Pedestrian & bike safety
Consistent prioritySafer streets for people walking and biking through traffic calming, crossings, signals and protected bike lanes.
Residents consistently ask for physically protected bike lanes, safer crossings and signals, slower residential streets, and more space for people walking.
Theme grouped and summary written with AI from this theme's resident ideas.
324 ideas across three cycles
| Cycle | Ideas | Share of all ideas | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–25 | 157 | 12.9% | 1 of 20 |
| 2025–26 | 53 | 4.4% | 10 of 20 |
| 2026–27 | 114 | 8.6% | 3 of 20 |
Needs that keep coming back
Protected, separated bike lanes
Residents want bike lanes with real barriers or physical separation, on specific corridors and as a connected citywide network, instead of paint alone.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Safer crossings and better-timed signals
People ask for raised, well-marked or signalized crosswalks, longer walk times, and fixes at dangerous intersections such as Cleveland Circle and Union Square.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Speed bumps and traffic calming on local streets
Residents on residential streets report speeding, crashes and hit parked cars, and ask for speed humps, raised crosswalks and similar measures, often citing children and seniors.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Enforcement and safety education
Residents ask for enforcement against red-light running, texting and blocked lanes, plus campaigns teaching drivers, cyclists and pedestrians to share streets safely.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Pedestrian-priority streets and plazas
People ask to close or pedestrianize streets such as Newbury Street and Hanover Street, or give them more space for walking and gathering.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
2024–25
The largest and most varied set of ideas, with many hyper-local speed bump requests (especially Norwell Street), many pedestrian overpass and underpass proposals across Hyde Park, Roslindale and Dorchester, and requests for bike connections.
2025–26
A smaller set of ideas focused on protected or raised bike lanes, longer pedestrian signal times and crosswalk fixes, with an equity framing about residents without cars and Black and brown neighborhoods.
2026–27
Dominated by requests for raised, concrete-protected bike lanes (especially in Allston-Brighton) and physical barriers in place of paint or flexposts, along with signal retiming and protection against illegal parking in bike lanes.
New in 2026–27
Newly prominent are requests for sidewalk-height raised bike lanes with concrete barriers, enforcement and 311 reporting of lane-blocking cars, more crossing guards, and quick-build temporary curb extensions and planters.
Funding so far
No winning resident-vote projects relate to this theme, so every recurring ask (protected bike lanes, safer crossings and signals, traffic calming, enforcement and education, pedestrian-priority streets) has yet to be addressed by a winning project.
Projects are linked to themes by matching each project's description to the themes; this is not an official City classification.
No winning project has addressed this theme yet.
Departments that often lead this work
- Boston Transportation Department
- Public Works
Suggested with AI; not an official assignment of responsibility.
Ideas in Pedestrian & bike safety
324 ideas
2024–25: 157 · 2025–26: 53 · 2026–27: 114
- Button-activated crossing lights on major South Boston roadsResident asks for button-activated pedestrian crossing lights at major South Boston crosswalks without signals, to protect people from fast-moving traffic.2026–27South Boston
- Planters at intersection daylighting areasResident proposes planters in striped daylighting zones near crosswalks to stop illegal parking and speeding turns, improving pedestrian safety and adding greenery, especially in minority neighborhoods.2026–27City-wide
- Make Fields Corner more walkable and bikeableResident asks to redesign the Fields Corner shopping mall and reuse empty parking space for easier pedestrian and bike access, boosting foot traffic for local businesses.2026–27Dorchester
- Murals and pavement art outside BPS schoolsPaint murals and sidewalk or pavement art outside all BPS schools to build school pride and remind drivers to slow down, as a scalable alternative to slow traffic calming.2026–27City-wide
- Pedestrian safety education campaignPromote education about crossing the street safely as a pedestrian, framed as both a public health and public safety issue.2026–27City-wide
- Enforce double parking and bike lane violationsIncrease ticketing and enforcement against double parking and blocking bike lanes, to support people who cycle for transit when MBTA service is lacking.2026–27City-wide
- Regulate delivery e-bikes and motorbikesThe resident asks the City to regulate electric bikes and motorbikes used for delivery, including their use of bike lanes and running red lights, which endanger pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.2026–27City-wide
- Retime signals to allow safer street crossingThe resident asks to retime traffic signals to give people more crossing time, prioritizing the widest and most dangerous streets, since many intersections are too fast for families, seniors and people with disabilities.2026–27City-wide
- Parking-protected bike lanes on Chelsea StreetThe resident asks to convert Chelsea Street bike lanes to parking-protected lanes by swapping the parking and bike lanes, since double-parking constantly blocks them.2026–27East Boston
- Pedestrianize Canal Street in the West EndThe resident asks the funds support the City's plan to pedestrianize Canal Street, creating a greener, safer and more pleasant space for foot traffic and events.2026–27West End
- Citywide safe streets planCreate an actual citywide plan for safe streets to prevent deaths on Boston's roads.2026–27City-wide
- Sunday Open Streets on neighborhood commercial corridorsResident proposes recurring Sunday open streets in Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Roxbury and Hyde Park with local vendors, music and family programming, funding logistics, permits and stipends for local organizations.2026–27City-wide
- Pedestrian-priority crosswalk like Common and Public GardenResident asks that a crosswalk be built like the one between Boston Common and the Public Garden, so pedestrians rather than car traffic are prioritized.2026–27Beacon Hill
- Protect the Tremont Street bike laneResident asks for physical protection of the Tremont Street bike lane where a cyclist was killed, to prevent further traffic deaths.2026–27Mission Hill
- Extend Southwest Corridor to Roslindale VillageResident asks to extend the Southwest Corridor path to Roslindale Village, giving riders a safe route instead of Washington Street, which has shared bus lanes and uneven pavement.2026–27Roslindale
- Prioritize pedestrian and cyclist safety citywideResident asks the city to prioritize pedestrian and cyclist safety across neighborhoods, citing a recent fatality and long delays to Blue Hill Avenue improvements.2026–27City-wide
- Replace arterial street parking with sidewalks and bike lanesResident asks to convert street parking on major arterial roads into wider sidewalks and protected bike lanes, improving safety for low-income residents, especially in Roxbury.2026–27City-wide
- Raised crosswalks near Boston Public SchoolsResident asks for raised crosswalks near BPS schools in high-traffic, underserved minority neighborhoods to slow drivers and protect pedestrians, including students.2026–27City-wide
- Restore removed bike infrastructureResident asks the city to replace bike infrastructure that was removed, saying bikes reduce cost burdens on working-class people and make better communities.2026–27City-wide
- Pedestrianized, green streets in ChinatownResident asks for pedestrianized and greener streets in Chinatown, which is congested and hard for elderly and mobility-limited people, as reinvestment in a historically disadvantaged neighborhood.2026–27Chinatown