MassDOT Green Lights $20.4M Comm Ave. Reconstruction

The state transportation department board gave the go-ahead Thursday for a $20.4 million reconstruction project on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston.

The project stretches from Alcorn Street to the Boston University Bridge near the law school.

The busy stretch of street near Boston University accommodates 27,000 Green Line T riders, 3,000 bikers, 30,000 pedestrians and 35,000 vehicles every day, according to Mass. Dept. of Transportation numbers.

Here are the project highlights, per MassDOT:

• reconstruction of the road to improve traffic flow
• designated bicycle track that runs throughout the length of the project
• new streetlights
• westbound sidewalk widened to 25’
• eastbound sidewalk widened to 15’
• sidewalks and ramps along the roadway rebuilt to be Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant
• new water filtration system installed to prevent pollutants from entering the Charles River

Federal highway funding will cover 80 percent of the project’s estimated $20.4 million price tag while the state will pony up the remaining 20 percent, according to a MassDOT press release.

Jackie DeWolfe, executive director of Boston's Liveable Streets urban design advocacy organization, cheered the project in a statement Thursday.

“We are excited about the project, not only because of the improvements it will bring for the 100,000 people who use Commonwealth Avenue today, but because the new design will make it more comfortable for even more people to walk, bike and take the bus,” she said. “Innovative design details like parking protected bike lanes, enhanced bus stops and protected intersections, will be a great demonstration of multi-modal transportation."

>> Image via Google Map (A = BU Bridge, B = Alcorn St.)