StreetNEWS (May 5)

Blog entry:
Highlights

Editorial: The danger of delaying road projects (Boston Globe [1])
GOVERNOR PATRICK'S $3.8 billion proposal to fix deteriorating bridges across the state is a dramatic break with the 17-year practice of underfunding infrastructure, and it merits the support it is receiving from House Speaker Sal DiMasi and Senate President Therese Murray.
Decaying Longfellow Bridge could close for July 4 (Cambridge Chronicle [2], WHDH [3])
The sidewalks on the deteriorating Longfellow Bridge could collapse under the weight of the thousands of spectators who head to the bridge each Fourth of July to stake out prime fireworks viewing spots, according to state officials.
Bicycling:
- Editorial: Safety on two wheels (Boston Globe [4])
  SIGNS reminding drivers to "share the road" with bicyclists imply a two-way street: Cyclists deserve a slice of the asphalt, but they must also obey traffic laws for their own safety and others'. A bill pending in the state Senate would codify the "same road, same rules" notion, creating safeguards for cyclists while making it easier for traffic officers to do their jobs. [ for reference, see "Bike bill goes for a third spin" 1/14/17 (Boston Globe [5]) ]
- For a week, out of that car and onto a bike (Boston Globe [6])
  My last column, about bike lanes (April 20), spawned a deluge of letters, and a still-fuming debate on the MassBike Google groups discussion list. Some readers wrote to support the view put forth by the administration of most biking and transportation groups I talked to - including MassBike and LivableStreets Alliance and the cities of Boston and Cambridge - that well-designed bike lanes can help create a safer environment for cyclists.
- Bike Lanes, Intended for Safety, Become Traffic Battlegrounds (New York Times [6])
  At a bike lane on Hudson Street near Christopher Street, one rider placed a cardboard stencil on the pavement, and others covered it with white spray paint. When they lifted the stencil an image of an automobile bisected by a diagonal line was left behind. [ includes a link to a video showing activists painting "no-car" and "Fine $115" stencils on bike lanes ]
The trolley Svengali: Why Dan Grabauskas might actually fix the T -- if he can keep his job (Boston Phoenix [7])
When the T works, we usually don’t notice. But when it doesn’t, our reaction is swift and severe. Blood pressures rise; heads are buried in hands and hair is pulled out; anger and despair run rampant. And for those who seek a scapegoat, there’s an obvious choice: the guy who runs the damn thing.
(Links to special Boston Phoenix MBTA coverage below...)

"Streets"

Wrong turn on Moody Street (Boston Globe [8])
Neighbors balk at plan for square (Boston Globe [9])
Trucks backing up causes delays (Boston Globe [10])
Project to resurface I-93 in Somerville goes to bid (Boston Globe [11])
Let's work together to clean up winter clutter (West Roxbury Transcript [12])
Place: Boston streets a tangled, wonderful web (San Francisco Chronicle [13])
Construction cramps shops (Harvard Crimson [14])
BU says campus future is up in the air (Daily Free Press [15])
Unbuilt Boston: The Ghost Cloverleaf of Canton (Xconomy [16])
Many 'driveways' aren't, says ISD (Jamaica Plain Gazette [17])
Kenmore project to get cosmetic lift (Boston Metro [18])
Business owners, city talk shop: Moody Street's future is focus of meeting (Boston Globe [19])
Businesses taken aback by sign rule: Town set to enforce bylaw written in 1996 (Boston Globe [20])

Walking

City Council Looks Into Pedestrian Safety (Harvard Crimson [21])
Stop for Red, Stop for Pedestrians, or Stop for Blue (Somerville Journal [22])
Boston Mulling Hike In Jaywalking Fines (Boston Herald [23], WCVB [24])
Sidewalk testing on Longfellow Bridge (Boston Metro [25])
Crosswalk crackdown: Police out in force for pedestrian safety (Somerville Journal [26])
America's Most Pedestrianized Cities (Environmental Graffiti [27])

Bicycling

Cambridge firm's folding bikes pass urban, military test (Boston Herald [28])
Letter: Rail Trail a luxury not a necessity (Tri-Town Transcript [29])
Prescott Is The Man In The Hub (TheDay.com [30])

Transit

Hyundai Rotem to Carry Boston Commuters (Korea Times [31])
T Q+A with General Manager Dan Grabauskas (Boston Metro [32])
Letter: One man's harassment (Boston Gobe [33])
Is the MBTA on track? (Boston Phoenix [34])
Underground Art (Boston Phoenix [35])
The T and the Tube (Boston Phoenix [36])
Trouble 'round the bend (Boston Phoenix [37])
Seven should-be habits of highly effective T-riding people (Boston Phoenix [38])
A sinking feeling (Boston Phoenix [39])
State of hock (Boston Phoenix [40])
New technology helps bus service (Boston Metro [41])
Options for the South Coast commuter line narrowed down to 5 (Boston Metro [42], Boston Globe [43])
Station sites to be proposed: MBTA extension moves ahead (Boston Globe [44])

Cars

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hybrid: Going green brings out the best, worst of us (Boston Globe [45])

Parks

Playground trees, target of vandals, are planted anew (Boston Globe [46])
Short-term path closures possible at reservoir (Allston-Brighton TAB [47])
With cost at $2.5m, state plans work at Short Beach (Boston Globe [48])
Lease clears way for 26-mile trail (Daily News Tribune [49])
Editorial: Greener in Hyde Park (Boston Globe [50])

Development projects

Waterfront developers take the long view (Boston Globe [51])
Two Approaches to Campus Expansion (Harvard Crimson [52])
Letter: Don't raze City Hall, try to redevelop it (Boston Globe [53])
MFA to open grand entrance two days ahead of schedule (Boston Metro [54])
Curtatone says new development will save Somerville (Somerville Journal [55])
SEAS tackles Cambridge/Allston links in design class (Harvard University Gazette [56])
Planners push Harvard on community-university connections (Allston-Brighton TAB [57])

Green trends

Towns take initiative to go green (Boston Globe [58])

Out-of-state

Group Considers Tearing Down I-84 (WFSB [59])
Transit towns a step to cut carbon footprint (San Francisco Chronicle [60])
The Greening of the Yellow Fleet (New York Times [61])
The Last Cut is the Deepest (New York Times [62])
Editorial: I-93 commuters have friend in Lynch, foe in CLF (Eagle-Tribune [63])
Chicago Gets New York's Congestion Money (New York Times [64])
Editorial: Taking the 'free' out of freeway (Los Angeles Times [65])
Bike/Walk to Work Day: Get in the car-free habit (Seacoast Online [66])
Complete Streets Bill Now in Both House and Senate (Bikes Belong [67])
Jersey High School Students Protest Anti-Bike Policy (Streetsblog [68])
Bike Lanes, Intended for Safety, Become Traffic Battlegrounds (New York Times [69])

National trends

Suddenly, It's Cool to Take the Bus (Business Week [70])
Gas May Finally Cost Too Much (Business Week [71])
Good-Bye, Cheap Oil. So Long, Suburbia? (Business Week [72])
With Demand Slipping for Its Pickups and S.U.V.'s, G.M. Will Lay Off 3,550 (New York Times [73])
A City The Car Built? (Planetizen [74])
Obama assails lifting of gas tax as 'gimmick' (Boston Globe [75])
Editorial: Empty rhetoric by the tankful (Boston Globe [76])
Obama on rail transit (Grist [77])
U.S. gas: So cheap it hurts (CNN [78])
As Gas Costs Soar, Buyers Flock to Small Cars (New York Times [79])
Letters: A greener alternative (Boston Globe [80])
Op-Classic, 1996: It Drives Him Crazy (New York Times [81])
Fighting Global Warming Block by Block (Washington Post [82])
The stark reality of our oil crisis (Seacoast Online [83])

International news

The Case for Density in Sustainable Cities (Planetizen [84])
UN urges biofuel investment halt (BBC News [85])