Somerville Installing Bike Lanes On Rt. 28 Bridge

SOMERVILLE, MA — The city will use a MassDOT Shared Streets and Spaces grant to install protected bike lanes on Route 28 across the Wellington Bridge. The statewide funding program facilitates quick-build projects that provide new or repurposed space for socially distanced walking, bicycling, dining, retail and bus travel during the coronavirus pandemic.

The bridge's current four-foot sidewalk prevents social distancing for people crossing the bridge, presenting a gap in the network of walking and biking routes along the Mystic River, city officials said. Local and regional policy plans identify the crossing as a priority for upgrades to better connect the riverside parks, employment centers and transit hubs of Somerville, Medford, Everett, and Boston.

Although the city of Somerville will perform the work, the project was planned in partnership with the city of Medford and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Installation is expected to take place in late fall 2020.

The grant-funded project will reconfigure pavement markings on the bridge, reducing the width of the motor vehicle lanes and using the reclaimed space to establish a separated bike lane in each direction that connects to existing pathways in Assembly Square, Station Landing, MacDonald Park and Blessing of the Bay Park.

The separated bike lanes will reduce crowding on the sidewalks, improving comfort and safety for people on foot or on wheels. Narrower lane widths for motor vehicles are intended to reduce speeding, improving safety for all road users.