Pearl Street Reconstruction & Safety Improvements

Beginning Friday, August 18 or soon after the City of Somerville’s contractor, D&R Paving will be paving Pearl St. between McGrath Highway and Mount Vernon St., as part of the Pearl St. Reconstruction & Safety Improvements Project.

Anticipated Schedule (Subject to Change):

Weather permitting, paving is expected to begin on Friday, August 18 or soon after

• Paving is expected to take approximately 2-3 working days.

• Work hours are weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Construction Impacts:

• On-street parking will be restricted during construction. Please observe posted signage.

• Periodic road closures during paving.

  • Resident and pedestrian access will be maintained.

• Access to your driveway may be temporarily restricted during paving.

  • Onsite crews are available to help you get in and out of your driveway if needed.

• Trash/recycling pick-ups and deliveries will not be affected.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience as we work to install streetscape improvements throughout the neighborhood.

For more information about the project, visit somervillema.gov/pearlst. If you have questions, please email construction@somervillema.gov or call the Engineering Division at (617) 625-6600 ext. 5400 with questions.

Progress Photos:

Neighborhood Traffic Circle at Pearl St. and Glen St.

Raised Crossing at Pearl St. and Cross St.

Learn more about neighborhood traffic circles, raised crossing and other traffic calming features at somervillema.gov/trafficcalming.

Beginning Monday, July 31 or soon after, contractors will be milling (removing the top few layers of existing asphalt) at the below locations. Milling is expected to take approximately 3 working days.

Paving of the four intersections above will follow milling and is currently expected to take place either during the latter half of the week of 7/31, or during the week of 8/7. Final paving of Pearl St. will follow.

Additional notification will be provided once paving dates are confirmed.

Construction impacts:

• On-street parking will be restricted during construction. Please observe posted signage.
• Periodic road closures during paving.
  • Access will be maintained for residents.
• Access to your driveway may be temporarily restricted.
  • Onsite crews are available to help you get in and out of your driveway if needed.
• Trash/recycling pick-ups and deliveries will not be affected.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience as we work to install streetscape improvements throughout the neighborhood.

Construction crews continue to make great progress on the reconstruction of Pearl St. and on safety improvements in East Somerville. Below is an overview of current ongoing and future work, as well as a notice of a detour for the MBTA’s route 90 bus for upcoming work on Cross St.

Sidewalk Reconstruction

• Crews are nearing completion on sidewalks along Pearl St. between Franklin St. and Cross St.

• Sidewalk construction to begin shortly on Pearl St. between Cross St. and McGrath Hwy.

• Installation of Somerville's first ever neighborhood traffic circle at the intersection of Glen and Oliver St.

Intersection Safety Improvements

The following crosswalk and intersection safety improvements are currently underway and are expected to progress over the coming weeks.

• Raised intersection at Cross/Oliver/Gilman

• Raised crosswalk at Franklin St/Franklin Ave/Oliver

• Raised crosswalk at Everett/Cross

*Construction of the raised intersection at Cross/Oliver/Gilman will reduce traffic to a one-lane of bidirectional, alternating travel.

This work will also require the MBTA route 90 bus to be detoured Monday, July 17 to Friday, July 21. Visit MBTA,com/bus for details. Signage will be posted at affected bus stops.

Final Paving

Final milling and paving of the roadway (Pearl St. and select intersections) is scheduled for late August. Additional notification will be provided prior to paving.

Since late March, City contractors have been making progress on the reconstruction of Pearl Street (Mount Vernon St. to McGrath Hwy.).

Sidewalk Installation on Pearl St.

During this initial phase of work, crews have successfully installed new sidewalks between Mount Vernon Ave. and Glen Street. Check out some of the new sidewalks below. (Note the tree pits being prepared for plantings later this year.)

Crews will continue installing sidewalks on Pearl Street from Glen Street to McGrath Highway.

Intersection Work Around Neighborhood Schools

Work on the intersections of Cross St./Everett Ave., Franklin St./Oliver St., Oliver St./Glen St. will begin shortly after school is out for the summer.

More on the final design and planned improvements available here:

• English
• Portuguese
• Spanish
• नेपाली
• Kreyòl Ayisyen

Starting as early as next week (3/27) or soon after, City contractors will begin work to reconstruct and improve Pearl St. between McGrath Highway and Mount Vernon St., as well as nearby intersections.

Anticipated Work Schedule (subject to change):

Construction is expected to begin as early as Monday, March, 27th or soon after and continue through the fall. Work hours are weekdays, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Initial Locations and Descriptions of Work:

• Work will start on the eastern end of the project limits on Pearl St. between Mt Vernon St. and Myrtle St.
  • initial work will include tree protection and preliminary work on sidewalk reconstruction
• Construction planned near the East Somerville Community School will take place later in the summer while classes are not in session.

Anticipated Construction Impacts:

• Some on-street parking may be temporarily restricted
• Periodic road closures may be required during work hours (detours provided)
• Trash/recycling pick-ups, deliveries, and bus access will not be affected

If you have questions, please call the Engineering Division at 617-625-6600 ext. 5400 or email construction@somervillema.gov.

Review the final design and planned improvements:

• English
• Portuguese
• Spanish
• नेपाली
• Kreyòl Ayisyen

Project Update

The start of this project was significantly delayed due to an unexpected supply chain issue with the granite curbing needed for construction of the raised crosswalks at the intersections of Pearl St./Cross St. and Everett Ave./Cross St. This particular portion of the project is now set to be completed next summer, as it needs to be coordinated with the East Somerville Community School not being in session.

Construction crews will mobilize in full force in early April to begin work on this project.

(Post updated: 10/19/22)

If you have questions, please call the Engineering Division at 617-625-6600 ext. 5400 or email construction@somervillema.gov.

Starting as early as next week (7/25) or soon after, City contractors will begin work to reconstruct and improve Pearl St. between McGrath Highway and Mount Vernon St., as well as nearby intersections.

Anticipated Work Schedule (subject to change):

Construction is expected to begin as early as Monday, July, 25th or soon after and continue through the fall. Work hours are weekdays, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Initial Locations and Descriptions of Work:

• Intersection of Cross St./Everett Ave. (installation of raised crosswalk)
• Intersection of Cross St./Pearl St. (installation of raised intersection)
• Pearl St. between Cross St. and Glen St. (sidewalk reconstruction)

Anticipated Construction Impacts:

• Some on-street parking may be temporarily restricted
• Periodic road closures may be required during work hours (detours provided)
• Trash/recycling pick-ups, deliveries, and bus access will not be affected

If you have questions, please call the Engineering Division at 617-625-6600 ext. 5400 or email construction@somervillema.gov.

Due to the forecasted rain on June 3, the Pearl Street and East Somerville Mobility Improvements Pop-Up has been rescheduled to June 10, 2:00pm - 4:30pm. Please join the Mobility Division and SomerViva for the rescheduled pop-up next week.

Pop-up flyers available English, Español, Portugues, Kreyòl Ayisyen, नेपाली.

Available also as a Printable PDF Brochure in:

• English
• Español
• Portugues
• Kreyòl Ayisyen

• नेपाली

Background

• The City of Somerville is reconstructing Pearl Street from McGrath Highway to Mount Vernon Street to improve safety, maintain the street quality, and make the street accessible for everyone.
• Official City policy guides the way we design our streets. Check out SomerVision 2040, Somerville Climate Forward, and Vision Zero to learn more.
• We use data to prioritize street and sidewalk upgrades, and Pearl Street, with it’s many potholes, asphalt ruptures, and broken sidewalk panels, scores highly.
• Repaving the street gives us the opportunity to make mobility improvements to align with the City’s goal of being the most walkable, bikeable, and transit accessible city in the country. Adding safety elements during repaving is an efficient use of funding and will reduce speeding and crashes.

Public Input

• We heard from residents, workers, and visitors, a significant desire for improving safety at existing crosswalks, decreasing speeding, creating a greener street with more trees, improving safety for people biking, and improving amenities at bus stops.
• Many described the poor condition of the asphalt and sidewalks, concerns around speeding and cut-through traffic on Pearl Street and Cross Street and the need to improve safety for children traveling to East Somerville Community School (ESCS).
• Some advocated for continuous separated bike lanes, which would require more extensive parking regulation and infrastructure changes. The City will explore a neighborhood mobility analysis in the future to determine how traffic patterns in East Somerville could change to meet long-range goals.
• Residents also shared support for incorporating public art through street murals.
• To learn more about public input we heard, read survey responses, and watch public meeting recordings, visit the project website at somervillema.gov/pearlstreet.

Pearl Street’s New Design and Intersection Improvements in East Somerville

• To calm traffic, speed humps will be installed throughout Pearl St. Speed humps often reduce speeds to 10 to 15 mph.
• Raised intersections will be added on Pearl Street at the Cross St and Franklin St intersections. Raised intersections give priority to people walking by bringing the intersection up to sidewalk level and making vehicles slow down.
• Two raised crosswalks will be added at the intersection of Pearl St and Rush St.
• Neighborhood Traffic Circles will be installed on Pearl Street at the Myrtle Street and Glen Street intersections. Neighborhood traffic circles encourage people driving to slow down at key crossing locations while also providing a space to plant trees or other plants.
• A new crosswalk will be added across Mt Vernon St where it meets Pearl St.
• All the intersections will have “daylighting” that include improving the ability to see people in the crosswalks when driving by making sure people don’t park directly next to the intersection.
• Speed humps will be added along Cross Street and Franklin Street to slow speeds of people driving.
• A raised crosswalk will be installed at Everett St and Cross St to create a new path for people walking to the entrance of ESCS.
• A raised intersection will be implemented at Cross Street at Gilman St and Oliver St with designated areas for people biking to turn safely.
• Three raised crossings will be added at the intersection of Franklin St and Oliver St.
• A neighborhood traffic circle will be installed at Glen St and Oliver St with new curb ramps and painted crosswalks.

Next Steps

• The proposed designs are reviewed by the City’s Mobility Division, Infrastructure and Asset Management Engineering team, the Parking department, and Fire Department, prior to being finalized.
• If the new designs require curbside regulation changes, the changes are proposed to the City’s Traffic Commission, who is the regulatory body that oversees all traffic regulations. They meet the second Thursday of the month at 5:30 p.m. and their meeting details can be found on the City Calendar. After, the City will prepare for construction.
• Join city staff for a pop-up on Friday, June 3, from 2:00pm - 4:30pm, at the intersection of Pearl Street and Glen Street to learn about the final designs for Pearl Street and other transportation safety improvements in East Somerville and the next steps in the construction process.
• Pop-up flyers available English, Español, Portugues, Kreyòl Ayisyen, नेपाली.

Construction

• Construction on Pearl Street and the other intersections is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2022 and be completed in 2023.
• City contractors will start on sidewalk reconstruction and then move to repaving the roadway and installing the new traffic calming features (speed humps, neighborhood traffic circles, and raised intersections and crossings).
• To stay up to date on construction, sign up for City Alerts available via phone call, text, or email and in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Kreyol, and Nepali.
• You can also reach out to the Construction Liaison, Jesse Moos, at construction@somervillema.gov or 617.981.2896, and follow updates on Twitter @SomervilleInfr1.

The City of Somerville shared proposed designs at the Second Pearl Street Reconstruction and Safety Improvements Meeting on January 19, 2022. We now want to hear from you!

Please let us know your feedback on the proposed designs. What did we get right? What did we miss? What might you want for the long-term for the street?

The survey is available in English, Español, Portugues, Kreyòl Ayisyen, नेपाली.

The survey deadline is Monday, February 21, 2022.