Scott reports somebody plastered car windshields at the Centre Street CVS today with fliers that declare West Roxbury the safest walking and bicycling neighborhood in the city and that the only reason the city is looking at reducing the number of travel lanes on the street is because of sinister "outside special interests."
As with the "coupons" included in a recent Valpak mailing, the flyers do not say who is paying for them, but at least this time, they spelled "neighborhood" correctly.
The fliers cite absolute numbers of Boston EMS incidents involving pedestrian and bicycle accidents, but do not take into account factors that might lead to an explanation for why West Roxbury's numbers are so low, such as other neighborhoods having higher overall populations than West Roxbury, higher numbers of people during the day due to greater concentrations of commercial and retail space, or higher numbers of people who don't own cars than in the city's most suburb-like neighborhood.
The city agreed in February to look at ways to make Centre Street from Holy Name Rotary to Spring Street safer after the death of a pedestrian from West Roxbury at Hastings Street, not because of any calls from bicyclists.
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Comments
Business Owner Parking
By Henry Alan (not...
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 6:36pm
Business owners who are jealous of losing a spot to park during the day are working against their own self interest. When they park in front of their stores, that spot doesn't turnover and therefore brings them no additional business. It works out to about $100,000 a year that they are losing by insisting on a spot for themselves. Frequent turnover is the key to succesful salesforce. Not to mention, a safer environment for non driving road users will also drive increased sales.
West Roxbury land of the
By thomas
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 7:09pm
West Roxbury land of the Nimby.
What's wrong with NIMBY
By redbaron
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 9:17pm
The People of West Roxbury have a lot invested in their real estate and history. What should they do? People grow up in a town and you tell them everything they do is wrong?? Why should they change.
Answer: to help save other people's lives
By Miss M
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 10:08pm
...but you've consistently demonstrated that you don't give a shit about anyone in this neighborhood but yourself, so I don't expect you actually wanted an answer to that last question.
what is all the fuss about?
By R
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 10:13pm
I don't think anyone really cares about trimming down centre street to one lane. what is the harm if it saves one life? In the theory of Isaac Newton, survival of the fittest.The weak businesses won't last with or without a road diet. Let's give it a shot. Since people are really mad at bikes.let's try it without bike lanes first, and then transition it into kid with tricycles, then parents with kids on the back of their bikes, then the annoying bike nuts. Since we instituted the traffic chaos in my town, there has only been 4 deaths from bad drivers n the last 4 years.
You aren't the only one who
By ZachAndTired
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 11:52pm
You aren't the only one who lives here. I cross Centre Street every day on my way to and from the train and I fear for my life every time I do. Making it safer isn't going to ruin the neighborhood.
Fear for your life???
By redbaron
Sun, 10/20/2019 - 8:58am
So when you get off the commuter rail, you are worrying about how to cross Centre Street?? really?
Circular
By cinnamngrl
Sun, 10/20/2019 - 11:11am
That's what this is about. Crossing the street without loss of life.
I’ve never seen an issue so
By Bill B
Fri, 10/18/2019 - 11:55pm
I’ve never seen an issue so clearly divide people by intelligence.
Not a town
By SwirlyGrrl
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 9:05pm
Part of a city. People from other parts of the city have a stake here, as do people from other cities and towns if this is state money involved.
WR is not a town.
Not now, anyway. Not for about 100 years.
It was ever thus
By 500Monkeys
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 6:45am
I'm having Post Traumatic Casey Overpass flashbacks.
Failure to consider anything outside your personal 3000-pound box on wheels? Check.
Small-c conservative resistance to change of any kind? Check.
Claims of disaster to come unsupported by data? Check.
Refusal to accept momentary inconvenience of any kind? Check.
Resentment of pedestrians and cyclists? Check.
My thoughts exactly !
By JP Runner
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 7:07am
As a daily car commuter , almost daily runner and occasional cyclist I am more than happy with the end result of the at grade solution. Balanced benefits for many various factions.
People fear change so much and only think of themselves - it’s shameful.
The True Agenda
By SamWack
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 8:35am
of the joint conspiracy of the Illuminati, the Elders of Zion, and the Deep State is revealed:
TODAY THE WORLD, TOMORROW WEST ROXBURY!
The Protocols ...
By jmeltzer
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 1:21pm
of The Deep State of Bicycling.
These Flyers are part of of a weird trend
By cinnamngrl
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 1:35pm
This road diet is a proposal to change infrastructure and the residents don't universally agree to it. I wish this could be an exchange of idea's backed up by records and engineering.
For me the fundamental beginning of this argument, is whether Centre Street evolved to a four car lane road with street parking organically to serve the needs of residents. To me, it did not. This road is very wide because it used to have 2 lanes of street cars, 2 lanes of car traffic and street parking. Street cars were abandoned mid 20th century when Boston's population was at it's highest, when car ownership was still relatively low. Over the past 70 years, Centre Street has been a 4 car lane road. During much of this time, Boston population was going down. Less local population= less pedestrians. During that time while the road was same because there were less locals, and the consequences were less. Now the city's population is growing and it will exceed the highest previous levels. It is no longer safe to have 4 cars lanes in an urban street. Change is hard.
I believe that in the long run we can move more people faster in alternative transportation. I think this proposal is backed by research and engineering. While it is possible that there is science and research that supports keeping Centre St as it is, that isn't what is being presented. Conspiracy theories are hard to fight. I am curious as to what end that serves the local residents.
What would happen if there was vote
By redbaron
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 2:14pm
I wonder if there was a vote among West Roxbury residents and business owners on the road diet plan, what would the result be. I say 3 to 1 vote of no road diet.
I disagree
By cinnamngrl
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 2:37pm
I guess it might be a surprise to you. Your arguments seem to come from some kind of bubble that doesn't allow information that you don't already agree with to be considered.
Also business owners (of which many are residents) don't get an extra vote. They can vote with their feet.
There was
By Bill B
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 8:25pm
There was. It was last month, 9/24. There was one candidate for city council at-large against the road diet. Marty Keough. And “against†is an understatement. He was the most vocal person at every meeting on the topic, even made a pathetic attempt to railroad the holy name meeting by taking the mic before they even called for speakers and trying to speak for the room claiming everyone came out to oppose it. The only thing worse than his strategy was his execution. Once he gave up the microphone over 30 people spoke in favor and versus a total of 5 against. He then spent the next couple months spewing lies online and trying to scare people into opposing the road diet.
After all that, he got trounced in the election in his home neighborhood with less than 12% of the vote. First time candidates that vocally favor the road diet moved into the final (Halbert, Mejia, St. Guillen). They earned plenty of votes in West Roxbury by supporting the road diet. If West Roxbury residents opposed the road diet 3/1 they’d have gone to vote for Keogh.
We have a representative government. We elect people based on their policy positions.
Trump got in
By redbaron
Sun, 10/20/2019 - 8:35am
TRUMP
JP Runner
By JP Runner
Sun, 10/20/2019 - 3:09pm
You are an incredibly lame person.
Is West Roxbury Paying For it?
By SwirlyGrrl
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 9:07pm
Or is the CITY of BOSTON and the COMMONWEALTH of MASSACHUSETTS paying for it?
This "I live in a town that's being picked on" shtick is getting really tiresome.
The Commonwealth ain't paying for it
By Waquiot
Sat, 10/19/2019 - 10:11pm
Which I guess means your opinion counts as much as my opinion on the residents only beach in your city does.
let's compromise, we'll keep
By anon
Mon, 10/21/2019 - 10:54am
let's compromise, we'll keep 4 lanes, but two of them become bus-only (since the mbta isn't about to start buying more streetcars) bikers and busses can share, that seems to work out well.
westie residents sure want to act like they're still living in 1950, let's go back all the way
Make Corinth Street One lane
By redbaron
Mon, 10/21/2019 - 10:23am
I just went through Roslindale Square and I wonder why Corinth St is 2 lanes very dangerous.
This would open up room from a dedicated bike lane, not just painted bike logo
Also in front of the Library, Washington St becomes 3 Lanes I think this is way too many lanes and very dangerous to cross. One person told me they feared for their lives trying to cross to get to commuter rail
corinth should be redesigned
By anon
Mon, 10/21/2019 - 10:57am
corinth should be redesigned to 1 lane car, separate bike/bus lane, and wider sidewalks. remove the parking to improve visibility all around. buy the BoA lot and turn it into another public lot as a replacement.
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