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A Safer, Slower, More Bikeable Poplar Street

We added a contraflow bike lane and speed humps between Washington Street and Sycamore Street. Now, we're designing new crosswalks, traffic calming, and accessibility upgrades for construction in 2025.

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SPEED HUMPS COMING FALL 2024

We’re excited to announce the installation of speed humps on Polar Street this fall. We’ll install them between Sycamore Street and Canterbury Street. This measure responds to your feedback requesting more traffic calming.

 

  • The speed humps will be spaced about 150 to 250 feet apart to acheive optimal speed management.
  • They will not be placed in front of driveways, and will not impact on-street parking or drainage.

We expect speed hump construction to occur in the next two months. Once started, the work may take up to one week to complete. All work will occur during daytime hours. Construction timelines are subject to weather and other factors. Please pay attention to any temporary construction signage.

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Events

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Phase 2

We will make accessibility upgrades to existing curb ramps, add new crosswalks, and install traffic calming measures. We aim to build these changes in 2025. This requires detailed engineering work, so it takes a little longer. We'll use the following design tools:

We've heard your suggestions for possible crosswalk locations and thank you for your input. We shared concept designs at the West Village Neighborhood Association quarterly meeting in March 2024. We're designing changes at the following cross streets:

  • Florence Street
  • Sycamore Street
  • Heathcote Street
  • Delano Park/Cornauba St Extension
  • Brown Avenue/Hilburn Street

Phase 1

We illustrated the design plans for Poplar Street Phase 1. Construction started in 2023 and will be completed in 2024.

View the final design (PDF 2.2 MB)

Design Summary

Fall 2023

We made design changes to Poplar Street between Washington Street and Augustus Avenue.

  • Contraflow bike lane going northbound from Sycamore Street to Washington Street. In the southbound direction (towards Sycamore Street), we'll add shared lane markings.
    • Added signage on Poplar Street and side streets approaching Poplar Street indicating that two-way bike travel is allowed.
  •  Added five speed humps.
    • New speed humps will be located at 2 Florence Street (on Poplar Street), 95 Poplar Street, 107 Poplar Street, 121 Poplar Street, and 157 Poplar Street.
    • Speed humps will not be placed in front of driveways.
  • Parking moved to the west (odd) side of Poplar Street between the Florence Street and Sycamore Street. Parking stayed on the east (even) side between Washington Street and Florence Street and between Sycamore Street and Augustus Avenue.
  • Added a double-yellow centerline and right-turn-only markings between Sycamore Street and Augustus Avenue. Added a stop sign for northbound drivers at Sycamore. We aimed to reduce confusion where Poplar Street changes from one-way to two-ways for auto traffic.

Phase 2

We'll build new, accessible curb ramps and crosswalks to help you walk along and across Poplar Street. We aim to build these changes in 2025.

TYPICAL Cross sections

Cross section idea for Poplar Street from Washington Street to Florence Street. From left to right: shared general lane, contraflow bike lane, parking
Above: Poplar Street looking north towards Washington Street. Between Washington Street and Florence Street, we will keep the parking on the east side of Poplar Street. We’ve coordinated with the On-Street Accessible Parking program about the location of an accessible parking space.

Cross section idea for Poplar Street from Florence Street to Sycamore Street. From left to right: parking, shared general lane, contraflow bike lane
Above: Poplar Street looking north towards Washington Street. Between Florence Street and Sycamore Street, we will move the parking to the west side of Poplar Street.

Contraflow bike lanes

DIRECT ROUTES, BETTER ACCESS

One-way streets help manage the flow of vehicles. We might want to allow people to bike in both directions on one-way streets that:

  • Provide access to a major destination, park, or trail access point, and/or,
  • Help bicyclists avoid an obstacle, like a major hill or busy street with less comfortable biking conditions.

Contraflow bike lanes are a well-established design tool. They have seen decades of use around the U.S., the Boston area, and globally. There are already contraflow bike lanes in Roslindale on Mount Hope Street and Paine Street.

On moderate-volume streets like Poplar Street, we can add contraflow bike lanes with paint and signage. The lane is positioned so that bicyclists ride on the right side of the street in the direction they are traveling, just like on two-way streets.

A photograph of a contraflow bike lane on Mount Hope Street in Roslindale.
“With flow” bicyclists share a traffic-calmed lane with vehicles. “Counter flow” bicyclists ride to the right of the yellow lines. Location: Mount Hope Street, Roslindale

Why Poplar Street

  • A neighborhood community member suggested a contraflow lane on Poplar Street. In evaluating the idea, we found that it could work.
  • Poplar Street provides a direct connection to Roslindale Square that avoids steep hills nearby. The street serves daily destinations and is a helpful last-mile connection for commuters.
  • Vehicle volumes are moderate. We can make the street safer and more comfortable for everyone by adding traffic calming.
Everyone in Boston deserves safe streets
A group of six youth are riding bikes on a path by their school.

This project is part of a bold plan for transforming Boston's streets to better serve people walking, rolling, and riding bikes. Over the next three years, we will expand our bike network so that 50% of residents will be a 3-minute walk from a safe and connected bike route.

Read more about our plan

Project Updates

Updates
PHASE 1 CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

We finished installing major pavement markings, speed humps, flexible plastic bollards, and signage on Poplar Street between Washington Street and Augustus Ave. Thank you for your patience.

Due to the onset of colder temperatures, we were not able to finish installing all pavement markings in the 2023 construction season. We prioritized finishing major lane lines for street functionality. This spring, crews will return to complete installation of remaining pavement markings, including shared lane markings, green surfaces, bike lane symbols, and daylighting areas. View the final design plans.

PHASE 2 UPDATE

We will make accessibility upgrades to existing curb ramps, add new crosswalks, and install traffic calming measures. We aim to build these changes in 2025. This requires detailed engineering work, so it takes a little longer. Thank you to all who have given feedback so far.

We attended the West Village Neighborhood Association Quarterly Meeting on March 28, 2024. We shared an update on construction of Phase 1 and shared concept designs for Phase 2, and took your questions. 

View the presentation

We attended the West Village Neighborhood Association Quarterly Meeting on March 28, 2024. We shared an update on construction of Phase 1 and shared concept designs for Phase 2, and took your questions. 

View the presentation

Phase 1 Construction UPDATE

We finished installing major pavement markings and speed humps on Poplar Street between Washington Street and Augustus Ave. In the coming weeks, crews will finish installing signage and flexible plastic bollards. Thank you for your patience.

Due to the onset of colder temperatures, we were not able to finish installing all pavement markings this season. We prioritized finishing major lane lines for street functionality. In Spring 2024, crews will return to complete installation of remaining pavement markings, including shared lane markings, green surfaces, bike lane symbols, and daylighting areas. View the final design plans.

Phase 2 Update

We will make accessibility upgrades to existing curb ramps, add new crosswalks, and install traffic calming measures. This work requires detailed engineering work and construction, so it takes a little longer. Our aim is to build these changes in 2024.

We'll focus traffic calming measures in the section of Poplar Street between Augustus Ave and Canterbury Street. These measures will include raised crosswalks and curb extensions in key locations. We are determining these locations based on your feedback and on engineering feasibility. Join our email list to stay up to date.

We attended the West Village Neighborhood Association Quarterly Meeting. We shared our plans for the first phase of design changes on Poplar Street, discussed our next steps for construction work, and took your questions.

View the presentation (PDF 5.3 MB)

We shared an illustration of our then-current design plans for Poplar Street. Since we made this update, we've changed the scope of the project. You can view the current project information above.

We also shared a map of locations we're considering for new crosswalks.

View the design plans (PDF 2.6 MB)

View the map (PDF 0.5 MB)

We held in-person office hours at the Roslindale Branch of the Boston Public Library to share more information and hear your feedback about the project. We set up at a table in the library from 4-7 p.m.

At this session, we talked with community members about project details and again asked attendees to share recommendations for new crosswalk locations along Poplar Street.

Thank you to everyone who attended and shared their thoughts with us. We look forward to continuing to work with you to get the details right.

 

View the design proposal (PDF 20.6 MB)

Project Details (PDF 3.2 MB)

We held in-person office hours at the Roslindale Branch of the Boston Public Library to share more information and hear your feedback about the project. We set up at a table in the library from 4-7 p.m.

At this session, we talked with community members about project details and again asked attendees to share recommendations for new crosswalk locations along Poplar Street. 

Thank you to everyone who attended and shared their thoughts with us. We look forward to continuing to work with you to get the details right.

 

View the design proposal (PDF 20.6 MB)

Project Details (PDF 3.2 MB)

We held in-person office hours at the Roslindale Branch of the Boston Public Library to share more information and hear your feedback about the project. We set up in the conference room from 4-7 p.m. The Roslindale Neighborhood Liaison, Dianna Bronchuk, joined us for most of the session. 

At this session, we shared an aerial view of our design proposal for Poplar Street and more detailed information about potential changes to the street. We asked attendees to share recommendations for new crosswalk locations along Poplar Street. 

Thank you to everyone who attended and shared their thoughts with us. We look forward to continuing to work with you to get the details right.

 

View the design proposal (PDF 20.6 MB)

Project Details (PDF 3.2 MB)

Image shows a BTD planner discussing Poplar Street with a constituent in front of a screen showing plans for speed humps, a contraflow bike lane, and potential other changes.

We attended the West Village Neighborhood Association Quarterly Meeting. We shared an overview of the project, presented the design options, and took your questions.

View the presentation (PDF 6 MB)

We hosted a community walk on Poplar Street to share more information and hear your feedback about the project. About 30 community members joined us. The walk started at the corner of Poplar Street and Washington Street at 11 a.m. We finished around 1 p.m. Spanish interpretation was available.

To publicize the walk, we:

  • Posted flyers on the doors of residences along Poplar Street between Washington Street and Canterbury Street and on light posts and utility boxes along Poplar Street. 
  • Sent an email to project email list. You can get updates by joining the list.
  • Shared the information with community groups, neighborhood associations, Neighborhood Services, and the District 5 councilor's office. They spread the word to their networks.

Thank you to everyone who attended and shared their thoughts with us. We look forward to continuing to work with you to get the details right.

We sent a follow up email to the project email list on May 18, 2023.

View the handout (English) (PDF 2 MB)

View the handout (español) (PDF 2 MB)

Photo of community members gathering on a sidewalk for the Poplar Street community walk

  • To announce our upcoming community engagement events, we posted flyers on front doors on Poplar Street. We also posted flyers on light posts near Roslindale Square and along Poplar Street.
  • We sent an email to project email list announcing upcoming community engagement events. You can get updates by joining the list.
  • We hosted virtual office hours every other Wednesday. You shared your feedback on Better Bike Lanes projects. We also corresponded with you via email.
  • We posted flyers on front doors on Poplar Street. We also posted flyers on light posts near Roslindale Square and along Poplar Street.
  • We mailed 468 postcards to addresses on Poplar Street and the blocks nearby.
  • We hosted virtual office hours every other Wednesday. You shared your feedback on Better Bike Lanes projects. We also corresponded with you via email.

View the flyer

View the postcard

  • We hosted virtual office hours every other Wednesday. You shared your feedback on Better Bike Lanes projects. We also corresponded with you via email.
  • We began planning for spring and summer 2023 outreach and community conversations.

Schedule a virtual office hours appointment

Send us an email

To build on her commitment to create safe streets for all modes of transportation, Mayor Michelle Wu and the Boston Transportation Department (BTD) announced a 9.4 mile expansion of bike lanes providing key connections within the City’s existing bike network and the launch of a Citywide design process to bring safer streets to every neighborhood. To do this, Boston is expanding Bluebikes to accommodate rising demand, designing traffic-calmed streets by building speed humps and raised crosswalks, and hiring more staff to aid in the design process.

The announcement was covered by local news outlets.

Read the full press release

Mayor Michelle Wu in a school gymnasium delivering a press conference about bike network expansion; she is flanked by cabinet staff and community organizers.

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