Do you want to learn about how to safely share the road with a bus when you’re riding a bike? Are you curious about what a bus driver can see from their seat and what the MBTA is doing to ensure the safety of those riding their bikes? Are you wondering about how the new shared bus and bike infrastructure works and what might be next? Well, you’re in luck!
September 24th is all about buses and bikes working together on our streets.
There are three great ways you can participate:
- Join us for a panel conversation to hear from an MBTA bus driver, an MBTA bus instructor, plus a person who rides their bike - you can learn more and register here.
- Read our new Bus-Bike Lane report!
- Check out one of the bus-bike lanes in Metro Boston, or share your favorite bus or bike infrastructure in your community!
Join in for one or all three!
How do I get credit for participating?
Follow the instructions and share your participation with us on social media! Tag us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram and use the hashtags #TourDeStreets2020 and/or #TourYourStreets to enter in your submission for points. If you don’t have social media, you can also email your submissions to [email protected]. You will receive 1 point for each activity you participate in, and participation in certain activities is eligible for prizes (ex. street haiku contest).
Webinar chat & links
Links
New Report: Tight Spot: Determining When Buses + Bikes Should Share Spaces, and How to Make it Work. https://www.livablestreets.info/bus_bike_lane_report
Bus blindspot image: https://saaq.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/documents/images/securite_routiere/angles_morts_autocar.jpg
MBTA incident reporting info:
Phone number: 617-222-3200
Website: https://www.mbta.com/customer-support
Twitter Handle: @MBTA
Truck/bus blindspot video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lV-rhiGRFTE
Tips/tricks for loading your bike onto the front of a bus: https://www.mbta.com/bikes/bringing-your-bike-the-bus
https://www.massbike.org/bay_state_bike_month_starts_today
@MassBike on Twitter
And also @MassBike on Facebook!
MBTA bus driver trainer, Ronald Neff’s email: [email protected]
Join Allston Brighton Health Collaborative’s Transportation Committee: https://abhealthcollaborative.org/mission-and-history/transportation/
Donate or volunteer for MassBike info:
https://www.massbike.org/membershipdash
https://www.massbike.org/volunteer
Donate or volunteer for LivableStreets:
Chat
LivableStreets Alliance: Thank you for joining! We will be using this chat feature to share relevant resources and links as we go along.
Kathy Shaw: Thanks for organizing this informative webinar :-)
Maria de la Luz Lobos Martinez: Congrats! :)
Ellen DeNooyer: Did you deliberately leave out driving a personal car?
LivableStreets Alliance: Hi Ellen, that was unintentional! Thanks for that good catch!
LivableStreets Alliance: Poll results: walk/roll: 90%; bike: 81%; bus: 62%; subway: 52%; Uber/Lyft: 33%; other: 29%; commuter rail: 14%; run: 10%; scoot: 5%; the RIDE: 0%
Matt Carty: Bus drivers can’t speed? Are buses GPS speed limited?
Matt Carty: (Because they should be)
Ambar Johnson: Thanks for speaking to us, Ronnie! You spoke to the LivableStreets staff this year/last year about the T - it was a great experience!
Maria de la Luz Lobos Martinez: What happens if you don't get the bus number? If you provide the hour and location could you track it down?
Lauren Abraham: When I'm riding my bike in the new bus/bike lane on Brighton Ave and a bus comes up behind me, what do I do?
LivableStreets Alliance: Poll results: merging spaces & inconsistent infrastructure: 68%; intersections: 28%; bus stops: 24%; nighttime: 12%; snow/ice: 4%; straight-aways & inclement weather & other: 0%
Robin Tinglin: Hi, First, thank you all for doing this. It has been incredibly informative. What is the weight limit for stowing your bike on the rack on the front? Are e-bikes allowed?
Galen Mook, MassBike (he/him): To Robin: re, bike racks, here’s some great info on loading your bike on a bus rack: Tips/ tricks for loading your bike onto the front of a bus: https://www.mbta.com/bikes/bringing-your-bike-the-bus
Matt Carty: The only problems I’ve ever had with bus drivers is when they overtake me. I cannot stop a driver choosing to overtake me. The worst cases is where a bus driver accelerates to pass me, then starts decelerating fast and moving right to get to the bus stop. Buses can decelerate faster than a bike by the away, so it’s dangerous and terrifying.
Matt Carty: Blind spots are presumably not an issue when the driver is overtaking the bike rider
Galen Mook, MassBike (he/him): To Matt: thanks, true that in the moment when the driver is passing the cyclist the blind spots are not the concern, however cyclists should be careful not to assume every movement is being tracked by the driver, especially considering the speed differential, so be mindful of blind spots once the bus has overtaken and needs to merge back into the rightsize of the road
Tom Lamar: Could you talk about any efforts to include floating bus stops in quick-build projects? They’ve been great in larger reconstruction projects, but I haven’t seen any floating bus stops in quick-build projects
Lisa weber: That is definitely the most intimidating part for me, the shared bus bike lane
Lee Toma: Can you make the chat save-able please?
LivableStreets Alliance: We can post the chat on our website in a day or two!
Lee Toma: Thanks!
Lee Toma: CX community notes that Miguel has passed several of us in bike races
Anna Leslie, ABHC: PLUS another event tomorrow night along the Charles with CommonWheels!
Lauren Abraham: Thank you!
Anna Leslie, ABHC: Tomorrow, 9/25, we will be hosting a socially distant, mask required, 10 mile bike ride. We are meeting at 6:30pm at the location of our Saturday Open Shop at the Grove, the park across Lower Allston Trader Joe's.
Anna Leslie, ABHC: “Many of you have ridden the Charles River bike path, but we wanted to share with you one of our favorite secrets right outside our doorstep. At nighttime riding this path westward becomes this wonderful calm ride through some beautiful woods. We will be handing out bike lights and other forms of illumination, but we STRONG ENCOURAGE you bring your own lights if available. AllstonVelo and Landry's both have plenty of lights for very affordable prices. We're going to dress to light up night, and we strongly suggest you do too! “
Anna Leslie, ABHC: “The route itself will be very manageable and easy, with our main stopping point at Moody Street in Waltham, where we will take a break and check out a really cool Livable Streets implementation before our return voyage on the other side of the river. We look forward to having a magical time and getting to see one of Boston's coolest nighttime treasures.”
Shavel'le Olivier: This was great! Thank you!
Robin Tinglin: Thanks galen!
Lee Toma: Canton
Kathy Shaw: Will there be a similar webinar on biking safety around commercial trucks ?
Kathy Shaw: Thank you, by the way, to all panelists. Your insight has been super helpful, and it’s extremely encouraging and heart warming to me (a commuting cyclist) to hear that a) bus drivers are officially trained to drive safely around cyclists and b) you actively care and avoid dangerous interactions!
Kathy Shaw: Thank you!!! :)
LivableStreets Alliance: Thank you everyone for joining!