Commonwealth Avenue Improvement Project

vanshnookenraggen said:
That is good news, but better would be the elimination of the stop entirely.
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Damnit, I knew there was something I forgot in my post.

Blandford street is one of the 10 busiest above ground stations, beaten by BU East, BU Central, Harvard Ave, Coolidge Corner and a couple others.

Its also a very important stop during red sox games.

Im all for consolidation of stops after the BU bridge, but Blandford street is necessary.


bosdevelopment said:
No way. Blandford is so integral to the BU fabric. Don't really see the point in widening the platform though. It serves its purpose as is. I guess it will look nicer.
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Its way to thin, its dangerous because of the small space between speeding cars and arriving trains. Theres also no shelter or signs..
 
Monday April 7.

Tomorrow is baseball day, and kenmore is going to be a shithole. The busway has been closed without warning

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Work on the new sidewalk is going surprisingly fast. They dug the hole and put in the sidewalk barriers in one week. Also, the trees have been delivered with much love and care.

I wonder why the sidewalk is so high up. Is it because of an expected rise in the road with a repaving, or is it a safety feature?

I did notice a missed opertunity to make the u-turn bidirectional. The idea came to me when I saw someone making an illegal turn back towards kenmore. Having a uturn for both directions would have solved the left turn problem on blandford.

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What a ridiculous, useless waste of space those planting beds are.
 
The Blandford Street T-Stop curb is a huge improvement.

I don't get the wasted space argument for the tree beds either--Paris, Brookyln, Chicago, all do them...
 
Those plantings just seem to be for show. It seems like a waste that this could have been a great place to redesign the curb to have a more sustainable runoff collection system using plantings.

But Boston isn't that progressive I guess.
 
vanshnookenraggen said:
Those plantings just seem to be for show. It seems like a waste that this could have been a great place to redesign the curb to have a more sustainable runoff collection system using plantings.

But Boston isn't that progressive I guess.
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Actualy Boston is now testing more porous material for roads and sidewalks.

How long did it take you to think up someting negative to say.
 
What's the need for the big overblown granite-walled plant-fortresses though? Want to plant trees, fine. Why can't they be planted at grade like most other trees on Boston's sidewalks? Are the people parking on Comm Ave meant to walk through the planters to get to the sidewalk? What is the rationale behind these things?
 
Just some thoughts about the cement border:

-much better for holding rainwater.
-protection for pop-sprinkler-heads or a sprinkler system if there is any.
-prevents mulch from running off during heavy rain.
-visual decoration; I think they look pretty good...really like the brickwork and the wooden benches.

They're doing similiar things here in Atlanta and it's primarily for water conservation.
 
They are designed to match the 'curb' on the other side of the sidewalk (moreso after they rust.)

This doesn't make them necessary, but I can see what they were going for.

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atlantaden said:
Just some thoughts about the cement border:
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Believe it or not that is granite. I don't know if it is 'real' granite but it is a reasonable facsimile.
 
Boston putting in sprinklers? hahahahaha.... hahaha

maybe the bigger beds will let the trees grow bigger though. Some big full trees in 25 years might be nice.
 
If sprinklers are being installed, i would bet it's by BU.

I think one advantage of the raised planters is that it allows the tree roots to grow without afecting the sidewalk.
 
Yes, they look and feel like real stone, but I'm no expert. I do like the material though, it's one thing which impressed me.

I like the larger planters. The tiny tree holes around the city arent very good. How many empty ones do you see where a tree has died and not been replaced? I feel the trees will be able to grow better in these things.

Also, they plan on adding bushes and probably grass so its not so dirty.

Ill take a picture of an older piece of sidewalk which has been around for a decade or so, it looks good. That block was redone when the Management building went up, and is not being touched by this project.
 
The dig goes on.

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Lets hope they trash the highway metal barrier, and hopefully even get rid of the fence hiding the T tracks, its so ugly.

Id like to dream of grass in the T median, but I know it isnt going to happen.
 
If by "grass" in the median you mean weed choked spit of neglected landscaping, I think you might get your wish. I wouldn't wish for grass until such time as the MBTA has the interest and funding to maintain such extravagance. For point of reference, look at the row of trees and grass that bookends the huntington avenue median. Two years ago the T installed trees and sod. In typical fashion the grass was neglected and soon became a sun scorched, overgrown embarassment. Incredibly the T has put down new sod. I'm pleasantly astounded if only because the stretch will look presentable for the next month until the cycle of neglect takes hold once again.
 
Isn't there grass along parts of the C down Beacon? The trees will have the biggest visual impact.
 
The plan is to "green" the trolley reservation on Comm Ave with trees and probably some grass too, similar to Huntington Ave. That obviously won't happen until they finish all the curb work on it first though.
 
Just got this update:

Commonwealth Avenue Project Update- April 11, 2008

Effective immediately, the left turn lane on the outbound side of Commonwealth Avenue at Sherborn Street has been permanently eliminated as part of the Commonwealth Avenue Improvement Project. The next left turn lane on the outbound side of Commonwealth Avenue is located at St. Mary?s Street in front of Marsh Chapel.

Facilities Management and Planning
 
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