FAQs

The Vision Zero Action Plan is the City’s strategy for eliminating deaths and serious injuries from our transportation system and details the actions the City will take over the next five years. It was developed by a team of City staff and dedicated resident volunteers on the Vision Zero Task Force, including representatives from advisory and advocacy committees from Somerville and the Greater Boston region. The objectives, strategies, and actions set forth are intended to be ambitious, specific, actionable, and measurable. 

We have been observing high path usage and receiving community feedback about conflicts along the path and a feeling of discomfort and unsafe behavior. The community path extension from Lowell Street eastward to Cambridge completed in 2023 has several unique constraints, including narrow path width, and areas of high traffic due to two Green Line Stations and Somerville High School located right next to the path. In order to create a safe shared path etiquette, we are developing a safety improvement strategy. 

In early 2025, the City’s Engineering Division hired a design consultant to study the intersections of the community path at both Lowell Street and School Street and propose alternative designs. This work is intended to produce safer, more comfortable crossings and minimize conflicts among people traveling in the area whether they are walking or wheeling, biking, and driving. The project team currently anticipates having more information about this effort to share with the community in late fall 2025. Follow updates on the Community Path website.  

The width of the Community Path extension is approximately 10’ with 1’ buffer on each side. This specification was determined by the Green Line Extension team to be adequate for a shared path and most cost effective.

The path from the Cambridge city line at the Western end to Lowell Street has the potential to be widened in the future. One important analysis and potential limitation would be the location of mature trees. The path from Lowell Street to the Cambridge city line at the Eastern end would require the addition of retaining walls and structural analysis to ensure that the existing retaining walls next to the railroad corridor are not being compromised. These interventions would require a substantial investment. In addition to the analysis, locations of the path under the McGrath Highway, Cross Street Bridge, Lowell Street and the viaduct crossing the railroad between Brickbottom and Cambridge are structures that would require additional investment and continue to pose spatial challenges.

To provide a safer, more comfortable experience for people using the Community Path after dark, the City installed approximately 2,600 feet (or about half a mile) of light on the Community Path Extension between Walnut Street and Poplar Street on either side of the MBTA's East Somerville Station. This work was completed in October 2025. Find more information on the Community Path website. 

Amenities such as shading, art, planting, water fountains can be added to the path. Placement of new elements needs to consider safety of all users, City operations and maintenance, emergency access, and requires coordination with the MBTA. As the land of the path and adjacent to the path is owned by the MBTA, there can be some restrictions such as no trees are allowed adjacent to the railroad to avoid anything falling onto MBTA equipment. Adding any amenities is outside the scope of this project unless it is determined as a safety need.