By Lynn Holmgren, Dorchester

To the Editor:

I was deeply disappointed to read Mayor Walsh’s comments regarding the Morrissey Blvd reconstruction design in last week’s Reporter. I live steps away from Morrissey Blvd., on Everdean Street. I walk, bike, and drive along this road regularly. I witness the weekly traffic crash debris (bumpers, smashed lights, ripped tires and trash) that pile up on the bridge and the sidewalks. This redesign is not simply about the number of cars; it is about how fast people drive on a boulevard marked 35 MPH, but designed for highway speeds. 

The current proposed design presents a vision that will recreate Morrissey Blvd as a parkway for people, enhancing quality of life by creating safe routes for active transportation and reconnecting residents to the shore. This direction (including the removal of a travel lane) is very much in line with Go Boston 2030, Imagine Boston 2030, and Climate Ready Boston plans as well as the city’s commitment to Vision Zero. 

The mayor’s comments, however, are not. They fly directly in the face of those plans, which come from many months of public and community engagement. Those plans are the voice of Boston’s future, and this is the mayor’s chance to respond and affirm them when it comes to transportation, equity, and climate change. 

I invite Mayor Walsh and any of his staff to take a walk or bike ride with me and other neighbors along Morrissey Boulevard. I think he might be surprised by how differently the road is experienced on foot or by bicycle.