Support a new process on Blue Hill Avenue
It is now certain, the $140 million proposal to install a faster bus line on Blue Hill Avenue is dead, and that TIGER grant will not be obtained from the federal government. The good news though is that there is now much wider support for bike lanes on the street.
State legislators along the corridor have proposed a longer, more community-based process, to take advantage of the hundreds of thousands the state has already invested in the project. There is a roll plan of the street now, complete with bus boardings, turning movements, and tons of other data. And after the lengthy 28x controversy, we feel it’s time to really determine what the neighborhood would like to see on Blue Hill. But this longer process is not ensured. It would require funding for the process itself.
It is also unclear which government agency would carry on this process. If there is no large transit element, it would not be a state, but rather a city project. And of course money is tight everywhere.
If you’re interested in seeing the process continue, contact Mayor Thomas Menino’s office, contact your City Councillors about it, and also let your state legislators, Governor Patrick and Secretary of Transportation Jeffrey Mullan know that you support a continued public process on Blue Hill Avenue.
And, while you’re at it, suggest expanding the Public Advisory Group to include representation for cyclists!
Mega-study targets SE Expressway pollution (CAFEH)
It’s difficult to imagine, but it is only in the last decade or so that the academic community has really begun to dial in on how air pollutants affect health of people living next door to major highways. But stacks of new research papers have been published in recent years, in part inspiring a new $2.5 million study that promises to be one of the most convincing to date. It’s based at Tufts University in Chinatown and may even send investigators out to Dorchester’s Columbia neighborhood.
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