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Wow, quite a list from MassBike of bike rights and rules, like I didn't know, for example, that cyclists are *required* to give an audible signal when overtaking a pedestrian.
Biking in Boston
- Thread starter statler
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Cars are heavy machinery. One must be licensed for the privilege to operate that heavy machinery on the public ways and one must demonstrate that they can operate it safely in order to obtain a license. If one demonstrates the inability safely operate heavy machinery on the public ways by jeopardizing the safety of the general public and other users of the public ways, that privilege should be revoked until they can demonstrate ability to operate safely. If one repeatedly demonstrates the inability to safely operate heavy machinery on the public ways, they should be permanently barred from doing so.
bigeman312
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I have a specific question:
When riding towards Davis Square from the East, along the Somerville Community Path (SCP), with the intention of connecting to remainder of the SCP on the west side of Davis Square, what have you done to quickly, safely and effectively bridge this gap? I am asking for people who have actual experience with this segment. I attempt this every single day, and have tried many combinations, but have yet to come up with a foolproof, effective system that consistently works without a long-delay or awkward/unsafe interaction.
Also, the same question is posed for the return trip. With all of the one-ways and intricacies of this area, these two directions each pose a unique situation.
My goals:
1. Legal or de-facto legal (as in, biking in the right direction in an empty busway is fine, biking across the cross walk against the signal is not)
2. Safe for pedestrians
3. Speed
4. Safe for me
5. Not causing delay for others
If preferable, I will bust out a map. I'm going to hold off on stating the ways in which I traverse this square to elicit creative responses. I'm sure I'm not the only one on here who has pondered the best way to cross Davis Square on bike.
Thoughts? I'm not interested in non-cyclist drivers and/or pedestrians telling me what they think I "should" do. I want practical, specific answers from experience.
EDIT: A quick "Paint"-job:
When riding towards Davis Square from the East, along the Somerville Community Path (SCP), with the intention of connecting to remainder of the SCP on the west side of Davis Square, what have you done to quickly, safely and effectively bridge this gap? I am asking for people who have actual experience with this segment. I attempt this every single day, and have tried many combinations, but have yet to come up with a foolproof, effective system that consistently works without a long-delay or awkward/unsafe interaction.
Also, the same question is posed for the return trip. With all of the one-ways and intricacies of this area, these two directions each pose a unique situation.
My goals:
1. Legal or de-facto legal (as in, biking in the right direction in an empty busway is fine, biking across the cross walk against the signal is not)
2. Safe for pedestrians
3. Speed
4. Safe for me
5. Not causing delay for others
If preferable, I will bust out a map. I'm going to hold off on stating the ways in which I traverse this square to elicit creative responses. I'm sure I'm not the only one on here who has pondered the best way to cross Davis Square on bike.
Thoughts? I'm not interested in non-cyclist drivers and/or pedestrians telling me what they think I "should" do. I want practical, specific answers from experience.
EDIT: A quick "Paint"-job:
Last edited:
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Great question. My experience has been similarly frustrating.
My solution (once every 2 weeks) has been to walk my bike across at the worst part of the pedestrian herds (but they move right along), basically from one subway headhouse to the other.
If I'm going uphill to Teele Sq, then I switch to the one-way behind Tedeschis. I have no way of getting back, though ;-)
I don't see the actual number in the article, but it says the bicycle crash rate is down in Cambridge. I view that as a clear success, and I'm surprised it wasn't highlighted even more in the article.
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I usually go through the Busway and hope I catch the signal. Otherwise it's a long wait, or waiting for the ped cycle.
JumboBuc
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I have a specific question:
When riding towards Davis Square from the East, along the Somerville Community Path (SCP), with the intention of connecting to remainder of the SCP on the west side of Davis Square, what have you done to quickly, safely and effectively bridge this gap? I am asking for people who have actual experience with this segment. I attempt this every single day, and have tried many combinations, but have yet to come up with a foolproof, effective system that consistently works without a long-delay or awkward/unsafe interaction.
Also, the same question is posed for the return trip. With all of the one-ways and intricacies of this area, these two directions each pose a unique situation.
My goals:
1. Legal or de-facto legal (as in, biking in the right direction in an empty busway is fine, biking across the cross walk against the signal is not)
2. Safe for pedestrians
3. Speed
4. Safe for me
5. Not causing delay for others
If preferable, I will bust out a map. I'm going to hold off on stating the ways in which I traverse this square to elicit creative responses. I'm sure I'm not the only one on here who has pondered the best way to cross Davis Square on bike.
Thoughts? I'm not interested in non-cyclist drivers and/or pedestrians telling me what they think I "should" do. I want practical, specific answers from experience.
EDIT: A quick "Paint"-job:
I usually go left through the parking lot at the end of the path, right on Highland, wait with traffic at the light in the center of the square, pull off to the right in front of JP Licks on Holland and walk across the crosswalk. Sometimes I ride through the busway and cross College Ave with pedestrians, but waiting for that light gets frustrating.
Coming back, I usually just use the crosswalk (on foot) and cut through the square to the crosswalk in front of Tedeschi's, then down the path. I've tried going right on Holland, continue with traffic onto Elm, left on Grove, across Highland (not easy!), then right on the path, but this always seems to take forever.
I do an on-road route through Davis Square:
Going west, I go left through the parking lot next to Rite Aid, right onto Highland Ave, left onto Dover St, right onto Meacham Rd, right onto Buena Vista Rd, then left onto the path.
Going east, I take the path right up to Holland St, right onto Holland St, continue on Elm St, left onto Grove St, continue past Highland Ave, right into the parking lot in back of Rite Aid and straight onto the path. (Alternately, if I know the path near the Holland St headhouse is going to be particularly full of pedestrians, I'll go left onto Buena Vista Rd and then right onto Holland St.)
Going west, I go left through the parking lot next to Rite Aid, right onto Highland Ave, left onto Dover St, right onto Meacham Rd, right onto Buena Vista Rd, then left onto the path.
Going east, I take the path right up to Holland St, right onto Holland St, continue on Elm St, left onto Grove St, continue past Highland Ave, right into the parking lot in back of Rite Aid and straight onto the path. (Alternately, if I know the path near the Holland St headhouse is going to be particularly full of pedestrians, I'll go left onto Buena Vista Rd and then right onto Holland St.)
You know, this actually happens, I have that same exact thought whenever I have the misfortune of hitting 'weekend rush hour' at a grocery store. Everyone just pushing their carts every which way like it's a free-for-all roller derby. Maybe not as much swearing and flipping off, but the "people in larger crowds are sheep" mentality does show up. No, you can't run over my foot with your cart, lady, and no, I have as much of a right to be in this aisle as you are.
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Studies show that the more "anonymous" drivers are and the less human connection they feel, the worse (and less-cooperative) they behave toward anyone else (motorist, cyclist, or pedestrian)
Most of us experience this in the "don't make eye contact" and "pretend you don't see them" style of driving.
One of the reasons that crowded pedestrian settings "work" (or work better) is that the impersonal bubble breaks down, and its kind of like a herd immunity thing: all it takes is "enough" cooperative people and the flow mostly works (despite the anti-social people)
Its also why "I waved at you, you have to let me in" works at merges.
I think that one reason to wear bright colors and flashing lights as a cyclists is that it, for most honest people, once they've seen the "visibility gear" they can't drive like they didn't see you and can't treat you as inhuman because you've made a connection, even if only on the level of:
they saw you
you know they saw you
they know that you know they saw you
they know you cared to be seen enough to risk looking ridiculous
they will catch themselves thinking about what you're thinking...and that's the connection.
It isn't as good as eye contact, but the funny thing is, the brighter your lights and clothes are as a cyclist, the more the motorists feel like they're being "watched" which sets up a certain dissonance in drivers in which they can't "pretend they don't see you" because "you know they know you know they saw you"
So get another headlight and another flasher, and let them know we know they saw us.
Oh, and with trucks, if you can't see their mirrors, they really can't see you, so ride where you can see their mirrors (I saw one guy this AM on Beacon doing this 100% right and one lady doing it all wrong.
Most of us experience this in the "don't make eye contact" and "pretend you don't see them" style of driving.
One of the reasons that crowded pedestrian settings "work" (or work better) is that the impersonal bubble breaks down, and its kind of like a herd immunity thing: all it takes is "enough" cooperative people and the flow mostly works (despite the anti-social people)
Its also why "I waved at you, you have to let me in" works at merges.
I think that one reason to wear bright colors and flashing lights as a cyclists is that it, for most honest people, once they've seen the "visibility gear" they can't drive like they didn't see you and can't treat you as inhuman because you've made a connection, even if only on the level of:
they saw you
you know they saw you
they know that you know they saw you
they know you cared to be seen enough to risk looking ridiculous
they will catch themselves thinking about what you're thinking...and that's the connection.
It isn't as good as eye contact, but the funny thing is, the brighter your lights and clothes are as a cyclist, the more the motorists feel like they're being "watched" which sets up a certain dissonance in drivers in which they can't "pretend they don't see you" because "you know they know you know they saw you"
So get another headlight and another flasher, and let them know we know they saw us.
Oh, and with trucks, if you can't see their mirrors, they really can't see you, so ride where you can see their mirrors (I saw one guy this AM on Beacon doing this 100% right and one lady doing it all wrong.
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Arlington--you're spot on. Cars can make otherwise nice people behave poorly by giving them sense of protection and, I'd argue, power.
I used to have a very, very long bike commute, part of which was out in the sticks on two lane roads with no shoulder. The commute justified making an investment in lights. I bought a Dinotte tail light. It's insanely bright--much too bright for use on bike paths, and a bit obnoxious for use in the city. But when it's on, day or night, cars give me a wider berth. It's remarkable.
I used to have a very, very long bike commute, part of which was out in the sticks on two lane roads with no shoulder. The commute justified making an investment in lights. I bought a Dinotte tail light. It's insanely bright--much too bright for use on bike paths, and a bit obnoxious for use in the city. But when it's on, day or night, cars give me a wider berth. It's remarkable.
I have a specific question:
This is a sore point for Friends of the Community Path and has been a topic of debate with City Hall for years.
Short answer: there is no legal way to bike a straight line across the square at this point. The City's recommended route is to do one of two things (coming from the east):
1) Walk your bike the quarter mile from where the path ends at the pharmacy parking lot to where it begins again at Seven Hills Park.
2) Stay on the bus lane and negotiate mixed traffic until you reach Holland St. Then (seriously) walk your bike to where the path begins again at the end of Seven Hills Park.
Below is the latest update from FOTCP on planned changes to this area of Davis. The area is undergoing a Somerville-by-Design reworking like other neighborhoods. The Sarah Spicer referenced is a very nice member of the city's planning team.
------
http://pathfriends.org/scp/FCP minutes 2014-09-08_01LynnAlan.pdf
Latest (4/30/2014) Davis Square plans/Path
• 'Wayfinding and Multi-use Path' includes a 1/5 mile(!) "Walk-your-bike" section from Grove St/
(and MBTA busway) all the way to Buena Vista Rd (Path at Seven Hills Park):
http://www.somervillema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/somerville-by-design-update-05-09-2014.pdf
• Busway sidewalk was originally made wide to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians, but this plan
revises that to make it a “walk your bike” section.
• Grove Street access not included but according to Sarah, the gate will be replaced with bollards as
part of another project
• From Sarah Spicer:
• Davis Square: “This has been discussed at every meeting for the project. Alternatives have
been discussed, vetted, and incorporated where possible. Busway sidewalk is for pedestrians
including those walking bikes. The on-road option is the alternative for those who do not want
to walk their bike, and is intended to be signed as such.”
• “Grove Street gate is a known issue that is not within the project limits and will be
addressed separately.”
EDIT: To fix URL
I only rode through there once, but I bypassed the square entirely in favor of the neighborhood streets. Outbound I ditched at Thorndike Street, filtered south to Orchard Street, rode that east to Beech Street, made a right-left on Elm, and then took Willow Ave north to reconnect with the path.
Inbound I ditched the path at Willow Ave, went north to Morrison Ave, took that west to College Ave, south to Winter St and then took Buena Vista Road to reconnect with the path.
Kind of out of the way, but I vastly prefer riding a bit further on quiet residential streets then try to navigate through a bunch of impatient cars, signalized intersections, and oblivious pedestrians. I'm sure the route could be refined after a bit of riding.
Inbound I ditched the path at Willow Ave, went north to Morrison Ave, took that west to College Ave, south to Winter St and then took Buena Vista Road to reconnect with the path.
Kind of out of the way, but I vastly prefer riding a bit further on quiet residential streets then try to navigate through a bunch of impatient cars, signalized intersections, and oblivious pedestrians. I'm sure the route could be refined after a bit of riding.
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Ok, people, its now 17 MONTHS of construction for a path that's 10' wide and 2200' long. Shouldn't it be done by now? "Late 2014 indeed.
Everyone involved knows this is an embarrassment. The city's promising (promising!) it will be open by Nov 30. A couple things bogged this one down: there were reportedly some soil issues, back-and-forth over clean-up responsibility with Maxwell's Green, and some important folks on the contract took a break for a few months to go.
I will be counting the days between official opening and the furtive cutting of a trail along the ridge connecting this point to Somerville Junction Park. It's just 550 feet but it will take another six years to get linked.
I will be counting the days between official opening and the furtive cutting of a trail along the ridge connecting this point to Somerville Junction Park. It's just 550 feet but it will take another six years to get linked.
F-Line to Dudley
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Heh...people have been "using" the path extension for over 2 years now since they barely ever locked the truck access gates during Maxwell's Green construction. Did it myself a couple times.
I attended the Green Line Extension meeting on Tuesday. They spoke about the new Lechmere Station and HYM was there to discuss the reconfiguration of McGrath Highway (they call it McGrath Boulevard). They are going to install cycle tracks from the Gilmore Bridge up to Third Street in Cambridge. The hope is that Boston and Somerville will continue this on their ends of the project.
paperless paul
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Normally I'm a biker. But the last few weeks I've been a driver, including this afternoon during the early afternoon dusk and the rain where visibility was very low.
Bikers in Boston really need to get with the program in terms of visibility - lights AND reflective clothing (seems like Cambridge is worse?). I passed 18 out of 20 cyclists at least with no lights, no reflectors, and many here seem to like black as a color for tops, jackets, backpacks. These cyclists are basically invisible in a driver's rear view.
Since this point was raised a month ago and most people on this Board are probably already responsible riders, there's no point in preaching to the choir. So I'll ask a question instead:
Why do you think the biker's here (i.e. Boston, Cambridge, New England, US) bike like this? This characteristic has been a shock to me coming from a London urban biking / commuting perspective where in general bikers are far more responsible.
Bike commuters generally look like this:
You see in these pictures many 60% to 80% are wearing helmets and 50% are wearing high viz clothing even though it is broad daylight. I couldn't easily find night pictures for obvious reasons, but generally more than 80%/90% of bikers at night would have lights.
So why the difference?
It's not because of enforcement.
It's not because riding there is particularly more dangerous.
There is a notion in the UK that there is an excessive 'Health and Safety' culture. Although it doesn't seem to be that different than can be found here.
I would highly recommend these types of highly reflective jackets/shirts and similar for backpacks. If you were a biker why would you not want to leave any question about your visibility to a driver?
Bikers in Boston really need to get with the program in terms of visibility - lights AND reflective clothing (seems like Cambridge is worse?). I passed 18 out of 20 cyclists at least with no lights, no reflectors, and many here seem to like black as a color for tops, jackets, backpacks. These cyclists are basically invisible in a driver's rear view.
Since this point was raised a month ago and most people on this Board are probably already responsible riders, there's no point in preaching to the choir. So I'll ask a question instead:
Why do you think the biker's here (i.e. Boston, Cambridge, New England, US) bike like this? This characteristic has been a shock to me coming from a London urban biking / commuting perspective where in general bikers are far more responsible.
Bike commuters generally look like this:
You see in these pictures many 60% to 80% are wearing helmets and 50% are wearing high viz clothing even though it is broad daylight. I couldn't easily find night pictures for obvious reasons, but generally more than 80%/90% of bikers at night would have lights.
So why the difference?
It's not because of enforcement.
It's not because riding there is particularly more dangerous.
There is a notion in the UK that there is an excessive 'Health and Safety' culture. Although it doesn't seem to be that different than can be found here.
I would highly recommend these types of highly reflective jackets/shirts and similar for backpacks. If you were a biker why would you not want to leave any question about your visibility to a driver?
I'm under the impression that a lot of european countries have a much better "base" for cyclists when they arrive at their destination. At the least a safe place to lock up and/or store the reflective vests, helmets, etc; at the best: showers. Bicycles sold there are also typically preconfigured with racks, lights, and fenders.
You rarely have that here. So when you cycle to work/class/date/shopping/whatever, you're wearing your street clothes out the necessity that there is no where to go with a change of attire. This is further compounded by Boston's often-mocked preference for black and grey clothing. The overwhelming majority of cyclists here are also riding legacy road bikes from the 70s built for racing, and even for those who are not you rarely if ever see an urban utility bike for sale. Most bike shops only have mountain bikes, BMX, spandex-wearing road bikes, and "hipster" bikes. A hubway-styled commuter bike is something you rarely if ever see in the display window.
Think about it practically too. When I ride my bike to go out to a bar, I don't want to have an construction vest and helmet under my arm the whole time, or a massive messenger bag that I hit everyone with to keep everything in. When I ride to class or work, I need the space in my bag for school/work related things, I don't have room for much else.
Of course, I make up for this with defensive riding techniques and more lights than a christmas tree, but I do ride in dark brown and black the majority of the time. I think as cycling culture expands and bicycle support expands beyond "there's a bike rack out there... somewhere" you will see a shift. Hell, we only started striping bike lanes less than a decade ago.
You rarely have that here. So when you cycle to work/class/date/shopping/whatever, you're wearing your street clothes out the necessity that there is no where to go with a change of attire. This is further compounded by Boston's often-mocked preference for black and grey clothing. The overwhelming majority of cyclists here are also riding legacy road bikes from the 70s built for racing, and even for those who are not you rarely if ever see an urban utility bike for sale. Most bike shops only have mountain bikes, BMX, spandex-wearing road bikes, and "hipster" bikes. A hubway-styled commuter bike is something you rarely if ever see in the display window.
Think about it practically too. When I ride my bike to go out to a bar, I don't want to have an construction vest and helmet under my arm the whole time, or a massive messenger bag that I hit everyone with to keep everything in. When I ride to class or work, I need the space in my bag for school/work related things, I don't have room for much else.
Of course, I make up for this with defensive riding techniques and more lights than a christmas tree, but I do ride in dark brown and black the majority of the time. I think as cycling culture expands and bicycle support expands beyond "there's a bike rack out there... somewhere" you will see a shift. Hell, we only started striping bike lanes less than a decade ago.
I think that location matters. If you look at the Boston Bikes statistics page you'll notice startling differences depending upon location. For example, I did the BU Bridge this year and I observed that nearly everyone (85%ish) wore a helmet. That surprised me. But I looked up past years and it was true then too.
I find that the people riding the Esplanade at night seem to usually be well outfitted with lights, I think they are hardened commuters doing their thing.
I dunno -- I think that some of it is lack of awareness of how easy it is to get a light and how invisible you really are. I just got two more lights in the mail today -- I forgot I ordered them on the slow boat from China... but they only cost me a few bucks apiece.
Regarding reflective clothing ... you know, I have like 6 light sources on my bike+helmet. Do I really need reflective clothing in addition to all that stuff blinking and flashing? I've thought about getting a triangle thingy that folds up easily. Maybe next week.
Lights are fun though, and they're cheap so I don't really care if someone is an asshole and steals them. Plus there's two on my helmet that comes with me. Some of them I can loop a cable through if I'm really worried.
I find that the people riding the Esplanade at night seem to usually be well outfitted with lights, I think they are hardened commuters doing their thing.
I dunno -- I think that some of it is lack of awareness of how easy it is to get a light and how invisible you really are. I just got two more lights in the mail today -- I forgot I ordered them on the slow boat from China... but they only cost me a few bucks apiece.
Regarding reflective clothing ... you know, I have like 6 light sources on my bike+helmet. Do I really need reflective clothing in addition to all that stuff blinking and flashing? I've thought about getting a triangle thingy that folds up easily. Maybe next week.
Lights are fun though, and they're cheap so I don't really care if someone is an asshole and steals them. Plus there's two on my helmet that comes with me. Some of them I can loop a cable through if I'm really worried.