What % of households in Somerville do NOT own a car?
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Christopher Beland
May 11, 2025, 3:55:19 AM5/11/25
to Davis Square Neighborhood Council
TLDR: 24%.
One common refrain I hear in discussions around development and our new
no-parking-minimums policy is that "everyone needs a car", implying
that putting up buildings without parking will greatly inconvenience
the future residents, fill up the neighboring streets with their cars,
or both. But I have also experienced living as a car-free couple, and
know people looking for or out of financial necessity adopting that
lifestyle. We generally want to or have to live near high-frequency
transit, don't want to pay for parking we won't use, and would prefer
to use that space to make our apartments or bigger or get basement
storage or a bike room or something.
We need to quantify the demand for parking to get zoning and building
design right. So! When a developer puts a new building on the market,
what percentage of their potential tenants are actually looking for or
at least happy with no parking? The best numbers I could find are
simply the % of households who currently have no car:
* 8.7% - US, 2016
* 12% - Massachusetts, 2023
* 21% - Davis-Powderhouse-Ball Squares, 2022
* 24% - Somerville, 2022
* 30.6% - Cambridge, 2015
* 35.4% - Boston, 2015
* 77.3% - Manhattan, 2017-2021
Sources:
2022 Parking and Curb Policy Study:
https://voice.somervillema.gov/13396/widgets/40230/documents/35795
https://www.governing.com/archive/car-ownership-numbers-of-vehicles-by-city-map.html
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/11/14/1-in-10-americans-rarely-or-never-drive-a-car/
https://www.hunterurban.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Car-Light-NYC-Infographics-May-2024.pdf
I was curious how those potential tenants break down by income, given
Somerville reserves 20% of units in large projects for income-
restricted tenants, and that market-rate rent in new buildings tend to
be higher simply because they are in good condition and up to modern
codes. Folks who have crunched the numbers in NYC (sources above and
below) report that the strongest predictor of car ownership is not
income, age, or race, but "housing characteristics and neighborhood".
That is to say, people who live in dense, walkable, transit-accessible
neighborhoods tend to not own cars.
There are two factors that tend to cancel each other out and reduce the
correlation between income and car ownership. One is that lower-income
people are less likely to own cars than the national average. In 2016,
20% of low-income American households didn't own cars. But low-income
car ownership had been increasing, driven by moves to suburbs with poor
public transit.
The other factor is that higher-income people tend to cluster in
transit-rich, walkable neighborhoods because they are more desirable,
and people who live in those neighborhoods are a lot less likely to own
cars.
Sources:
https://wellango.github.io/posts/2021/06/who-owns-cars-in-nyc/
https://www.thezebra.com/resources/research/car-ownership-statistics/#poverty
My takeaways:
* The safe zone for no-parking residential construction in Somerville
is somewhere around 20% of the city's housing stock, assuming new
residents match the current transportation lifestyles of existing
residents. (It would be interesting to know what % of existing housing
units do not have off-street parking.)
* Making neighborhoods more walkable and transit-rich will gradually
reduce the demand for car ownership, at all income levels.
* Even in the densest, most transit-packed neighborhoods, a minority of
people still do own cars (e.g. 19% in the East Village, NYC)
While we're talking no-parking facts: Somerville already bans residents
in new and gut-rehab structures on Urban Residential parcels within a
10-minute walk of transit from ever obtaining street parking permits.
The Somerville Traffic Commission maintains a list of affected
addresses in Schedule W at the end of:
https://www.somervillema.gov/traffic-regulations
The 2022 Parking and Curb Policy Study also has oodles of data and
policy recommendations I'm just starting to digest.
-B.
One common refrain I hear in discussions around development and our new
no-parking-minimums policy is that "everyone needs a car", implying
that putting up buildings without parking will greatly inconvenience
the future residents, fill up the neighboring streets with their cars,
or both. But I have also experienced living as a car-free couple, and
know people looking for or out of financial necessity adopting that
lifestyle. We generally want to or have to live near high-frequency
transit, don't want to pay for parking we won't use, and would prefer
to use that space to make our apartments or bigger or get basement
storage or a bike room or something.
We need to quantify the demand for parking to get zoning and building
design right. So! When a developer puts a new building on the market,
what percentage of their potential tenants are actually looking for or
at least happy with no parking? The best numbers I could find are
simply the % of households who currently have no car:
* 8.7% - US, 2016
* 12% - Massachusetts, 2023
* 21% - Davis-Powderhouse-Ball Squares, 2022
* 24% - Somerville, 2022
* 30.6% - Cambridge, 2015
* 35.4% - Boston, 2015
* 77.3% - Manhattan, 2017-2021
Sources:
2022 Parking and Curb Policy Study:
https://voice.somervillema.gov/13396/widgets/40230/documents/35795
https://www.governing.com/archive/car-ownership-numbers-of-vehicles-by-city-map.html
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/11/14/1-in-10-americans-rarely-or-never-drive-a-car/
https://www.hunterurban.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Car-Light-NYC-Infographics-May-2024.pdf
I was curious how those potential tenants break down by income, given
Somerville reserves 20% of units in large projects for income-
restricted tenants, and that market-rate rent in new buildings tend to
be higher simply because they are in good condition and up to modern
codes. Folks who have crunched the numbers in NYC (sources above and
below) report that the strongest predictor of car ownership is not
income, age, or race, but "housing characteristics and neighborhood".
That is to say, people who live in dense, walkable, transit-accessible
neighborhoods tend to not own cars.
There are two factors that tend to cancel each other out and reduce the
correlation between income and car ownership. One is that lower-income
people are less likely to own cars than the national average. In 2016,
20% of low-income American households didn't own cars. But low-income
car ownership had been increasing, driven by moves to suburbs with poor
public transit.
The other factor is that higher-income people tend to cluster in
transit-rich, walkable neighborhoods because they are more desirable,
and people who live in those neighborhoods are a lot less likely to own
cars.
Sources:
https://wellango.github.io/posts/2021/06/who-owns-cars-in-nyc/
https://www.thezebra.com/resources/research/car-ownership-statistics/#poverty
My takeaways:
* The safe zone for no-parking residential construction in Somerville
is somewhere around 20% of the city's housing stock, assuming new
residents match the current transportation lifestyles of existing
residents. (It would be interesting to know what % of existing housing
units do not have off-street parking.)
* Making neighborhoods more walkable and transit-rich will gradually
reduce the demand for car ownership, at all income levels.
* Even in the densest, most transit-packed neighborhoods, a minority of
people still do own cars (e.g. 19% in the East Village, NYC)
While we're talking no-parking facts: Somerville already bans residents
in new and gut-rehab structures on Urban Residential parcels within a
10-minute walk of transit from ever obtaining street parking permits.
The Somerville Traffic Commission maintains a list of affected
addresses in Schedule W at the end of:
https://www.somervillema.gov/traffic-regulations
The 2022 Parking and Curb Policy Study also has oodles of data and
policy recommendations I'm just starting to digest.
-B.
Jeff Byrnes
May 11, 2025, 4:34:19 PM5/11/25
to Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
It’s anecdotal, but to give some personality to Christopher’s stats, here’s my relationship with cars.
From 2002–2020, I didn’t have a car. I had one growing up in exurban Charlotte, NC, but left it behind & sold it.
I lived in Boston (2002–2013), Cambridge (2013–2016), then Somerville (2016–now).
I was a student, then single professional, then married professional, now married with one kid.
We got a car b/c of the pandemic, & kept it b/c it’s a sunk cost & convenient for visiting family out of state, but otherwise it’s almost always sitting in our driveway. I logged ~4000 miles on it in the last year, mostly doing Boston ←→ NY trips to see fam. Not a lot! 😆
We live down the block from Magoun Sq Station & a 15 min walk from Davis & Porter, and we’re high income (two incomes, both of us office workers). Leah walks & trains to work, and I bike most places, including taking our toddler to daycare.
If not for the uncertainty of the pandemic, I’m not sure we’d have a car, and we seriously considered selling it once it was clear trains & planes are pretty safe, esp. if you mask. 😷
100% of Somerville is within a mile of a train station, and ~70% is within ½ mile. Pretty great!
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Beth Kevles
May 12, 2025, 11:48:36 AM5/12/25
to Jeff Byrnes, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Another anecdote.
I own a car with off-street parking. I live very close to transit, but transit doesn't get me everywhere I need to go.
The two primary uses of my car are for visits to places that aren't easily (or at all) transit-accessable, and to run errands for friends and acquaintances who are car-free, but occasionally need a vehicle for errands. Basically, for many in my social circle, I am the Car Owner who can help.
I additionally use my car to transport handicapped friends on social occasions and sometimes for errands/appointments.
I hadn't realized that there was a prohibition on residential permits for residents of buildings with first permits issued after 1/15/2020. (Page 14 in the previously-linked document, in case you were wondering.) I would resent that terribly, so am glad my home was built a century earlier. (I doubt I'd fit into the "extenuating circumstances" bucket, even though my lack of car would negatively impact not just myself, but a bunch of people around me.)
For those of you who are car-free, do you have someone in your social circle who, like me, helps out by loaning their vehicle or time for errands/trips that really do require a vehicle?
Curious,
--Beth
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Jeff Byrnes
May 12, 2025, 11:58:19 AM5/12/25
to Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Before we owned a car, I made heavy use of ZipCar for the situations you refer to Beth, and while it needed a little forethought, I never struggled to have wheels when the situation called for it.
So that’s how I handled that situation for myself and, eventually, for Leah & I together. Also sometimes how I got to gigs as a working bassist back when that was my full-time occupation (I play upright & electric bass).
So that’s how I handled that situation for myself and, eventually, for Leah & I together. Also sometimes how I got to gigs as a working bassist back when that was my full-time occupation (I play upright & electric bass).
Christopher Beland
May 12, 2025, 1:32:57 PM5/12/25
to Beth Kevles, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I was curious how big the "I have a car and I do X with it"
demographics are, and found some data in the document with detailed
Somerville Parking and Curb Use Survey response numbers:
https://voice.somervillema.gov/13396/widgets/40230/documents/31605
* 40.6% - Driveway
* 40.2% - Street
* 11.8% - Street sometimes, driveway sometimes
* 6.9% - Parking lot or garage
* 0.5% - Street sometimes, lot or garage sometimes
Putting that in the context of only 76% of residents owning a car,
overall current practice is:
* 31% - Driveway parking
* 31% - Street parking
* 24% - No car
* 9% - Street sometimes, driveway sometimes
* 5% - Parking lot or garage
* 0.4% - Street sometimes, lot or garage sometimes
On Mon, 2025-05-12 at 11:48 -0400, Beth Kevles wrote:
> For those of you who are car-free, do you have someone in your social
> circle who, like me, helps out by loaning their vehicle or time for
> errands/trips that really do require a vehicle?
No, we have always just rented a ZipCar or moving truck, and for one-
way emergency trips taken a taxi or Lyft. Given taxes and insurance,
that can also be a lot cheaper than maintaining a car that's hardly
ever used.
Some large developments dedicate parking spots for car-sharing
services, so that residents can still drive places occasionally without
filling up the property with a lot of seldom-used cars. That is
something that might be possible to ask for in a CBA.
-B.
demographics are, and found some data in the document with detailed
Somerville Parking and Curb Use Survey response numbers:
https://voice.somervillema.gov/13396/widgets/40230/documents/31605
* 40.6% - Driveway
* 40.2% - Street
* 11.8% - Street sometimes, driveway sometimes
* 6.9% - Parking lot or garage
* 0.5% - Street sometimes, lot or garage sometimes
Putting that in the context of only 76% of residents owning a car,
overall current practice is:
* 31% - Driveway parking
* 31% - Street parking
* 24% - No car
* 9% - Street sometimes, driveway sometimes
* 5% - Parking lot or garage
* 0.4% - Street sometimes, lot or garage sometimes
On Mon, 2025-05-12 at 11:48 -0400, Beth Kevles wrote:
> For those of you who are car-free, do you have someone in your social
> circle who, like me, helps out by loaning their vehicle or time for
> errands/trips that really do require a vehicle?
way emergency trips taken a taxi or Lyft. Given taxes and insurance,
that can also be a lot cheaper than maintaining a car that's hardly
ever used.
Some large developments dedicate parking spots for car-sharing
services, so that residents can still drive places occasionally without
filling up the property with a lot of seldom-used cars. That is
something that might be possible to ask for in a CBA.
-B.
Jeff Byrnes
May 12, 2025, 2:35:13 PM5/12/25
to Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Definitely true that good access to public transit helps reduce or avoid the need for a car! Lois, your bit about the doctor’s office staff is so telling.
I like how PJ pointed out how expensive a car is, and Lois, that you pointed out how inexpensive a T ride is. Way cheaper to live car-free!
I like how PJ pointed out how expensive a car is, and Lois, that you pointed out how inexpensive a T ride is. Way cheaper to live car-free!
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Christopher Beland
May 13, 2025, 6:11:33 AM5/13/25
to Melissa McWhinney, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Yes, Melissa, I use "car-free" to mean not owning a car, but maybe
occasionally renting one, and that's what I assume other people mean.
Your request for data on cars per household over time was interesting.
Wealth is certainly a factor, but so is number of driving-age people
per household (which I haven't researched in detail).
The state has a very precise vehicle census to track vehicle-miles
traveled and EV adoption and whatnot:
https://geodot-homepage-massdot.hub.arcgis.com/pages/massvehiclecensus
It only goes back to 2020, and there was lots of wibbly-wobbly during
the COVID-19 pandemic. But from January 1, 2020 to April 1, 2025,
Somervile has actually dropped from 41,788 vehicles to 41,459. US
Census data shows Somerville also lost human population from 2020 to
2023 (see below).
The US Census American Community Survey has estimates going back
further, which actually also break out the number of "vehicles
available" per household.
Somerville 2023:
Households 37,108 ±1,872
No vehicle 8,603 ±1,451 23%
1 vehicle 18,125 ±2,158 49%
2 vehicles 9,221 ±1,467 25%
3+ vehicles 1,159 ±478 3%
Somerville 2010:
Households 30,468 ±1,684
No vehicle 6,820 ±1,220 25%
1 vehicle 14,588 ±1.767 48%
2 vehicles 7,557 ±1385 25%
3+ vehicles 1,503 ±566 7%
https://data.census.gov/table?q=DP04&g=060XX00US2501762535&y=2010
Given the margins of error, the only clear trends are the increase in
the number of households and the reduction of households with three or
more cars.
I looked at the 1990 and 2000 censuses; I think the same data exists
buried somewhere in "CH-2, Detailed Housing Characteristics", but only
regional and statewide data have been put online.
For the United States overall, there was a strong trend between 1960
(at least) and 1990 of fewer households with no or 1 vehicle, and more
households with two or three or more. That has continued more slowly
since.
https://www.bts.gov/archive/publications/passenger_travel_2016/tables/fig2_8_text
That burst of change was when people were buying cars and moving to the
suburbs and out of urban areas like Somerville; the people left behind
may have followed a different pattern. From Wikipedia, Somerville
population:
1850 3,540 —
1860 8,025 +126.7%
1870 14,685 +83.0%
1880 24,933 +69.8%
1890 40,152 +61.0%
1900 61,643 +53.5%
1910 77,236 +25.3%
1920 93,091 +20.5%
1930 103,908 +11.6%
1940 102,177 −1.7%
1950 102,351 +0.2%
1960 94,697 −7.5%
1970 88,779 −6.2%
1980 77,372 −12.8%
1990 76,210 −1.5%
2000 77,478 +1.7%
2010 75,754 −2.2%
2020 81,045 +7.0%
2023 80,407 −0.8% (est.)
-B.
occasionally renting one, and that's what I assume other people mean.
Your request for data on cars per household over time was interesting.
Wealth is certainly a factor, but so is number of driving-age people
per household (which I haven't researched in detail).
The state has a very precise vehicle census to track vehicle-miles
traveled and EV adoption and whatnot:
https://geodot-homepage-massdot.hub.arcgis.com/pages/massvehiclecensus
It only goes back to 2020, and there was lots of wibbly-wobbly during
the COVID-19 pandemic. But from January 1, 2020 to April 1, 2025,
Somervile has actually dropped from 41,788 vehicles to 41,459. US
Census data shows Somerville also lost human population from 2020 to
2023 (see below).
The US Census American Community Survey has estimates going back
further, which actually also break out the number of "vehicles
available" per household.
Somerville 2023:
Households 37,108 ±1,872
No vehicle 8,603 ±1,451 23%
1 vehicle 18,125 ±2,158 49%
2 vehicles 9,221 ±1,467 25%
3+ vehicles 1,159 ±478 3%
Somerville 2010:
Households 30,468 ±1,684
No vehicle 6,820 ±1,220 25%
1 vehicle 14,588 ±1.767 48%
2 vehicles 7,557 ±1385 25%
3+ vehicles 1,503 ±566 7%
https://data.census.gov/table?q=DP04&g=060XX00US2501762535&y=2010
Given the margins of error, the only clear trends are the increase in
the number of households and the reduction of households with three or
more cars.
I looked at the 1990 and 2000 censuses; I think the same data exists
buried somewhere in "CH-2, Detailed Housing Characteristics", but only
regional and statewide data have been put online.
For the United States overall, there was a strong trend between 1960
(at least) and 1990 of fewer households with no or 1 vehicle, and more
households with two or three or more. That has continued more slowly
since.
https://www.bts.gov/archive/publications/passenger_travel_2016/tables/fig2_8_text
That burst of change was when people were buying cars and moving to the
suburbs and out of urban areas like Somerville; the people left behind
may have followed a different pattern. From Wikipedia, Somerville
population:
1850 3,540 —
1860 8,025 +126.7%
1870 14,685 +83.0%
1880 24,933 +69.8%
1890 40,152 +61.0%
1900 61,643 +53.5%
1910 77,236 +25.3%
1920 93,091 +20.5%
1930 103,908 +11.6%
1940 102,177 −1.7%
1950 102,351 +0.2%
1960 94,697 −7.5%
1970 88,779 −6.2%
1980 77,372 −12.8%
1990 76,210 −1.5%
2000 77,478 +1.7%
2010 75,754 −2.2%
2020 81,045 +7.0%
2023 80,407 −0.8% (est.)
-B.
Melissa McWhinney
May 13, 2025, 2:00:09 PM5/13/25
to Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Hello, all. Interesting discussion. I would love to see a comparison, if possible, with how many cars were owned 20 years ago, or even longer ago. Here's a telling anecdote: When we moved here 35 years ago, there was one car belonging to our two-family home, and one car belonging to the two-family home across the street = 2 cars for these two homes. Now, there are three cars belonging to our household, and five cars belonging to the house across the street = 8 cars for these two homes. As Somerville becomes wealthier, more and more residents can afford to own a car. This is true for other homes on our street as well, so there are now many more cars than there were a few decades ago. (When my husband retires at the end of this year, we may drop to owning only one car. )
I also have a question about the term "car-free", which confuses me. I assume this means simply that one doesn't own a car, but that the car-free person does take Ubers, Lyfts, have food delivered in cars, etc., i.e. it's not a matter of principle to not use cars for anything, just that one does not own a car. Is that the current usage?
Thanks
Melissa
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Melissa McWhinney, Landlords for Affordable Housing
Lois Russell
May 13, 2025, 2:00:13 PM5/13/25
to Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I feel as though I live in transit heaven and purposely moved to a place that has transit. When the green line is down, I have the red line, etc. I appreciate that I can get to NYC so easily by T and train. I own a car, parked off the street. I use it only when transit is not available or a hassle. There are a lot of places that are not easy to get to on public transit. One of my doctors has offices in Wellesley and MGH. Their assumption is that I want to go to Wellesley and they always apologize when there is no suburban appointment. When I tell them I prefer Boston they always mention the cost of parking. It does not occur to them that the T is an option. With my senior pass, the whole trip costs me $2.20 and I can read instead of dodging cars and bikes. I have come to dislike driving and it takes more than 3 miles to get me behind the wheel.
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PJ Santos
May 13, 2025, 2:00:28 PM5/13/25
to Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
My wife and I were car free until last year - we'd rent a car roughly once every month or so for those types of situations. Much cheaper than owning one, and way less of a headache!
We would have preferred to move to somewhere more centrally located and without parking, but instead ended up a bit outside the area we thought we totally rely on public transit.
I suspect there are a lot of people who'd prefer to live car free (for instance everyone who outbid us when we were home shopping!). Additionally, for people who want to both own a car and live near transit, there's nothing stopping them from buying / renting a place with a garage. It'll cost a bit more, but it allows people choose what makes the most sense for them.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/c0c3d096-e9a3-412a-99d6-4fd96d448ff1%40Spark.
hu...@comcast.net
May 13, 2025, 2:00:33 PM5/13/25
to Christopher Beland, Beth Kevles, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
It seems the ZipCar angle is hugely important to this discussion.
Has anyone done a study of the density required of ZipCar locations to satisfy the needs some stipulated percentage of potential carless households? The study would need to cover different scenarios, including the current distribution of carless households, and proposed developments with no provision for parking. Does ZipCar have this information?
Would the City need to subsidize a service that would insure a locally available ZipCar during peak hours, or is that already built into ZipCar's model?
How about dedicated curbside level II chargers for a fleet of electrified ZipCars, one for every n households?
-Hume
Has anyone done a study of the density required of ZipCar locations to satisfy the needs some stipulated percentage of potential carless households? The study would need to cover different scenarios, including the current distribution of carless households, and proposed developments with no provision for parking. Does ZipCar have this information?
Would the City need to subsidize a service that would insure a locally available ZipCar during peak hours, or is that already built into ZipCar's model?
How about dedicated curbside level II chargers for a fleet of electrified ZipCars, one for every n households?
-Hume
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Robert Collins
May 13, 2025, 2:19:25 PM5/13/25
to Santos PJ, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
In terms of being car-free, I ride a motorcycle—and I absolutely love it. It’s so much easier to get around, and parking is never an issue. There's also something really satisfying about having such a simple, efficient mode of transportation that fits my needs perfectly. While a lot of people are driving oversized SUVs and trucks, my motorcycle does exactly what I need it to do—nothing more, nothing less. It’s minimal, practical, and just feels right for the way I live.
Sent from my iPhone
On May 13, 2025, at 2:00 PM, PJ Santos <peej...@gmail.com> wrote:
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/CAEDUMSzKHHPFGY_h_GmYenZsoqvJ6k0%2BCFmeTppwSQ-S3eZ-Og%40mail.gmail.com.
PJ Santos
May 13, 2025, 2:20:19 PM5/13/25
to Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Hi Melissa,
Yes, I think there are very few people who would say they are "car free" and mean they actually never use cars at all! People have different motivations, but I've generally thought of it as being in a "car diet" instead of being "car vegan".
I don't have the data in front of me, but the last time I looked at the census records I remember seeing car ownership trending downward in Somerville. I just pulled this up on my phone from Cambridge, which shows a gradual increase in "no car households" : https://www.cambridgema.gov/-/media/Files/Traffic/factsheet_cambridgetransportationfinaledits91515as.pdf
The last thing is that there are a bunch of people who own cars, but aren't strongly attached to them. It's only an anecdote, but I've definitely noticed cars that get snowed in during a blizzard, and don't move until the snow melts over the winter! If we made car ownership a smidge more inconvenient (slightly higher parking permit fee?) I bet some people would ditch their car and it wouldn't change their lifestyle at all
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Mieke Citroen
May 13, 2025, 2:51:05 PM5/13/25
to Robert Collins, Santos PJ, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
While my vehicles are a bicycle and a motorcycle, the latter is still relevant to the parking situation. Motorcycles are not exempt for the traffic problems as they are, and I don't believe you can call it that much better than SUVs and trucks in the parking discussion.
Personally, I avoid driving (any motorized vehicle) in the city, and prefer to bicycle. But I'm well aware that there's are many others who depend on having a car, and we need to find solutions that work for both groups.
--Mieke
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mem...@gmail.com
May 13, 2025, 3:35:05 PM5/13/25
to PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I consider car-free to mean not owning a car.
In my case, I lived without a car for my first 10 years in the Boston area My monthly spend on transportation (T, bus, taxis, rental cars, train tickets) was about the same as it would have been had I owned a car. While I enjoyed not having to worry about car maintenance and parking, it was limiting. I didn't go out of town or visit friends who lived off public transportation very often and often, rental cars were not available on popular weekends.
My now husband came with a car (quite the perk) which I use, but continue to take public transportation and/or car shares whenever it is feasible. With the increase in bikes/bike lanes, I have grown to hate driving, but do it if going out of town,
if I'm hauling stuff (Home Depot, recreational equipment, groceries), transporting people to and from medical appts (don't get old),
or public transportation is very inconvenient.
Why not bike, you ask? IMHO, it's still too dangerous and while unprotected bike lanes give the illusion of safety, you can get "doored" at any moment, and, being human, both drivers and I can make mistakes that would have devastating consequences.
Since I have an off-street parking spot, I will continue to have a car that I use on an occasional basis for the indefinite future.
Mary Ellen
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Lois Russell
May 13, 2025, 3:38:27 PM5/13/25
to PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I really like the idea of a "car diet." I do own a car (and a garage) but I use it only when transit or walking won't work. I have not reduced the number of cars I own, but I have cut my annual mileage to about a third of what it was ten years ago. There are two issues: reducing the number of cars and reducing car use. And it is true that the less I use my car, the more I think about getting rid of it.
On Tue, May 13, 2025 at 2:20 PM PJ Santos <peej...@gmail.com> wrote:
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rona twofisch.com
May 13, 2025, 3:52:49 PM5/13/25
to PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
JP Santos,
I was with you on your discussion until you get to this line: “If we made car ownership a smidge more inconvenient (slightly higher parking permit fee?) I bet some people would ditch their car and it wouldn't change their lifestyle at all”
What you are saying there is “lets make being disabled in Somerville more inconvenient and/or more expensive”. I wish you no harm. However, I read that and believe you would like me to just disappear once I can’t walk a half mile to the subway. I think the acceptance of this attitude is the most disrespectful, agist crap to come out of a legitimate movement to reduce the carbon footprint of people who live in Somerville. Disabled people’s lives matter. For that matter, so do the lives of people who can’t afford to live in the expensive subway-stop neighborhoods.
I have been conscious of my household carbon footprint since the 1960s (before there was a term for it). As other people have said, there are personal choices that move in the right direction and there are personal choices that are wasteful. I am not car-free, but I choose to use my car less because I live in the city and there are options. If I didn’t have a car, I would be depending on Uber/Lyft/taxi, which are not wins for carbon-reduction. No car is not the least polluting option for me. Forcing me into it is not a reasonable tactic.
Please stop counting car registrations. It’s not the be-all and end-all of the carbon waste in this city. Count cars on the street from 2-6 PM. Focusing on the number of cars registered in town is short-sighted. The number of cars lined up in traffic and idling has increased considerably in the past four-six years. Idling vehicles create a 20X increase in the kind of air pollution we all don’t want to breath, compared with cars that move through town at a reasonable speed. There must be a way of slowing down the reckless folk without causing cars to crawl through town, polluting and wasting gas. Ditto for the cars and trucks doing food and merchandise delivery – many of them leaving their vehicles idling.
From: daviss...@googlegroups.com <daviss...@googlegroups.com>
On Behalf Of PJ Santos
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2025 2:20 PM
To: Melissa McWhinney <melissam...@gmail.com>
Cc: Jeff Byrnes <je...@somervilleyimby.org>; Beth Kevles <bethk...@gmail.com>; Christopher Beland <bel...@alum.mit.edu>; Davis Square Neighborhood Council <daviss...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [DSNC] What % of households in Somerville do NOT own a car?
Hi Melissa,
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/CAEDUMSwFvM-ZKRipH9APBF4QNHNF7_O2738CK1UFye%2BizrXYfA%40mail.gmail.com.
Alyssa W
May 13, 2025, 4:14:19 PM5/13/25
to rona twofisch.com, PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I think a more constructive reply might be "I was with you until this point, however if we were to raise permit fees it would be important to consider marginalized populations; without carve outs for low income and disabled residents* this idea could easily do more harm than good."
People are trying to brainstorm ways to improve our city. We can call out flaws in their ideas, suggest improvements, or accuse them of saying and thinking awful things are such they didn't say (and likely didn't think) when their first ideas aren't perfect. I think the former two are both more constructive and more likely to get folks to rethink their idea, where the latter can make folks defensive and stifle brainstorming. Let's assume positive intent where we can!
People are trying to brainstorm ways to improve our city. We can call out flaws in their ideas, suggest improvements, or accuse them of saying and thinking awful things are such they didn't say (and likely didn't think) when their first ideas aren't perfect. I think the former two are both more constructive and more likely to get folks to rethink their idea, where the latter can make folks defensive and stifle brainstorming. Let's assume positive intent where we can!
Best
Alyssa
*Which by the way the only concrete proposal I've seen by the city already included.
*Which by the way the only concrete proposal I've seen by the city already included.
PJ Santos
May 13, 2025, 5:15:58 PM5/13/25
to rona twofisch.com, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I'd push back on you a bit there -
Handicapped permits are handled separately, and I don't think anyone thinks we should make those more expensive or harder to get for people who need them.
Additionally, if we encourage people who don't need to drive to not, that'll leave more parking spaces and less traffic for those who do.
People were all up in arms about NYCs congestion pricing with similar concerns to what you brought up. However, once it got implemented, people who need to drive are finding their lives have been significantly improved because they spend less time sitting in traffic.
Obviously, the devil is in the details here, but I think it wouldn't be a terrible idea to revisit how we price parking permits and see if we can tweak it to reduce unnecessary car ownership + make necessary car ownership less of a nightmare.
PJ Santos
May 13, 2025, 5:30:20 PM5/13/25
to rona twofisch.com, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
And, no offense taken or intended! Navigating the world with a disability is tough, and too often people who don't have one forget to include the perspective of people who do.
rona twofisch.com
May 13, 2025, 6:23:18 PM5/13/25
to PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I am not 100% with you on this for several reasons.
- Not everyone who is medically restricted from cycling qualifies for handicapped parking permits.
- The result of the NYC surge pricing is too soon to tell. However, I agree that it is looking promising. I am curious what the work-around is for those thousands of drivers who got off the road during rush hours. I doubt it is bicycle. Can you find sources about whether MTA ridership is way up? Also, there’s a false equivalency; the NYC MTA and Greater Boston’s MBTA are night and day in scope and usability. NYC has a much more usable and extensive system that is going to really benefit from the repair money being generated by this.
- What I object to is the cars=bad/bikes=good mentality excludes segments of the population:
- older or disabled
- need a car because they live in the cheaper neighborhood, where there is less access to public transit
- Need a car because they want to live in this city but need to work away from the public transit grid.
I also don’t want to stop the conversation. I could have been more diplomatic. I will aim higher next time. Please excuse my tone.
The reason I am being vehement is that I hear the ever-present goal as being fewer cars = job one. That makes people who use cars the enemy, or lazy, or somehow not worthy of consideration. I get frustrated at being invisible, except when I am being insulted. (There is a bicycle advocate who told me to defy my doctor’s recommendation. I had several bicycle advocates tell me I don’t “look unable to ride a bicycle”).
The devil is in the details and the details almost never seem to include groups that cannot get on a bicycle or who travel too far to use a bicycle or who’s commute would be too long if they had to use existing non-car options. Consider those who have legitimate reasons to want a car and get them to be your allies on reducing their carbon footprint in other ways. I don’t hear “reduce carbon usage, every way we can”, as the goal. I react to hearing “make driving awkward, every way we can.”
Go in peace. Thank you for your feedback.
Rona
rona twofisch.com
May 13, 2025, 6:24:28 PM5/13/25
to PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Thank you. I answered in detail about your content.
Rona
From: daviss...@googlegroups.com <daviss...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of PJ Santos
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2025 5:30 PM
To: rona twofisch.com <ro...@twofisch.com>
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/CAEDUMSxXNtNeh6f4dM8-JHTqdCWTZPMLf13fua9kdw3Qurp42Q%40mail.gmail.com.
PJ Santos
May 13, 2025, 7:20:20 PM5/13/25
to rona twofisch.com, Melissa McWhinney, Jeff Byrnes, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
No worries! And, I certainly am not out here saying every car owner needs to be ashamed of themselves.
As I first chimed in on this thread, my wife and I reluctantly bought a car last year because we couldn't afford anywhere that we could get by 100% on public transit. However, we'd give out car up in an instant for a "no parking" apartment near the T... But instead you're stuck behind me in traffic 🙃.
My larger point is car ownership in Somerville isn't very "optimal"
- some people have cars, but clearly don't need them (folks who leave them buried under the snow all winter)
- others have them, need them, but wish they didn't (that's me)
- others have them, really need them, but get massively inconvenienced by parking being full, traffic, etc. (I think that's you).
To meet our climate goals, make Somerville a more pleasant place to live, and make it easier for the elderly / disabled / families with kids, I think we should think about ways to get the first two catagories out of their cars in favor of the third one.
No matter how much I hate to hand it to New York, they do have a bit of a better subway system than us. But, I think we can be inspired by the success of their congestion pricing that some small changes in how we run our city could have really positive effects. Maybe that looks like bumping up the annual parking permit fee by $20, and using the proceeds to expand access to handicapped stickers + improve the mbtas "the ride" service. Or perhaps we could go all "carrot" and offer people a free 1 year T pass if they can prove they didn't renew their parking permit and sold their car?
I'm not pretending to know the answers, but there's no harm in brainstorming
Jeff Byrnes
May 13, 2025, 7:42:50 PM5/13/25
to rona twofisch.com, PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
One bit of data that might help: NYC’s congestion pricing has had at least two valuable impacts for transit riders:
- increased ridership overall
- Faster buses
The NY Times published a fantastic piece today illustrating the positive impacts of pricing car use (with carve outs!): https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/05/11/upshot/congestion-pricing.html
Paywall-free version: https://archive.ph/5XkDc
Mieke Citroen
May 13, 2025, 9:28:36 PM5/13/25
to Jeff Byrnes, rona twofisch.com, PJ Santos, Melissa McWhinney, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
I own a motorized vehicle (motorcycle) and need it. To go to work, it takes me 50 minutes door to door on it. If I were to take public transport which is either bus/T to commuter rail or T to C&J. And then I still need to get picked up and driven to the end point.
So no, I can not really do without a vehicle in the long run. I do like the idea of calling it a car "diet".
That being said, I avoid driving it in the city. I ride my bicycle and take the T. I wish that it was less intimidating for people to bicycle more. The more people ride, the safer it tends to be to ride. It's improved tremendously since I started bicycling in the Boston area some 25 years ago. But there's still a ways to go.
Just my $0.02.
--Mother
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Christopher Beland
May 14, 2025, 10:09:41 PM5/14/25
to hu...@comcast.net, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
On Mon, 2025-05-12 at 22:33 -0400, hu...@comcast.net wrote:
> Has anyone done a study of the density required of ZipCar locations
> to satisfy the needs some stipulated percentage of potential carless
> households? The study would need to cover different scenarios,
> including the current distribution of carless households, and
> proposed developments with no provision for parking. Does ZipCar have
> this information?
>
> Would the City need to subsidize a service that would insure a
> locally available ZipCar during peak hours, or is that already built
> into ZipCar's model?
I contacted ZipCar and am waiting to hear back. This may be considered
> Has anyone done a study of the density required of ZipCar locations
> to satisfy the needs some stipulated percentage of potential carless
> households? The study would need to cover different scenarios,
> including the current distribution of carless households, and
> proposed developments with no provision for parking. Does ZipCar have
> this information?
>
> Would the City need to subsidize a service that would insure a
> locally available ZipCar during peak hours, or is that already built
> into ZipCar's model?
proprietary confidential market intelligence, so I did my own back-of-
the-envelope calculations.
I am a ZipCar member and I just checked to see how hard it is to find
cars at peak times this week. It's actually quite easy to find ZipCar
sedans, hatchbacks, SUVs, and EVs, but there appear to no longer be any
cargo vans in the area. It's also possible to rent a cargo van or truck
from Home Depot, and cheaper to rent a car for a long road trip from
one of the companies at the airport.
Easy availability also implies the current ZipCar fleet (along with
competitors) is adequate to handle the current 7,000-10,000 car-free
households in Somerville. I can find 27 existing cars in Somerville,
arranged in clusters of 1-3:
2x - 78 Central St, Somerville, 02143 - Central St/Gibbens St
1x - 30 Dane Street, Somerville, 02143 - 30 Dane St - Ames Parking Deck
2x - 155 Highland Ave, Somerville, 02143 - Highland Ave/Central St
1x - 289 Highland Ave, Somerville, 02144 - 289 Highland Ave
3x - 373 Highland Ave, Somerville, 02144 - 373 Highland Ave - Highland
Commons
2x - 393 Highland Ave, Somerville, 02144 - 393 Highland Ave - Rite Aid
(Rear Lot)
1x - 35 Medford Street, Somerville, MA 02143 - 35 Medford St - Metro 9
Condos (Ancillary Lot)
2x - 532 Medford St, Somerville, 02145 - Broadway/Medford St -
Somerville
1x - 50 Prospect St, Somerville, MA 02143, USA - Prospect Union Square
2x - 290 Revolution Dr, Somerville, MA 02145, USA - Revolution Dr &
Grand Union Blvd - Alta Revolution Apts
1x - 256 Somerville Ave, Somerville, 02143 - Somerville Ave/Allen St
(Rear Lot)
2x - 165 Sycamore St, Somerville, 02145 - Broadway/Sycamore St -
Somerville
That very crude math implies a ratio of 1 ZipCar for every 250-400 car-
free households, assuming households with cars never use ZipCar and
that there is no spillover of demand or supply from neighboring
municipalities. So for a no-parking building with 500 apartments, 2
ZipCar spots should be adequate, and a cluster of 3 might provide a
somewhat redundant amenity to other people in the neighborhood and
people who could hop on the Red Line to pick one up. Maybe it would
help more people go car-free for unrelated reasons.
The Davis Square Lofts development has a single space (maybe a hundred
condos?) has one ZipCar space, but it also has a lot of surface and
garage parking spots. I don't see it available for public reservation,
so maybe it's only serving residents there. Arrangements like that mean
that the number of households served per ZipCar is slightly lower than
I estimated, but also mean that having "too many" ZipCars for the
exclusive use of a new development may be economically feasible.
The transport rental marketplace has also changed since ZipCar first
became popular. We now have peer-to-peer services that allow
individuals to rent out their cars from the huge number of driveways
where cars are mostly sitting idle, e-bikes and e-scooters for getting
to a faraway destination if you don't have cargo, and ride hailing
services like Uber and Lyft that can help carry a big purchase. I also
just heard Waymo self-driving taxis are coming to Somerville soon.
> How about dedicated curbside level II chargers for a fleet of
> electrified ZipCars, one for every n households?
as the whole state switches over, but it would be reasonable to ask
that new ones are electric if they are provided for in a CBA or the
city donates curb space. It would also be reasonable to ask that a CBA
subsidizes electrification of existing off-site ZipCar spots, if the
company consents. (Not expensive for Level 2, which is 240V and the
same you get in a home garage.)
Given that the number of Zipcars is absolutely dwarfed by the number of
private vehicles, it would also be reasonable to ask for a CBA that
provides Level 2 or 3 EV chargers for public use, whether on-site or
off-site.
One important constraint is that (if my I-am-not-a-lawyer research is
correct) Somerville zoning does not allow carsharing or public parking
lots to be located on legally defined "pedestrian streets". In Davis,
that includes Elm Street but not Grove Street. That makes sense for new
buildings; we'd want the entrance to a Copper Mill building to be on
Grove Street, to avoid pedestrian conflicts. But it also seems to
constrain existing lots in an unhelpful way. For example, Citizens Bank
on Elm Street cannot rent out its private parking spaces to the public
after the bank closes, even though that would be peak restaurant
parking demand time, and would compensate for the proposed closure of
the small city Cutter Street lot.
-B.
Beth Kevles
May 15, 2025, 12:43:16 PM5/15/25
to Christopher Beland, hu...@comcast.net, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Hi --
I've been following this thread closely and with considerable interest. It took me a while to figure out what aspect was bothering me about it, though. What's bothering me is the dependence on Zip car (and the occasional rental). Here's why:
- Everyone is interested in reducing car ownership in Somerville.
- It is assumed that reduced car ownership implies reduced car usage.
- There is an implicit acknowledgement that there are times when car use is necessary or sensible, hence the discussion about Zip cars.
- There is no acknowledgement that there are multiple reasons that Zip cars (or other comparable services) aren't feasible.
Sometimes people need to own cars because they cannot use various car or ride services. This may be due to poor credit ratings or lack of money to use these services (which are expensive). Now, you may say that owning a car is more expensive than using a service, but that's not always the case. One individual may own a car, often a "beater" which is shared by and supported by several people in their social network, who chip in for maintenace and repair. This is far more cost-effectice that using a car service. A socially-shared vehicle can also be used by those who cannot drive, as long as a friend in the social-vehicle network can drive them. Zip cars, or comparable, are the domain of the economically privileged.
You may think this is a corner case. I think it is not. I believe it depends on economic class. However, I wonder whether anyone has done research on this phenomenon. Does anyone know?
Thanks,
--Beth Kevles
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Aaron Weber
May 15, 2025, 2:04:21 PM5/15/25
to Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, hu...@comcast.net, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Beth,
You're entirely right that ZipCar isn't a panacea. For example, my wife is required to have a personal vehicle for her job as a field sales rep. That means that ZipCar would never work for her. But that's totally fine — it doesn't need to be for everyone to be worthy of consideration. After all, not everyone can drive, but we still consider the needs of people who do. And not everyone can climb stairs, but we do not require the installation of ramps and elevators in every home (in fact, we require front doors to be 2 feet above the sidewalk in most cases!)
The question here is not and has not been "how can the city get everyone to give up their private cars and switch to ZipCar?" or even "how can we make short-term rentals the default mode of car usage in Somerville?"
The goal is to make it easier for more people
to get around without a car, and for more people to maintain occasional
car access without full-time car ownership. That doesn't mean we have to make it possible for everyone to get around without a car, or for everyone to use a car hire service.
A few questions to consider here: "what would make it feasible for 5% of the city's current drivers to drive 10% less?" and "Of the myriad car trips each day in this city, what would make 5% of them change to non-car trips?"
ZipCar is a good answer for some of these sorts of questions, but it's certainly not One Weird Trick to Solving Stubborn Traffic Problems or anything like that.
Warmly,
Aaron
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rona twofisch.com
May 15, 2025, 3:53:18 PM5/15/25
to Aaron Weber, Beth Kevles, Christopher Beland, hu...@comcast.net, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Christopher’s back-of-the-envelope calculation makes sense to keep Zipcar as one of the ways to reduce the number of registered cars. However, the number of cars may be the wrong thing to count, in my opinion. As established 77% of Manhattanites don’t own cars, but there is so much traffic that the surge pricing was needed to regulate out-of-borough traffic influx. The goal, I think, is to encourage less use of cars by making it easier to get around town without a car.
What are the trips that people do in town that are not easily done by pubic transit or on foot?
Most anything north-south. – That, to me, seems to be the weakest link in our public transit system. Some of the suburban towns have local bus companies that fill that gap nicely. Also, are you all aware that Somerville residents are welcome on the Tufts shuttle? It’s shutting down for the summer, but it is a resource worth negotiation for more of. Lots of upperclass-members and grad students live in the Davis area.
However, this is not a conversation about Davis Square only.
From: daviss...@googlegroups.com <daviss...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Aaron Weber
Sent: Thursday, May 15, 2025 2:04 PM
To: Beth Kevles <bethk...@gmail.com>
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/CAF%3Dbbno7vuBhxWWGi17bFTCP39yj%2BJfmF94h6epDMXkLnE_3ZA%40mail.gmail.com.
Christopher Beland
May 15, 2025, 5:54:37 PM5/15/25
to rona twofisch.com, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Rona makes a good point about lack of north-south transit in central
Somerville. I ran into the Senior Director of Service Planning at the
MBTA recently, and asked about this. She said the reason is that the
hills are too steep for the existing bus fleet to navigate in winter
weather; anything steeper than a 6% grade (if I remember correctly) is
too much.
Commercial development along Somerville Ave, including the Somernova
project, is experiencing opposition from some on the grounds it will
make traffic congestion worse. Of particular concern is people going
north along Park Street and Central Street. Park Street often backs up
onto the railroad tracks from Somerville Ave, and the rapid left-then-
right turning movement through a complex and congested double
intersection to get to Central Street is perceived as dangerous. We
could build more expensive bridges across the tracks, but I believe
Park Street already has enough capacity to serve all the people who use
it. More of them just need to be on buses or bikes.
We are already on a path to building out protected bike lanes in this
area, leaving the question of how can we provide more commuter-friendly
transit on the Cambridgeport/Harvard - Magoun/Medford Center/Wellington
axis. We could ask the T to run conventional buses only when the
weather is suitable, but making buses unpredictable by sending them
along much longer snow routes sometimes doesn't sound commuter-
friendly. Major and very expensive long-term improvements could include
extending the Green Line to Porter with a stop at Park Street
Somerville, building out transit in the Cambridge-Medford portion of
the Urban Ring corridor, and strategic tunneling or slope reduction.
(Looking at Google Maps during evening rush hour today, Cambridge
definitely also experiences congestion on various roads along this
axis.)
One shorter-term option which I think is worth pursing is to run a
subsidized shuttle with smaller vehicles that have better traction
(assuming that's feasible) along this axis. I'm not sure the MBTA has
adequate bus storage or would want to take on the maintenance burden of
a separate vehicle type just for this link, but it could be contracted
out to a private provider. It could be funded by the T, by local
employers as part of CBAs or city-required transportation management
plans, or by municipalities. MIT and Harvard are major traffic
generators in this corridor and already have shuttle services. So do a
bunch of Transportation Management Associations:
https://www.masscommute.com/find-your-tma
There is precedent for city-subsidized services; for example, Lexpress.
Effective shuttles in this corridor would probably have to go through
both Cambridge and Somerville, and maybe Medford depending on where
people are currently driving to. (For maximum impact, the shuttles
could connect to the Commuter Rail/Orange Line or park-and-ride lots
near I-93.) My favorite idea so far for the name of this service:
Somerbridge.
-B.
Somerville. I ran into the Senior Director of Service Planning at the
MBTA recently, and asked about this. She said the reason is that the
hills are too steep for the existing bus fleet to navigate in winter
weather; anything steeper than a 6% grade (if I remember correctly) is
too much.
Commercial development along Somerville Ave, including the Somernova
project, is experiencing opposition from some on the grounds it will
make traffic congestion worse. Of particular concern is people going
north along Park Street and Central Street. Park Street often backs up
onto the railroad tracks from Somerville Ave, and the rapid left-then-
right turning movement through a complex and congested double
intersection to get to Central Street is perceived as dangerous. We
could build more expensive bridges across the tracks, but I believe
Park Street already has enough capacity to serve all the people who use
it. More of them just need to be on buses or bikes.
We are already on a path to building out protected bike lanes in this
area, leaving the question of how can we provide more commuter-friendly
transit on the Cambridgeport/Harvard - Magoun/Medford Center/Wellington
axis. We could ask the T to run conventional buses only when the
weather is suitable, but making buses unpredictable by sending them
along much longer snow routes sometimes doesn't sound commuter-
friendly. Major and very expensive long-term improvements could include
extending the Green Line to Porter with a stop at Park Street
Somerville, building out transit in the Cambridge-Medford portion of
the Urban Ring corridor, and strategic tunneling or slope reduction.
(Looking at Google Maps during evening rush hour today, Cambridge
definitely also experiences congestion on various roads along this
axis.)
One shorter-term option which I think is worth pursing is to run a
subsidized shuttle with smaller vehicles that have better traction
(assuming that's feasible) along this axis. I'm not sure the MBTA has
adequate bus storage or would want to take on the maintenance burden of
a separate vehicle type just for this link, but it could be contracted
out to a private provider. It could be funded by the T, by local
employers as part of CBAs or city-required transportation management
plans, or by municipalities. MIT and Harvard are major traffic
generators in this corridor and already have shuttle services. So do a
bunch of Transportation Management Associations:
https://www.masscommute.com/find-your-tma
There is precedent for city-subsidized services; for example, Lexpress.
Effective shuttles in this corridor would probably have to go through
both Cambridge and Somerville, and maybe Medford depending on where
people are currently driving to. (For maximum impact, the shuttles
could connect to the Commuter Rail/Orange Line or park-and-ride lots
near I-93.) My favorite idea so far for the name of this service:
Somerbridge.
-B.
mem...@gmail.com
May 16, 2025, 12:22:18 PM5/16/25
to Christopher Beland, rona twofisch.com, Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Enthusiastic yes to the shuttle idea.
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