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Citizen complaint of the day: Eldridge terror in Jamaica Plain
By adamg on Tue, 07/07/2020 - 9:37am
A concerned citizen files a 311 complaint about the crosswalk on Hyde Park Avenue at Eldridge Road in Jamaica Plain:
Every time a person crosses the street you get trapped in the middle of Hyde Park Ave terrified you're going to get run over. Vehicles do NOT stop for pedestrians. Please do something to force vehicles to stop for pedestrians before someone gets hurt.
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Comments
At least do the flashing lights like Centre St by the Arbs
Those flashing lights w/o a stop light seem to be ok, generally cars will stop if not immediately. You certainly need to be very cautious when crossing still. I assume they are cheaper to deploy than a stop light? Or have less DOT studies needed or something?
Really though, more stop lights on Hyde Park Ave would be good in general, especially from the Pagel to Walk Hill St. (and a bus lane and a bike line)
Idiotic Rebuilding
Hyde Park Avenue was rebuilt to NASCAR standards about 15 years ago by the Menino Administration. Lots of new lines and medians but that appeared to actually increase car speeds between Walk Hill and the Eversource substation.
Not good for people, a poor example on how to engineer an urban roadway.
People Won't Stop for lights..
...they barely give you room to ride a bike down that street. It's fast and dangerous.
What did it look like before?
What did it look like before?
Flashing lights are a waste of money.
They just get ignored same as pedestrian crossing signs.
What is needed is better infrastructure that discourages speeding and tickets issued carrying heavy fines.
Flashing lights are a waste of money.
They just get ignored same as pedestrian crossing signs.
What is needed is better infrastructure that discourages speeding and tickets issued carrying heavy fines.
I've heard the City say they
I've heard the City say they are considering converting the right lane in each direction into a bus/bike lane. I think that would help a lot. It would reduce the double threat of the car in the first lane stopping for a pedestrian and a car in the second lane not stopping.
"Considering"
Marty "considered" that for Centre Street in West Roxbury too. That means he's going to repaint the crosswalk and "consider" the problem solved.
Open positions
I hear the city has open positions for traffic engineers and Neighborhood Liaison coordinator. Since you obviously have all the answers to ace those easy jobs, I hope you're applying.
Not that they are actually hiring for
I know someone who is a traffic engineer and has applied.
They hold the positions because it saves bureaucracy when they actually are able to hire, but they aren't currently filling those positions.
Already engineered
More engineers and liaisons won't help when the real solution they had already proposed has been vetoed by Marty "I'm a car guy" Walsh in favor of painting a few lines on the street.
The easy job Marty could have aced was to just step out of the way and let the professionals in the transportation department complete the job they were prepared to do.
They just should have done it, right?
Just like the highway they were going to build next to Hyde Park Ave.
How dare the people of West Roxbury stand against progress!
Reading comprehension
Try reading the BTD presentation instead of comparing it to a fictional "highway". Dropping passing lanes in favor of a left turn lane is hardly creating a highway, and it removes a major hazard.
As for the people of West Roxbury, a majority of us wanted the problem fixed and showed up to support doing that. But Marty's NIMBY constituency are the ones who get a veto.
Yeah, they should have just done it. Because then the problem would have been solved and everyone would have been wondering what all the fuss had been about and why it hadn't been fixed long ago. Nothing worthwhile will get done when all it takes is a handful of NIMBY trolls to derail it so they can continue speeding and double-parking.
Sigh
Read up on the Southwest Expressway and it’s associated project, the Inner Belt. If you have never heard about it, it’s because some NIMBYs got it cancelled.
As for the failed project you are obsessed with, there was clearly no consensus. As for who was in the majority, that is wholly subjective. I happened to support the West Roxbury project, but when I would note possible issues with it on this website, the chorus would chime in saying the objections were wrong. That’s not how one builds support for a project.
I don't know why there needs
I don't know why there needs to be consensus on well established engineering practices for creating safer streets. And since it's just paint, it's very easy to make the changes as a pilot and see how it goes.
Because
If the community doesn't want it, why ram it through?
Again, perhaps not the best comparison, but the Southwest Expressway was well engineered, and it would have succeeded in taking cars off the road this article is actually about, but for some reason the community got it in their head that a giant highway running from the South End to Canton via Hyde Park was not a good idea. That the West Roxbury idea was a good one is immaterial. In a responsive government, you don't foist things on a community.
LOL
Yeah sure, that's the exact same thing as traffic calming measures.
HA, of course! That must be why you're "obsessed" with derailing a similar project in JP:
No worries. Nothing is going to get fixed on Marty's watch if it might slow down a NIMBY pickup truck.
What happens when one assumes?
It they neighbors like whatever the city has proposed, so be it. I'll assume you don't give a donkey's behind about what the people of JP think, right? Because what the people want, well, that doesn't mean anything in your view of the world.
Research and engineering are done
The solution is sitting on the shelf. The city put plenty of money into studying it and designed a solution for West Roxbury. But here in Marty Walsh’s city and Matt O’Malley’s district, all it takes is whiny people to stop solutions. Apparently to get your way you need to spread lies to create opposition, have a big whine fest, and act childish.
Facts, expert research, and evidence only apply to Covid-19, climate change, and sunscreen.
I guess the question is
What to the people living along Hyde Park Ave think of the plans?
Is the city working with them, or is the intent to do this without consulting them?
I Don't Miss Living Across From This
It was a sweat ever crossing the road when living right across from the Laundromat
That and waiting at the bus stop on early AMs in the winter, sidewalks covered in ice and unshoveled snow, only to watch 4 consecutive #32 buses to Forest Hills whiz by, completely full of people :(
Unsignalized crosswalks
Unsignalized crosswalks plonked down on wide high-speed roads are one of my peeves. The worst offenders in the area are on state highways like 9 and 1A.
The engineer who decided to place the crosswalk, or decided to leave an existing crosswalk as-is with no safety improvements, should be required to use it every day for a week, and then re-evaluate if it was a good decision.
Eldridge terror
I have to ask: is that a reference to your mention of H.P. Lovecraft the other day and the "eldritch dread" quote from the Silk Road Bistro website?
https://www.universalhub.com/2020/hp-lovecraft-would-have-loved-one-marl...
Install a traffic signal to
Install a traffic signal to be activated by pedestrians when they need to cross the street.