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
- Assess Cleveland Circle pedestrian safetyResident asks for an assessment of how to improve pedestrian safety and mobility at Cleveland Circle, easing access to the park, T, buses and pool.2024–25Brighton
- Safer pedestrian crossing at Cleveland CircleResident asks for a crossover ramp at Cleveland Circle so pedestrians can safely reach the T.2024–25Brighton
- Redesign Commonwealth Ave near Packard's CornerRestart plans to redesign Commonwealth Avenue between Packard's Corner and Warren Street for safer pedestrian streets and new green space.2024–25Allston
- Two to four speed bumps on Norwell StreetInstall two to four speed bumps on the curved Norwell Street because cars speed like on a racetrack and hit parked cars.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed bumps on Norwell StreetInstall speed bumps at the top of Norwell Street because speeding drivers have repeatedly hit parked cars, including the resident's.2024–25Dorchester
- Safer roads to protect pedestriansFund safer roads and road features to protect pedestrians, noting preventable pedestrian deaths in the community.2024–25City-wide
- Pedestrian bridges at dangerous intersectionsBuild pedestrian bridges to protect people from high-speed traffic, noting that young people have died at certain intersections.2024–25Hyde Park
- Assess safety of bike lanesAssess how safe the bike lanes are, since people unaware of them, especially elderly residents and those with cognitive challenges, could be harmed.2024–25City-wide
- Retime pedestrian signals for longer crossingAsks the city to retime pedestrian signals so walk phases last whenever no vehicle conflict exists, giving people more time to cross and reducing jaywalking.2024–25City-wide
- Speed bumps on Norwell StreetAsks for speed bumps on Norwell Street in Dorchester because it has become dangerous and hard to cross.2024–25Dorchester
- Walkable neighborhoods with sidewalks, bike lanes, transitProposes improving sidewalks, bike lanes, transit and traffic calming, plus housing and public spaces, to reduce car dependency and improve safety and accessibility.2024–25City-wide
- Speed bumps on a speeding streetSupports a neighbor's petition for speed bumps because cars speed daily and the resident has nearly been hit crossing with their daughters.2024–25Hyde Park
- Speed bumps on Norwell Street, DorchesterRequests speed bumps on Norwell Street because of years of crashes from speeding that endanger cars and children on the sidewalks.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed bumps to slow speeding carsRequests speed bumps on the resident's street because speeding cars have nearly hit them while crossing with their daughters.2024–25Dorchester
- Wider sidewalks at Sullivan SquareAsks to double sidewalk widths at Sullivan Square to slow traffic and reduce accidents, as it is dangerous for pedestrians walking from Charlestown to Assembly Row.2024–25Charlestown
- Speed humps by Lincoln St pedestrian overpassResident asks for two speed humps on either side of the crosswalk on Lincoln St for people using the pedestrian overpass.2024–25Allston
- Raised crosswalks on Comm Ave mallResident asks for raised crosswalks between each block of the Commonwealth Avenue mall to make it more accessible and pedestrian friendly.2024–25Back Bay
- Speed bumps on Norwell Street near Washington StreetResident asks for speed bumps on the top section of Norwell Street because the street is narrow and parked cars are frequently hit in hit-and-run accidents.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed bumps on street with hit parked carsResident asks for speed bumps on their street because parked cars have been hit repeatedly and a child lives there.2024–25Dorchester
- Speed bumps on West Roxbury side streetsResident requests more speed bumps on side streets such as Peak Hill Road and Cerdan Avenue where people speed, to create calmer neighborhoods for kids.2024–25City-wide