figurE 2-6 pA rk A n d -rdi E fAC iLiTiEs
Transcript of figurE 2-6 pA rk A n d -rdi E fAC iLiTiEs
2-14 JoURney To 2030
figurE 2-6
pArk-And-ridE fACiLiTiEs
Townsend
Shirley
Groton
Ayer
Harvard
Bolton
Boylston
Berlin
Stow
Hudson
Marlborough
Hopkinton
Upton
Ashland
Sudbury
Framingham
Maynard
Douglas
Uxbridge
Millville Blackstone
MendonBellingham
Hopedale
Milford
Holliston
Medway
Franklin
Wrentham
Plainville
Norton
BridgewaterHalifax
Kingston
Easton
Hanson
Pembroke
Brockton
Marshfield
Rockland
Hanover
Norwell
Scituate
Stoughton
Avon
Sharon
Duxbury
Walpole
Norfolk
Medfield
Sherborn
Millis
Needham
Cohasset
Hingham
Weymouth
Braintree
Randolph
Natick
Dover
Norwood
QuincyMilton
Dedham
Holbrook
Hull
Winthrop
NahantArlingtonMedford
SomervilleCambridge
Belmont
Bedford
Lexington
Waltham
Brookline
Watertown
Newton
Wellesley
WestonWayland
Lincoln
Concord
Acton
Billerica Wilmington
Carlisle
Woburn
Tewksbury
Lowell
DracutTyngsborough
Westford
Dunstable
Winchester
Stoneham
EverettRevere
Melrose
Malden
Saugus
Lynn
MarbleheadSalem
Peabody
LynnfieldReading
Rockport
Gloucester
Danvers
Andover
Lawrence
Boxford
Topsfield
HamiltonWenham
Beverly Manchester-by-the-Sea
EssexIpswich
Rowley
Groveland
Methuen
Haverhill
Swampscott
Foxborough
Chelmsford
Littleton
Boxborough
Burlington
Southborough
Westwood
Mansfield
Whitman
Georgetown
Middleton
NorthReading
Wakefield
Northborough
Westborough
WestBridgewater
EastBridgewater
NorthAndover
WestTownsend
Byfield
NorthPlympton
NorthLeominster
TownsendHarbor
Chartley
Canton
Abington
Plum
Island
HudsonNashua
Brookline
Harrisville
RHODE ISLAND
Chelsea
BOSTON
NEW HAMPSHIRE
90
90
90
495
495
495
495
495
95
95
95
95
95
95
93
93
93
95
290
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146
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114
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37
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228
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104
3
96
107
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12298
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122
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Townsend
Shirley
Groton
Ayer
Harvard
Bolton
Boylston
Berlin
Stow
Hudson
Marlborough
Hopkinton
Upton
Ashland
Sudbury
Framingham
Maynard
Douglas
Uxbridge
Millville Blackstone
MendonBellingham
Hopedale
Milford
Holliston
Medway
Franklin
Wrentham
Plainville
Norton
BridgewaterHalifax
King
Easton
Hanson
Pembroke
Brockton
Marshfiel
Rockland
Hanover
Norwell
Scituate
Stoughton
Avon
Sharon
Dux
Walpole
Norfolk
Medfield
Sherborn
Millis
Needham
Cohasset
Hingham
Weymouth
Braintree
Randolph
Natick
Dover
Norwood
QuincyMilton
Dedham
Holbrook
Hull
Winthrop
NahantArlingtonMedford
SomervilleCambridge
Belmont
Bedford
Lexington
Waltham
Brookline
Watertown
Newton
Wellesley
WestonWayland
Lincoln
Concord
Acton
Billerica Wilmington
Carlisle
Woburn
Tewksbury
Lowell
DracutTyngsborough
Westford
Dunstable
Winchester
Stoneham
EverettRevere
Melrose
Malden
Saugus
Lynn
MarbleheadSalem
Peabody
LynnfieldReading
Gloucester
Danvers
Andover
Lawrence
Boxford
Topsfield
HamiltonWenham
Beverly Manchester-by-the-Sea
EssexIpswich
Rowley
Groveland
Methuen
Haverhill
Swampscott
Foxborough
Chelmsford
Littleton
Boxborough
Burlington
Southborough
Westwood
Mansfield
Whitman
Georgetown
Middleton
NorthReading
Wakefield
Northborough
Westborough
WestBridgewater
EastBridgewater
NorthAndover
WestTownsend
Byfield
NorthPlympton
NorthLeominster
TownsendHarbor
Chartley
Canton
Abington
Plum
Island
HudsonNashua
Brookline
Harrisville
RHODE ISLAND
Chelsea
BOSTON
NEW HAMPSHIRE
90
90
90
495
495
495
495
495
95
95
95
95
95
95
93
93
93
95
290
9
146
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104
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96
107
102
57
12298
16
16
122A
122
122
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LEGEND
Park-&-ride lot: At capacity
Park-&-ride lot: Not at capacityP
P
2-15The BosTon Region MPo and iTs exisTing TRansPoRTaTion sysTeM
Current Needs of the Transit System
One of the MBTA’s key elements for capital planning is the Program for Mass Transporta-tion (PMT). As one of the country’s oldest transit systems, the MBTA has an abundance of needs just to maintain the current system as described above. In the PMT, adopted in 2003, the MBTA evaluated its system preservation needs and listed its highest priorities as follows:
• Installationofautomatedfarecollection system (completed in 2007)
• Revenuevehiclereplacement
• Bridgerehabilitation
• Commuterrailandrapidtransittrack replacement
• Stationimprovements
The PMT also included an examination of capacity issues of the existing transit system. It found that passenger crowding occurs on all three sys-tems—rapid transit, bus, and commuter rail. On the rapid transit lines, passenger crowding occurs mostly during spans of one hour or less within the morning and evening peak commuting times. On the bus and trackless trolley systems, it was found that bus routes in the urban core are sub-ject to crowded conditions, especially during peak periods and school-commute times. In addition, buses on routes operating in heavy traffic condi-tions are vulnerable to delays, which can result in long gaps in service and bus bunching. Capaci-ties on commuter rail vary according to the num-ber of cars and the mix of car types in the train.
The capacity of the commuter rail and rapid transit lines is limited not only by the capacity of the trains, but also by the capacities of the modes used to access the trains. For commuter rail lines especially, adequate parking capacity is necessary to divert trips from private automobiles. Capacity issues at MBTA facilities must also be addressed to meet ridership demand. Com-muter rail system capacity is also limited by the throughput capacities of the downtown terminal
stations—South Station and North Station. The capacity of the terminal stations also impacts the amount of yard capacity needed for midday or overnight storage of trains.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation
Bicycling and walking are primary modes of trans-portation for some residents of the MPO region. Many bicycle to reach transit, and almost every-one walks or uses a wheelchair for portions of all trips. According to the PMT, 84 percent of riders walk or bicycle to stations to access the rapid transit system. Facilities for pedestrians include sidewalks, multi-use paths, and street crossings. Bicycle facilities include both off-road paths and on-road improvements, such as designated bike lanes. Roller skaters and joggers also use the road system and multi-use paths.
Municipalities do much of the planning for pedes-trian and bicycle facilities. When planning is done at the regional level, pedestrian mobility is deter-mined by the availability of sidewalks, their condi-tion, and the safety and convenience of roadway crossings. Bicycle mobility is affected primarily by
2-16 JoURney To 2030
road conditions, such as pavement quality, shoul-der width, and traffic speed and volume, although some off-road trails are available in the region.
Trails and Routes
There are 15 regional multi-use paths or trails in the MPO region: the Minuteman Commuter Bike-way, Linear Park (Somerville Community Path), East Boston Greenway, Mystic River Reservation Bike Path, Upper Charles Trail, South Bay Harbor Trail, Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path, Charles River Greenway, Marblehead Rail Trail, Battle Road Trail, Neponset River Greenway, Muddy River Bike Path, Jamaica Pond Paths, Assabet River Rail Trail (the Hudson and Marlborough segment is in the MPO region), and Southwest Corridor Bikeway (see Figure 2-7). Most trails are built on abandoned railroad rights-of-way or along natural corridors such as rivers. The Minuteman Commuter Bikeway is an example of the former, and the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path is an example of the latter.
One signed, long-distance bicycle route exists in the MPO region and continues outside the region to Falmouth and Provincetown, which are on Cape Cod. The 135-mile-long Claire Salton-
stall Bikeway, also known as Bikeway Route 1, is primarily an on-road, signed route that includes some trail segments.
Trails allow users to be separated from motor-vehicle traffic. They are used not only by experi-enced commuter bicyclists heading to work, but also for recreation, by both adults and children. Trails have proven to be popular with a wide range of users.
Regional trails in the Boston area that are either in the planning stage or under construction include the following (see Figure 2-7):
• NorthernStrand(alsoknownasBike-to-the-Sea; in Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, and Lynn)
• Tri-CommunityBikeway(Winchester,Woburn,and Stoneham)
• Border-to-BostonTrail(Danvers,Wenham,and Topsfield)
• AssabetRiverRailTrail(Hudson,Stow,May-nard, and Acton)
• Mass.CentralRailTrail(Hudson,Sudbury,Wayland, Weston, Waltham, and Belmont)
• BruceFreemanRailTrail(Carlisle,Acton,Concord, Sudbury, and Framingham)
• UpperCharlesTrail(Milford,Hopkinton,Ash-land, Holliston, and Sherborn)
• PeabodyBikeway
• SwampscottRailTrail
• MinutemanExtensiontoConcord(Bedfordand Concord)
• MinutemanExtensiontoBillerica(Bedford)
• SouthBayHarborTrailExtension(Boston)
• SomervilleCommunityPathExtension
• MysticRiverPathExtensions(Somerville,Arlington, and Medford)
• NeponsetRiverTrailExtension(BostonandMilton)
2-17The BosTon Region MPo and iTs exisTing TRansPoRTaTion sysTeM
fig
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-7
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FIG
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2-18 JoURney To 2030
• Belmont/Cambridge/SomervilleProject
• WatertownBranch
• CochituateRailTrail(FraminghamandNatick)
• NorthSuburbanBikePlanPaths(Wakefield,Lynnfield and Wilmington)
• RiversideConnector(NewtonandWellesley)
Sidewalks
Safe pedestrian use of our transportation network requires sidewalks, crosswalks, and other street crossing infrastructure, and the enforcement of laws to protect pedestrians. While sidewalks may not be absolutely necessary for some low-vol-ume local streets, the presence or absence of sidewalks is a good indicator of whether road-ways in a community have been designed to give pedestrians equal access to all adjacent uses served by autos.
The percentage of all roadways in a transporta-tion analysis zone (TAZ) with sidewalks on one or both sides of a roadway are shown in Figure 2-8 (limited-access highways and other roads that exclude pedestrians are not included). A TAZ
is an aggregation of census geography used in the MPO’s transportation demand model based on demographic information and numbers of trips produced and attracted within its borders. Most urban areas and some community centers provide sidewalks along most of their roadways. However, for most TAZs within the Boston MPO region, almost 80 percent of existing roadways have no sidewalks.
In the past, MassHighway guidance on proj-ect design required that pedestrian and bicycle accommodations be considered in all roadway projects. MassHighway’s current Project Devel-opment and Design Guide requires pedestrian mobility to be given the same importance as all other uses.
Local interest in walkable communities can be seen in the response to the MPO’s Walkable Community Workshop program. Since 2004, the MPO has sponsored more than eight workshops in cooperation with host communities, and is ex-pected to conduct at least six workshops per year in the future. The MPO supports more detailed studies and technical support for municipalities through the study of bicycle and pedestrian im-provements in both small-town and urban centers. MAPC is developing a regional Pedestrian Plan proposed to be adopted in 2009.
Road Travel
Chapter 90E, Section 2A, of the Massachusetts General Laws (Chapter 87, of the Acts of 1996) requires consideration of bicyclist and pedestrian needs regarding roadways whenever feasible. The intent of this law is to make travel as safe as practical for bicyclists and pedestrians. In some cases, restriping may be all that is necessary, but space for bicyclists can also be provided by adding bicycle lanes or paved shoulders, or by striping wide outside travel lanes.
Access to Other Modes
Many people bicycle or walk to other modes. Those who bicycle to transit connections either park their bicycle or take it on board in accor-