Newton Corner Long-Term Plan

[Lucia Dolan]

Hi - I'd love to hear thoughts on these draft alternatives for NC MassDot just sent out. Unless I'm missing something, none of them seem to have easy bike access to the Charles River. The shared path seems to end at Russell Road - is Russell a private road? Lucia

 dot-hwy-DRAFT_NewtonCorner_CombinedAlternatives-v2.pdf

https://www.mass.gov/newton-corner-long-term-planning-study

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Lucia Dolan

617 775-8609 cell

[Andreae Downs]

I agree that the path to the river paths looks unprotected in all the options.

Srdj, why do you prefer #3?

How do the intersections work on & off the Pike?

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[Nedeljkovic, Srdjan S.,MD]

Hi Andrea,

Here are some further thoughts. 

Option 1: mostly the "status quo" but it does re-establish bidirectional traffic on the north side of Washington Street and across the east bridge. 

Options 2 and 3: similar, in that they both move the westbound on ramp out of the "circle." One is further west than the other. Bidirectional flow is established on the north side of Washington Street and the southern side of the Pike, which is also called Washington Street. Interestingly, the movement around the loop is now clockwise rather than counterclockwise! Both include a bridge reconnecting Centre Street across the Pike that includes pedestrians and bike lanes.

Option 3: includes the rail station, which puts it at an advantage. Options 3, 4, and 5 all include the rail station, which indicates that DOT is actually serious about it!

Option 4: bidirectional flow on all streets, and a perpendicular new bridge that requires an extra intersection to cross the pike. Too many turns and I think it would jam up with traffic.

Option 5: has bidirectional flow on the north side of Washington Street. Everything else stays "one way" so it ultimately forces people to go in a circle as per the current status-quo.

Option 6: suggests that West Newton should become a full turnpike ramp, which would be very bad for West Newton!

Ultimately, Options 2 and 3 are similar. However, I like Option 3 because:

1) Includes the new bridge that will reduce turning movements and conflicts for everyone - bikes, pedestrians, cars. Goodbye "circle of death" once and for all!

2) Bidirectional traffic flow is preferable. Turning a one-way street into a two-way street offers significant advantages for local businesses, safety, and overall urban vitality, primarily by slowing down traffic and improving accessibility and navigation.

3) Transit station. We should be working towards having high-frequency electric service between Riverside and South Station. This was envisioned in Newton's Comprehensive Plan and will make the entire corridor a more transit-friendly, walkable environment and allow the rest of Washington Street to go down to one-lane each direction. It is also consistent with the growth visions that many have for this corridor.

4) There are many new pedestrian and bicycle-friendly design elements in all of the plans, including Option 3!

However, Option 3 is lacking a few items. Therefore, there should be favorable elements from other options included into Option 3. For example, a "green" deck over the Pike and better pedestrian-bike connections to the Charles River come to mind.

There are aspects of the designs that concern me. There is still a determination to increase traffic capacity by extending and widening ramps, especially when it comes to the eastbound off ramp from the Turnpike. Also, there doen't need to be 4 lanes on the north side of Washington Street (two in each direction) and I would prefer it to be one lane in each direction, perhaps with turning lanes as needed. Having a 4-lane cross-section will make this section hostile to businesses and the comfort of pedestrians and bicyclists. In Alternative 3, the east bridge may not need 3 lanes going southbound. Perhaps two lanes southbound with a single lane northbound would be better, while keeping the dedicated transit lanes.

We'll find out more during the meeting about what the engineers think about all of this!

Srdj

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From: newt...@googlegroups.com <newt...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Andreae Downs <andrea...@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, March 30, 2026 11:55 AM
To: Lucia Dolan <dolan...@gmail.com>
Cc: TAG <Newt...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: Newton Corner Long-Term Plan

 

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