Author: jsallen
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Comments on Connect Historic Boston
I’ve posted extensive comments on the Connect Historic Boston project. I am concerned about: safety issues; increase in bicycle travel times and congestion of motor traffic; the project’s degrading rather than improving access to North Station; its being designed as if Boston were a tourist attraction rather than an urban center, while on the other…
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Close Encounter on Washington Street
The City of Boston created a deadly hazard for bicyclists at the entrance to the Downtown Crossing pedestrian mall. Shortly after noticing it in time and avoiding a crash, I encountered a man responsible for the situation and got some pushback when I commented on it. Does Boston deserve its League of Amercian Bicyclists Bicycle…
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Report on Belmont Community Path Public Meeting, January 22, 2014
The Selectmen of the Town of Belmont appointed a Community Path Advisory Committee about a year ago, and held a public meeting about the Community Path, which I attended last night. The Community path would go east-west through Belmont, and would be a segment of the Mass Central Rail Trail, which when complete, would run…
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My Comments on the Cambridge Street Bridge project
My comment letter may be found at this URL. It is a PDF file. I agree with many of the suggestions made by other commenters, though not all, and I made some additional suggestions.
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About the shared-lane markings on Brighton Avenue…
I’m commenting here on the November 20, 2013 Boston Globe/boston.com article about “shared lane markings on steroids” on Brighton Avenue in the Allston section of Boston, as shown in this Boston Globe photo: The article may be addressed through libraries by going here and searching on <Boston sharrows steroids>. I have known Brighton Avenue for…
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My comments about Arlington Center
I’ve posted extensive comments about the proposed design for the Arlington Center gap in the Minuteman Commuter bikeway on my personal blog. In my opinion, the proposed design fails for bicyclists of all ages and levels of experience. I suggest designs which, in my opinion, would succeed. There will be a public meeting about the…
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About Bob Zeeb’s crash
Bob Zeeb was a teacher in the Newton Public Schools, a colleague of my wife’s. I feel compelled to set the record straight about his unfortunate death in a bicycle crash on November 10, 2009. From an e-mail message sent out today by Livable Streets: Bike4Life was founded by the Zeeb family in memory of…
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Report on Longfellow Bridge public meeting, July 10, 2013
I attended the Longfellow Bridge public meeting on July 10. The meeting started with an overview of the project by representatives of the consultants, then a description of Phase One of the project. Detour of outbound motor traffic is via Leverett Circle, where there will be signal timing and ped safety improvements. The route will…
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Truck-bicycle collision in Amherst kills Newton resident
Another fatal turnng truck-bicycle collision, in Amherst, Massachusetts [archived]. The bicyclist, Livingston Pangburn, age 22, was a former student of my wife, who taught math at Newton (Massachusetts) North High School. This was a left cross collision. The cyclist was going downhill and the truck, uphill. I don’t know details of this particular crash, but…
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You too can prevent fatal truck-bicycle collisions
I am sick at heart. Last December we lost Chris Weigl, graduate student in journalism at Boston University, a young man of great promise, killed when a semitrailer truck ran over him on Commonwealth Avenue near the BU campus. The green arrow approximates Weigl’s line of travel; the red arrow, the truck’s. (Also see larger…