city-plans-to-clone-roslindales-washington-street-bus-lane/
  8. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/04/14/metro/brookline-changes-streets-ease-social-distancing-pedestrians/
  9. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/03/23/t-restores-early-morning-commuter-rail-trips-for-health-care-workers/
  10. https://observablehq.com/@vigorousnorth/key-mbta-bus-route-ridership-in-the-covid-19-pandemic
  11. https://www.boston.gov/news/discounted-garages-hospital-staff-boston#map--415771
  12. https://www.boston.gov/news/free-bluebikes-being-offered-hospital-staff
  13. https://www.bluebikes.com/system-data
  14. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/04/30/bluebikes-ridership-is-down-but-remains-busy-near-hospitals/
  15. The South End remains a notoriously dangerous neighborhood for cyclists. Even on currently low-traffic streets, a cyclist was killed by a driver at the intersection of Mass Ave and Harrison in late April (https://mass.streetsblog.org/2020/04/22/truck-driver-kills-bicyclist-on-mass-ave-in-south-end/)
  16. https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/05/08/its-time-for-chicago-to-adopt-open-street-promenades-during-pandemic-firm-says-but-neighborhood-input-is-essential/
  17. https://mass.streetsblog.org/2019/10/03/boston-planners-begin-outreach-for-mass-ave-upgrades-in-dorchester/
  18. https://citiesspeak.org/2020/03/23/moving-city-council-meetings-online-in-response-to-covid-19/
  19. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/05/11/metro/these-are-four-phases-mass-will-use-reopen-its-economy/
  20. https://www.boston.gov/departments/transportation/go-boston-2030
  21. https://bostoncyclistsunion.org/resources/interactive-crash-map
  22. https://www.parkandpedal.org/
  23. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/04/14/metro/brookline-changes-streets-ease-social-distancing-pedestrians/
  24. https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2017/12/06/MassDOT_TransportationFacts2015.pdf

 

 

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