Please sign this petition to make the BU Bridge safer and more efficient for everyone! The results of this petition will be sent to MassDOT, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation of Recreation, the City of Boston, the City of Cambridge, and the MBTA, to demonstrate the widespread support for the changes proposed below.
The BU Bridge Safety Alliance, a group of local residents, safe streets volunteers, and transportation advocacy groups, thanks you for your time in signing this petition.
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The BU Bridge is a congested crossing of the Charles River that fails all users (motorists, transit users, bicyclists, and pedestrians). This is reflected in a high crash rate--87 crashes between 2018-2022 with 32 persons injured. The proposed improvements address current safety and congestion problems with the bridge, including the absence of protected bike lanes, uncoordinated signal phases that add conflict and complexity for all users, insufficient width on the Cambridge side bike path between the bridge and the BU boathouse, and congestion delaying buses and other motor vehicles.
The proposed improvements would create:
- Flexposts between the bike lanes and the motor vehicle lanes;
- Separate and more efficient signals for pedestrians, bicyclists, and turning motor vehicles at the Memorial Drive and Commonwealth Avenue intersections;
- Traffic calming and better road markings on the Cambridge-side rotary;
- A wider elevated area next to the eastbound Memorial Drive entrance ramp to create a 2-way sidewalk level bike path and a separate area for pedestrians;
- Synchronized pedestrian crossing signals on the Cambridge side so pedestrians do not have to wait twice to complete a crossing; and
- A priority bus lane on the Cambridge-side entrance to the bridge.
You can read more about the proposals in the Alliance's
report detailing the issues and its proposed recommendations.
