BPDA launches South Boston Transportation Action Plan
Nov 08, 2022
Agency will release existing conditions report this month
The Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) and the Boston Transportation Department (BTD) today announced the launch of the South Boston Transportation Action Plan (SBTAP), which will be completed in close partnership with the Disabilities Commission (DC) and Boston Public Works Department (PWD). The BPDA is evaluating the unique transportation challenges in the core of South Boston’s residential neighborhood, and through the South Boston Transportation Action Plan planning and engagement process, will improve transportation access, efficiency, and safety.
Building on the vision and goals in Imagine Boston 2030 and Go Boston 2030, the South Boston Transportation Action Plan will evaluate safety concerns in South Boston and focus the City’s resources on proven strategies and people-first improvements to eliminate serious and fatal traffic crashes in South Boston. The plan will study key transportation connections to and within the South Boston area and recommend improvements that can be implemented immediately, within the next 15 years, and beyond. The recommendations will reflect an understanding of South Boston as it exists currently, as well as the forecasted effects of new development. This Action Plan will develop community-driven mobility improvements and conceptualize future complete streets and transit network improvements to respond to this growth, and allow the neighborhood to reach its full potential.
The BPDA and BTD will release a detailed analysis of the existing and future multi-modal network to determine the necessary sequencing of improvements to safely meet future mobility needs. Following a future conditions analysis, the South Boston Transportation Action Plan will release recommendations aimed at eliminating serious and fatal traffic crashes, simplifying intersections for all users, and improving the transportation network. The recommendations will build upon nearby recent existing planning initiatives including, but not limited to: PLAN: South Boston Dorchester Avenue, South Boston Seaport Strategic Transit Plan, and the South Boston Waterfront Sustainable Transportation Plan.
In conjunction with the launch of this Action Plan, the BPDA and Boston Transportation Department (BTD) will be hosting a virtual public meeting on Monday, November 14, 2022. This meeting will include a presentation on the South Boston Transportation Action Plan and where South Boston’s transportation network stands today, and planners will be available to answer questions from the public. Transportation planners and engineers will describe recently completed and planned transportation and infrastructure improvements in and around the Study Area, and share what they have found out so far from their existing conditions report. The topics in the existing conditions report include bike network infrastructure, pedestrian conditions, travel patterns and trends, parking statistics, crash histories, and speed data.
The BPDA is also collecting feedback from residents through a survey that will be open until December 15, 2022. This survey covers everything from transportation habits and preferences, to future improvements that could be implemented through the planning process.
The agency will host pop up opportunities at several locations in the neighborhood - including heavily trafficked bus stops and stores - during November and early December. This effort is intended to raise awareness of the planning process and the survey. The survey will also solicit volunteers for 60-minute focus groups which will help the project team identify key mobility challenges and opportunities. In addition to community meetings, the survey and focus groups will allow the BPDA to collect input from a wider swath of South Boston residents and receive targeted feedback.