Thursday, December 6, 2012
Boston officials and cycling advocates will present what specific areas of the city we should prioritize for barrier lanes at a hearing on Thursday.
Boston's leaders are continually looking to improve bicycling throughout the city. One of the biggest boosts to bicycling in Boston is the Hubway program, which affords anyone the opportunity to rent a bicycle at one of many neighborhood stations. While the winter is here, At-Large Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley is leading the pack on discussing bicycling infrastructure from the halls of the Boston City Council. Patch: You're leading a hearing on examining bicycling infrastructure in Boston on Thurs., Dec. 6 - what do you hope to accomplish from this hearing, and moving forward? Pressley: There have been a number of reported vehicle and bicycle collisions, including several that resulted in fatalities of cyclists. As I reflected …
A national organization of state transportation officials awarded the Massachusetts DOT with a high safety honor for highways, but does MBTA need to make the T safer?
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is now nationally recognized for higway safety leadership after receiving an award on Tuesday. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials has given MassDOT its 2012 Safety Leadership Award for “taking significant action” in reducing highway fatalities an injuries, according to a MassDOT statement. While the organization was recognized for highway safety, its public transportation sector experienced two negative incidents last week. A Green Line trolley collided with another trolley at Boylston Street Station last week sending passengers flying, and police are still searching for a man who struck a trolley operator at Fenway Station on Sunday. Do you feel MassDOT is …
Thursday, November 15, 2012
While city officials are still eager to partner with MIT helmet vendors HelmetHub, a fix to the lack of helmets on the Hubway is unclear.
Boston’s Hubway bicycle sharing system provided 650,000 trips in its first 12 months of operation, and while the program appears to be a success, there’s been one glaring omission: helmets. Kris Carter, interim director of Boston Bikes, said at a Jamaica Plain Business and Professional Association Meeting that a helmet system was supposed to be in place last fall but never came to pass. “The Mayor is aware of the need,” he said. Carter was at the meeting to pitch the idea of a Hubway station in Jamaica Plain, but a conversation on the system's lack of helmets erupted. He said Hubway officials are looking into teaming up with HelmetHub, an MIT-based company, which has created a helmet vending machine. Though the Hubway system has exceeded …
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Stop signs are not optional, but they're sometimes treated as if they are.
- LOCAL CONNECTIONS
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Saturday, September 22, 2012
There are hundreds of stop signs in Boston, but all too often, they are overlooked when drivers are in a rush. We have all seen it and probably many would admit of a stop sign roll-through at one point in time. Do you know of a location where a stop sign is frequently rolled through or ignored? Share where it is in the comments section, below. [Editor's note: This item is posted on all eight Boston Patch sites.]
Friday, September 14, 2012
Should the state intervene when drivers reach a certain age?
Last week, an elderly driver up in Malden crashed through a backyard and ended up in a pool. While this and other nationally publicized accidents raise public concerns about senior drivers, AAA says it is a myth that seniors are among the nation’s most dangerous. Instead, AAA's Jake Nelson said just the opposite is true. “Recent data tells us that drivers in their 70s get into about the same number of crashes per mile driven as do drivers in their 30s,” said Nelson, who is AAA’s director of Traffic Safety Advocacy and Research. “On average, drivers in their mid- to late-80s still have lower crash rates per mile driven than drivers in their early 20s, and roughly half the crash rates of teenagers — the nation’s riskiest drivers.” Nelson …
Ian Cooper
7:39 pm on Thursday, December 6, 2012
"Pressley: Recent studies show that a rider's chance of injury decreased by 50% when riding within a painted bike lane when compared to a normal street. The same study showed that the likelihood of injury decreases 90% when these bike lanes are protected by some type of barrier. " What's the betting that this 'study' only counted cyclist injuries to be connected with the bike facility if the … more ›