StreetNews 10/21/2008

JUMP bus in Boulder, Colorado
Highlights
- BU Bridge to undergo three-year rehabilitation (Boston Globe, BU Daily Free Press, Cambridge Chronicle)
By Christina Pazaanese -- With a three-year, $20 million makeover on the horizon, the Department of Conservation and Recreation will host a public meeting later this week on the Boston University campus to give residents, commuters, and neighbors an opportunity to hear details about the massive Boston University Bridge rehabilitation project. DCR officials are preparing to put this second part of the three-phase project out to bid later this fall, said spokeswoman Wendy Fox.

JUMP bus in Boulder, Colorado
Highlights
- BU Bridge to undergo three-year rehabilitation (Boston Globe, BU Daily Free Press, Cambridge Chronicle)
By Christina Pazaanese -- With a three-year, $20 million makeover on the horizon, the Department of Conservation and Recreation will host a public meeting later this week on the Boston University campus to give residents, commuters, and neighbors an opportunity to hear details about the massive Boston University Bridge rehabilitation project. DCR officials are preparing to put this second part of the three-phase project out to bid later this fall, said spokeswoman Wendy Fox. - Cycling on the mommy track (Boston Globe)
By Jennifer Blaise Kramer -- Here's an unlikely disclaimer for this column: I haven't been on two wheels in more than two years. It's true. I relegated my bike to the basement when I got pregnant and figured I'd spend the next decade of parenting shuffling between car and stroller. It was just too terrifying to think about getting both of us on board, riding steadily, and not crashing into crazy Cambridge traffic - all while not being able to see my little one, who's probably bawling behind me. - Silver Line Tunnel: Next Big Dig? (Boston Globe, South End News, WCVB, WBZ)
By Noah Bierman -- With Big Dig construction still fresh in Bostonians' memories, the MBTA is embarking on a 1.1-mile bus tunnel adjacent to the Boston Common that critics are dubbing the "Little Dig"because of its escalating price tag and potential for disruption. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority managers consider the project - a high-speed bus line that bridges the two existing Silver Line routes - a key link in the transit system that will better connect the Back Bay, Roxbury, and other neighborhoods with the emerging South Boston waterfront and Logan International Airport. - For whom the Pike tolls? (Boston Globe)
THE BELEAGUERED Massachusetts commuter, barely shaking off decades of Big Dig construction headaches, now finds the Turnpike Authority switching its disruptive roadwork projects to daytime hours in order to save money. This on top of threats by Pike directors to raise tolls - perhaps as high as $5 at the Ted Williams Tunnel - and the elimination of toll collectors, which is cost-efficient but creates major backups when those without Fast Lane transponders cram into the few remaining manned toll booths. How much abuse can drivers take? - Report: American Cities Raring to Build $248B in Transit Projects (Streetsblog)
Reconnecting America just released a report [PDF] that ties in neatly with the Build for America launch earlier this week. "Jumpstarting the Transit Space Race" chronicles how cities and metro areas eager to invest in transit have been stymied by inadequate federal funding and policies that favor highway construction. Nationwide, plans for $248 billion worth of transit projects are on the drawing board, but getting them through the convoluted federal pipeline will take the better part of this century unless policies change. - Govt urged to spend $800m on bike lanes [Australia] (ABC News)
The cycling industry says the Federal Government will save money in the long term if it invests $800 million now in bicycle infrastructure. The Cycling Promotion Fund has submitted a proposal to Infrastructure Australia, asking the Government to fund the construction of physically separated bike lanes and major cycleways in capital cities. Spokesman Elliot Fishman says the Government should see the proposal as an investment for the future.
"Streets"
- Turnpike green strip gets makeover (Boston Globe)
- Lights retimed to ease traffic on Washington Street (West Roxbury Transcript)
- BU Bridge to undergo three-year rehabilitation (Boston Globe, BU Daily Free Press, Cambridge Chronicle)
Bicycling
- Survey finds heaviest bike traffic near Longwood (Brookline TAB)
- Cycling on the mommy track (Boston Globe)
Transit
- T betting on untried firm to build fleet (Boston Globe)
- Minds your manners, T urges rude riders (Boston Globe, WBZ)
- Despite complaints, Malden bus only a Pleasant memory (Boston Globe)
- Silver Line Tunnel: Next Big Dig? (Boston Globe, South End News, WCVB, WBZ)
- Letter: MBTA must consider light-rail alternative to Silver Line plan (Boston Globe)
- Letter: This is no time to take on more debt (Boston Globe)
- Letter: Transit project is a legal obligation (Boston Globe)
- Cut in bus routes possible (Boston Globe)
- River's a natural fit for water taxi (Boston Globe)
- Worcester Downtown Riding High On Rail (Hartford Courant)
Cars/Parking
- Here's the thing about warnings (Boston Globe)
Parks
- Smith Field isn't sacred (Allston Brighton Community Blog)
Development projects
- Moving City Hall to the Waterfront (Blog@ABN)
- Zero Marlborough condos ready for residents (Back Bay Sun)
- Druker will go back to BRA with new design (Back Bay Sun)
- Some residents still wary of Kesseler Woods development (Brookline TAB)
- Restaurant space proposed for old MBTA substation (West Roxbury Transcript, Boston Globe)
- BRA issues Request for Interest for Building 105 in the Navy Yard (Charlestown Bridge)
- A pitch for soccer in Somerville (Boston Globe)
- BRA approved major residential project in Chinatown (Boston Business Journal)
Transportation financing/Government
- 'Moving Together: 2008' report (Dot Bike)
- Like bikes and walking? Join the pedestrian and bicycle committees (Cambridge Chronicle)
- Talking transportation at the Chamber (Boston Metro)
- Police who protested flaggers will not face criminal charges (Boston Herald)
- Patrick mentions interest in border tolls (Boston Globe)
- For whom the Pike tolls? (Boston Globe)
- Letter: Meanwhile, at T lots, a stealth fare hike (Boston Globe)
- Letter: Raiding revenues from cleanup fund is not a solution (Boston Globe)
- Letter: Shuffling debt to buy time? (Boston Globe)
Out-of-state
- Amtrak's Capitol Corridor adds bicycle capacity (Bike Commute Tips Blog)
- HOP, SKIP, and JUMP aboard a Boulder Bus (Streetfilms)
- Metro Making Room for Bikes on Their Trains (Streetsblog LA)
National trends
- 'Shared-space' streets cross the Atlantic (New Urban News)
- Cyclists Are Better Shoppers Than Motorists (Twin Cities Streets for People)
- Thinking Beyond the Gas Tax (Planetizen)
- It All Comes Down to a Parking Space (How We Drive, New York Times)
- Report: American Cities Raring to Build $248B in Transit Projects (Streetsblog)
International news
- Govt urged to spend $800m on bike lanes [Australia] (ABC News)
StreetHeadlines
