City work to renovate Tremont Street will continue for weeks, as some residents say the city’s construction is being done in a slapdash and even dangerous manner that risks both safety and the livelihoods of small businesses.
Sections of Tremont Street will host a variety of roadwork for at least the next three weeks as crews begin resurfacing, attempting to avoid peak traffic hours. The construction has prompted a torrent of displeasure from area stakeholders who accuse the city of neglecting communication and using setups that put drivers, construction personnel and small business revenue in danger.
“This is at least the third year of constant construction,” said longtime South End resident Randi Lathrop. “The city unilaterally decided to do the bulk of the work on Saturdays, the number one day for stores. I was a retailer for 17 years, and you count on Saturday and Sunday being a big day. Businesses on this street cannot survive on just people walking in. I’ve talked to businesses, and business is down.”
State Representative John Moran, who represents most of the South End, was more concerned with how they were going about construction. Workers moving fast have been mingling with active traffic instead of closing sections as they work.
“I worked in insurance for decades.
The way the construction is being carried out is extremely dangerous. There’s no signage. I can’t even tell who’s in charge, it’s very disorganized, a number of disparate contractors working in disparate locations,” he said. “Communication has not been adequate. I’m in a state of suspended disbelief as to how this is being conducted.”
“I really don’t know anyone who’s happy with Tremont Street, people are really unhappy with the process,” said Sheila Grove, a longtime resident and advisor to the South End Business Association. “The transportation department is really dismissive of community input, even from experts. We had a meeting years ago with the city before all this started but they didn’t even bring any plans.”
Condemnation wasn’t universal among major voices. The Ellis Neighborhood Association was enthusiastic about the changes to the road, and said it hadn’t heard any objections from its residents.
“I haven’t heard any grumbling about it,” said its Chair Julie Arnheiter. “We’re in regular touch with the city through BTD officials and our neighborhood liaison. I think we all knew this work was happening. As Mayor Wu said in our meeting that she attended last week, it’s inconvenient but it’s necessary.”
Concerns about the way the city is going about renovating Tremont Street mingle with ongoing complaints about the redesign’s substance. While everyone interviewed appreciated how the raised crosswalks increased accessibility and encouraged slow driving, the islands that accompanied them were blamed for more hazardous road conditions and even accessibility issues for pedestrians with mobility challenges.
The reduction to two lanes was an even more widespread complaint. For a busy commercial street like Tremont, having only one lane in either direction means frequent traffic backups due to emergency vehicles, daily commercial deliveries, double parking or even simply someone trying to parallel park as people line up behind them.
Confusion was common as to why the city wasn’t using other streets to get bicyclists safely through the same area. Many noted that Shawmut Avenue runs parallel to Tremont, sees much less car traffic and even has more available space that could be used for high-quality bike lanes.
“Why don’t the bike lanes go on Shawmut? I’ve talked to a number of cyclists who actually rode down it and say it’s much better,” said Grove. “It’s because we have state funding that they’re going on all these state roads even when it doesn’t make sense. Shawmut isn’t a state road, but cyclists would be safer and could actually get some speed. Not to mention Tremont is supposed to be an evacuation road.”
The Boston Transportation Department did not respond to a request for clarification on state funding at time of publication.
Moran has been looking into that same topic but hasn’t yet been able to verify one way or another whether the state specifically contributes funding to city efforts that renovate roads it owns. Regardless of the design or why Tremont was chosen, he emphasized that all parties involved should be invested in ensuring that operations are conducted safely.
“I’m confident we can do better informing citizens about the construction. I look at this as a safety issue. Nobody likes change, or construction, or the fact that there’s drilling at 6:30am on a Saturday. But first and foremost my focus is on safety, and I’m not sure what they’re doing right now is completely safe.” he said.
