Summer Street Pilot Program Meetings Are Complete

by Rick Winterson

The third and final Summer Street Pilot Program meeting took place on Monday. It was held in the Seaport District Hall at 75 Northern Avenue. In general, it was a kind of Open House get-together, with a recorded presentation of the Pilot Program’s plans during part of the three-hour session. This is a major undertaking by a Transit Team assembled by the Boston Traffic Department (the BTD). We believe a review and a brief restatement of what will happen during the Summer Street Pilot Program are important.

It’s important for a variety of reasons. Among these are significant problems with Summer Street entitled “current safety and transit issues” in one of the displays put together by the Transit Team. First, they listed high speeds by cars and trucks all along the Summer Street corridor from downtown to where Summer becomes L Street between 1st and 2nd Streets. Speeds as high as 50 mph were mentioned. Clearly, this also increases the risks encountered by bicyclists and pedestrians along Summer. “Overcrowding” was another problem issue. This extends to traffic problems caused by trucks from the ever-growing Conley Terminal, unreliable bus schedules made worse by blocked bus stops, jam-packing on the remaining buses, and just plain traffic jams. Obviously, these will stay the same or get worse without some action.

The Summer Street Pilot Program itself means taking different actions temporarily to see if any of these reduce actual traffic problems (“piloting” them, in other words). A segment of Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge will be used as a model, which means assigned truck and bike lanes, turning instructions, and adjustable traffic lights will be tested under real, actual conditions all along the Summer Street corridor. The exact dates of the Pilot Program haven’t been decided yet, but it will begin in a month or so, and last six months until the 2023 Holiday Season begins. Some positive news – the M BTA is studying its surface bus lines to see where a redesign might help traffic problems. For example, the “T” is proposing a more rapid, high frequency bus route called “T7” along Summer Street that begins at the City Point Terminal and might traverse the city as far as Somerville. Several other traffic studies that concern South Boston are underway as well. Dorchester Avenue, the McCormack Development, Moakley Park and a major traffic analysis of the Seaport/ Waterfront are all involved. The residential area in South Boston, from First Street to Day Boulevard will also be studied soon. The South Boston Transportation Action Plan (the SBTAP) will recommend transit improvements that can be made immediately and over the next few years.