General Infrastructure

Should be a nice improvement, without squeezing the old Allston station there. The ramp will mostly replace the current grassy strip and retaining wall:
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Some interesting history: before the Pike, there was actually a pedestrian tunnel at Franklin Street, built around 1894 when the grade crossing was eliminated:
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Source: https://wardmapsgifts.com/products/brighton-massachusetts-1916-plate-019

And before that, there was a footbridge:
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The footbridge was probably built with the station in 1887. An 1885 map shows no footbridge next to the 1867-built station.
 
Stlin said:
I know we've historically derided Somerville's use of painted curb extensions as basically useless, so they're putting in actual raised refuge islands on Holland @ Cameron, and Cameron itself. They've also installed a bus stop island for the 85 & 87, in addition to planned raised crosswalks and actual curb extensions at Winter, the park, and Paulina, (feat. a bus stop bumpout) and bus lane segments. PDF presentation of improvements here.
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However, a few notes. While its better than paint or the solitary flexipost they previously had on the Cameron centerline to keep people from cutting that corner which lasted about 2 weeks before it got taken out, those refuge islands are notably low profile, with extremely generously chamfered corners (unlike the bus island). Something about the geometry feels unnatural, which would hopefully force slower more considered movement... but I hope they're going to get some flexipost toppers, because I've witnessed so many people clip these with their back wheel while turning, if not straight up run over them. I nearly did my first time through this at night, but while I'll withhold final judgement until after they repave and repaint, I still think this intersection needs a traffic light.
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As a traffic engineer, it pains me to see newly constructed islands where the curb reveal is less than 6" for no apparent reason. The use of sloped granite edging here (as opposed to vertical granite) is usually done to allow for some sort of vehicular accommodation (in this case it could be buses and/or trucks).


The justification for any potential traffic signal here would have to meet one of the MUTCD traffic signal warrants.
 
I assume that the Fire Department pushed for the low curbs to ease the movement of their trucks.
 
Stlin said:
I know we've historically derided Somerville's use of painted curb extensions as basically useless, so they're putting in actual raised refuge islands on Holland @ Cameron, and Cameron itself. They've also installed a bus stop island for the 85 & 87, in addition to planned raised crosswalks and actual curb extensions at Winter, the park, and Paulina, (feat. a bus stop bumpout) and bus lane segments. PDF presentation of improvements here.
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The bike lane really should be at sidewalk/island level here. Who is going to plow that tiny strip?
 
stick n move said:
See MassDOT’s Early Designs for a New Car-Free Bridge Over the Pike in Allston
AllstonBridge_RampOption1.png


“On Tuesday evening, MassDOT officials shared their conceptual designs for a new dedicated bike and pedestrian bridge over Interstate 90 near Franklin Street in Allston, a planned component of the planned Allston Multimodal Project.

An existing pedestrian overpass near Franklin Street already carries a substantial amount of bike and foot traffic over the Turnpike; according to the City of Boston’s bike traffic data, roughly one in three vehicles on Franklin Street north of the Turnpike is a bicycle on any given day.

But that bridge dates to a time before the Americans with Disabilities Act, and its steep ramps are generally inaccessible to wheelchair users (and make for leg-burning climbs for people on bikes). The southern end of the bridge also dumps bike riders onto a broken sidewalk on Cambridge Street, next to a crowded five-lane intersection that currently has no protected space for bike traffic.

As part of MassDOT’s Allston Multimodal Project, that old bridge will be replaced with a new car-free overpass that meets ADA standards and offers a smoother connection into the surrounding neighborhoods…”
https://mass.streetsblog.org/2022/0...new-car-free-bridge-over-the-pike-in-allston/
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I used to live in Brookline and work by Alewife - terrible commute walking, riding the 66, then taking the red line. Was always amused on warmer days when I took a blue bike from Harvard and managed to beat the bus home handily. The leg burning description of going up that ramp is an understatement, but boy did it keep me shredded for intermurals.
 
jass said:
The bike lane really should be at sidewalk/island level here. Who is going to plow that tiny strip?
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I agree it will take 1-2 men with shovels to clear the snow, leaves debris etc. However I think the problem here is drainage, when you install a bump-out here I believe the water presently flows from the location of the cones toward the photographer. (Or vice versa) If the bike lane is raised to sidewalk level you will have a large puddle/ice rink. They are probably trying to avoid installing new catch basins because that is expensive and disruptive. So they make the bike lane in the flow line of the gutter. Just my guess.
 
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Is the replacement of the Inner Belt Rd gerbil tubes programmed into any capital projects program? I imagine that the East Somerville station, even lacking direct access to that side of the tracks, will cause lab developers to eye the non-datacenter parcels in that area.
 
I'm not sure how much. With the station configuration, it's 3,200 feet from platform to the gerbil tubes. Unless the long-proposed BRT bridge is built using Inner Belt Road - unlikely, in my opinion - it's really not that transit accessible. I would expect to see the parcels along Joy and Linwood, and then along New Washington, see interest first.
 
So a question: does anyone know what these structures at the northern end of the Ted Williams Tunnels are currently used for?

I know historically there was a toll plaza here, explaining it's width, but they seem far too elaborate and large to have been a mere toll structure or maintenance depot - and never seems to have been fully utilized since the tunnels opening. Especially the south bound building, which on Transportation Way is signed as "Emergency Response Station" which looks to have 2 habitable floors and what looks uncommonly like 4 fire truck bays.

On a related note, If that was intended for a tunnel fire brigade, I don't think that BFD ever had one assigned? Was it ever used for that intended purpose? At least the street view as far back as 2009 shows that there is nothing behind those doors. The TWT predates the Mont Blanc Tunnel disaster, but it's public opening to non-commercial traffic in 03 was well after. There's been a few fires in that tunnel since - what other mitigating factors would have been needed to justify not staffing the response center it was apparently designed with?
 
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Stlin said:
I know historically there was a toll plaza here, explaining it's width, but they seem far too elaborate and large to have been a mere toll structure or maintenance depot - and never seems to have been fully utilized since the tunnels opening. Especially the south bound building, which on Transportation Way is signed as "Emergency Response Station" which looks to have 2 habitable floors and what looks uncommonly like 4 fire truck bays.
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For what it's worth, it shows up on the map of Emergency Response Stations in this Boston Globe article (from 2018, caution, paywall, sorry). [The gist of the article is that the State Police had (has?) a bunch of emergency response stations that were staffed purely on an overtime basis (one of the tidbits of information that trickled out from their whole massive overtime debacle), and this appears to be one of them. Seems kind of big (and, on the northern end, kind of windowless) for that, but apparently that was at least part of its purpose. The cylindrical portion in the center, and the matching one across the way, were part of the toll plaza (basically its access points).
 
Stlin said:
So a question: does anyone know what these structures at the northern end of the Ted Williams Tunnels are currently used for?

I know historically there was a toll plaza here, explaining it's width, but they seem far too elaborate and large to have been a mere toll structure or maintenance depot - and never seems to have been fully utilized since the tunnels opening. Especially the south bound building, which on Transportation Way is signed as "Emergency Response Station" which looks to have 2 habitable floors and what looks uncommonly like 4 fire truck bays.

On a related note, If that was intended for a tunnel fire brigade, I don't think that BFD ever had one assigned? Was it ever used for that intended purpose? At least the street view as far back as 2009 shows that there is nothing behind those doors. The TWT predates the Mont Blanc Tunnel disaster, but it's public opening to non-commercial traffic in 03 was well after. There's been a few fires in that tunnel since - what other mitigating factors would have been needed to justify not staffing the response center it was apparently designed with?
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I dunno. There was a lot of loosey-goosey stuff going on over there back then.
Hey, Troop F (F Troop?) I'm looking at you!
 
Brattle Loop said:
For what it's worth, it shows up on the map of Emergency Response Stations in this Boston Globe article (from 2018, caution, paywall, sorry). [The gist of the article is that the State Police had (has?) a bunch of emergency response stations that were staffed purely on an overtime basis (one of the tidbits of information that trickled out from their whole massive overtime debacle), and this appears to be one of them. Seems kind of big (and, on the northern end, kind of windowless) for that, but apparently that was at least part of its purpose. The cylindrical portion in the center, and the matching one across the way, were part of the toll plaza (basically its access points).
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Society of fear, keep talking about the threat to the public from X, keep the public coffers flowing to an ever-expanding security apparatus. 9/11 was a cash cow for the security class, including in Mass.
 
Stlin said:
So a question: does anyone know what these structures at the northern end of the Ted Williams Tunnels are currently used for?

I know historically there was a toll plaza here, explaining it's width, but they seem far too elaborate and large to have been a mere toll structure or maintenance depot - and never seems to have been fully utilized since the tunnels opening. Especially the south bound building, which on Transportation Way is signed as "Emergency Response Station" which looks to have 2 habitable floors and what looks uncommonly like 4 fire truck bays.

On a related note, If that was intended for a tunnel fire brigade, I don't think that BFD ever had one assigned? Was it ever used for that intended purpose? At least the street view as far back as 2009 shows that there is nothing behind those doors. The TWT predates the Mont Blanc Tunnel disaster, but it's public opening to non-commercial traffic in 03 was well after. There's been a few fires in that tunnel since - what other mitigating factors would have been needed to justify not staffing the response center it was apparently designed with?
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My understanding is that they were originally going to be used for tunnel fire protection, but there was some issues between MassPort and Boston about which FD was going to staff them. In the end, Boston FD handles it from their current stations. I believe they're now used by DOT.
 
Is there a navigation app that can tell trucks to not use roads where trucks are prohibited (eg most parkways and some designated streets that would otherwise be cut-through) or streets with low clearance (eg Memorial & Storrow)?

I ask not just because of recent/annual low clearance collisions (I-93@Medford, Storrowing) but also lots of box trucks on the”no trucks” parkways (Amazon, who should know better but also home contractors)
 
reno said:
Enforcement of no truck bans these days is pretty much non-existent, until the offender causes an accident. Take a ride on Route 495 nowadays and watch all the tractor trailers ignoring the left lane ban.
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Had a Wal-Mart 18 wheeler doing 85 in the left lane a couple of weeks ago who got really aggressive with me. He was in the left lane with the middle and right lanes wide open.
 
"Woman suffers serious injuries after Moakley Bridge light pole falls on her

"Police said the woman was reported to be in stable condition when she was taken to the hospital.

"A woman was seriously injured Tuesday afternoon when a light pole on the Moakley Bridge fell on her.

"Boston police said officers responded to the report around 2:56 p.m. The woman was reported to be in stable condition, with injuries that were serious but not life-threatening, when she was transported to the hospital.

"Police said the city’s lighting division responded to the scene as well.

"In a statement Wednesday afternoon, a city spokesperson said the city “prioritizes the safety of its residents and visitors.”..."

More at https://www.boston.com/news/local-n...e-light-pole-falls-on-her/?p1=hp_featurestack
 
OldColony said:
"Woman suffers serious injuries after Moakley Bridge light pole falls on her
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This is maddening. I have noticed the horrible condition of every single light fixture's anchor point every time I've crossed this bridge, and even pointed it out to people I'm walking with as a fun bit of trivia about the role of metals in concrete decay, noting with some horror how such a new bridge (in the scheme of Boston) is in such an advanced and unchecked state of decay. Of course, I'm not a City structural engineer. Surely someone's job is to periodically notice or inspect this kind of thing? Or are things like (i.e.) the bridges over the Pike from the South End really just going to collapse one day and kill people because nobody is inspecting the condition of the crumbling supports?
 
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MjolnirMan said:
This is maddening. I have noticed the horrible condition of every single light fixture's anchor point every time I've crossed this bridge, and even pointed it out to people I'm walking with as a fun bit of trivia about the role of metals in concrete decay, noting with some horror how such a new bridge (in the scheme of Boston) is in such an advanced and unchecked state of decay. Of course, I'm not a City structural engineer. Surely someone's job is to periodically notice or inspect this kind of thing? Or are things like (i.e.) the bridges over the Pike from the South End really just going to collapse one day and kill people because nobody is inspecting the condition of the crumbling supports?
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I'd encourage you to have a "if you see something, say something" approach because, I suspect that the Light Department looks mostly at bulbs for "on/off" and the Bridge Department doesn't look at lights, so, no, it is rarely safe to assume that an inspector has seen what you've seen and/or that "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" in these things for as long as wheels have had wheel inspectors.
 
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