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
- Safe bike passage under Brooks St. bridgeCreate a two-way bike passageway under the Brooks St. bridge and a raised crossing with flashing yield-to-bike signs to safely connect Brighton to the Charles River Bike Path.2024–25Brighton
- Connect protected bike lanes through Mass Ave and ColumbiaResident asks to extend protected bike lanes through the large Mass Ave intersection and down wide, poorly paved Columbia Street, bringing Dorchester similar quality to wealthier neighborhoods.2024–25Dorchester
- Signage explaining two-way bike lanes to driversResident asks for clearer signage so drivers understand how to interact with two-way bike lanes, as cyclists report many near-collisions in this area.2024–25Roxbury
- Better bike lanes on Columbia Road to the beachResident asks for improved, clearly marked bike lanes on Columbia, especially at the highway ramps junction, so residents west of 93 can safely reach the waterfront.2024–25Dorchester
- Protected bike path from Roslindale to Forest HillsResident asks for a protected extension of the Southwest Corridor into Roslindale so cyclists can ride to Forest Hills safely, giving more clean transit options.2024–25Jamaica Plain
- Extend Cambridge Street bike lane with green bike boxResident asks to remove about five parking spots on Cambridge St at Sparhawk to extend the bike lane and add a green bike box so cyclists can wait safely.2024–25Allston
- Double-wide crosswalks and marked intersection boxesThe resident asks for double-wide crosswalks and X-marked no-block boxes around them and at intersection centers to keep vehicles farther from people crossing.2024–25City-wide
- Protected bike connection on Dartmouth StreetThe resident asks for a bike-friendly connection between the Charles River Esplanade and the Southwest Corridor on Dartmouth Street, since existing lanes are unprotected and one-directional.2024–25Back Bay
- Open streets on Hanover StreetThe resident asks for Hanover Street to be made an open, car-free street.2024–25North End
- Pedestrian safety from mopeds, scooters, bikes and motorcyclesResident asks for improved pedestrian safety around mopeds, scooters, bikes and motorcycles.2024–25City-wide
- Synchronize traffic lightsResident asks the city to synchronize traffic lights.2024–25City-wide
- Fix broken crosswalk buttonsResident reports that crosswalk buttons do not work and asks for them to be fixed.2024–25City-wide
- Accessible, safe crossings with better light controlsResident asks for accessible and safe street crossings with improved signal controls.2024–25City-wide
- Safe biking pathsResident asks for safe biking paths so kids and adults can get around safely without a car.2024–25Brighton
- More crosswalk lights and accessible parking for seniorsResident asks for more crosswalk lights and more handicapped parking so seniors can get to stores safely.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed bumps on Babson StreetResident asks for speed bumps on Babson Street and for repairs to the street and sidewalks.2024–25Mattapan
- Traffic calming and one-way on Babson StreetResident asks to make Babson St one way, add speed bumps and post 20 mph signs to ease heavy traffic and speeding, especially at school dismissal.2024–25Mattapan
- Speed hump on Lyndhurst StreetResident asks for a speed hump on Lyndhurst St because speeding is a real problem.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed humps on Dale StreetResident asks for speed humps on Dale St between Washington and Warren because cars cut through too fast where many seniors and children live.2024–25Roxbury
- Pedestrian bridge at Cleveland CircleResident asks for a pedestrian bridge at Chestnut Hill Ave and Beacon Street to safely cross a dangerous intersection and reach green spaces.2024–25Brighton