Western Pearl Street Concept Design Feedback Survey
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback on the Concept Design Options for the Western Pearl Street Reconstruction project. In this survey, we aim to:
- Hear your feedback about specific design elements. The Concept Designs provide different options that can be mixed and matched in the future final design.
- Hear about the reasons why you prefer or not prefer certain options.
- See if we have met some of the safety concerns and priorities we heard about last fall.
- Gather any comments or questions you have about the design.
- Gather insight into who we are reaching in our outreach efforts.
This survey takes approximately 5 to 15 minutes. If you haven’t already done so, please check out the concept design roll plans to learn more about the proposal. Concept Design Option descriptions are provided below. You can also check out the following materials to learn about the concept designs in more details:
- The May 13 Open House informational posters describing the two main concept design options, the data we collected, and community feedback we heard.
- A recorded presentation from the project team.
- The Concept Design Options brochure.
If you prefer to take this survey over the phone, please contact us at 311 (617-666-3311) to log your request and a member of the Mobility Division will call you back. You can also email transportation@somervillema.gov if you have any questions or prefer to provide written comments.
Concept Design Options
Concept Design Option 1:
- Major intersections: A new raised crossing is added across Medford Street. The block of Medford Street north of Pearl Street is curved to connect continuously with Pearl Street. The intersection at Walnut Street has new curb extensions and both bus stops are moved to the other sides of Walnut Street.
- Other crosswalks and intersections: At Marshall Street, there is a raised intersection with a new crosswalk installed to the west of Marshall Street. There are raised crosswalks across the side streets intersecting with Pearl Street except at Walnut Street. There are raised crosswalks across Pearl Street at Bradley Street and Wigglesworth Street.
- Parking: There are parking options on the northside of Pearl Street.
- Bicycle facilities: There is a two-way protected bike lane connection on the southside between Medford Street and Skilton Avenue to connect to the Gilman Neighborway. Between Skilton Avenue and McGrath Highway, there is a protected bike lane on the southside heading east.
- Bus stops: The bus stop by Pearl Street Park is shifted to the other side of Skilton Avenue and the sidewalk is expanded at this location to provide dedicated waiting space for bus riders, a protected bike lane to reduce bus and bike conflicts, and an in-lane stop so the bus does not have to pull in and out of the travel lane. Each bus stop near Walnut Street is moved to the other sides of the intersection.
Concept Design Option 2:
- Major intersections: The segment of Pearl Street that intersects with Medford Street is curved to perpendicularly intersect with Medford Street and new raised crossings are added across Medford Street and Pearl Street.
- Other crosswalks and intersections: Raised crosswalks are added to all side street crossings intersecting with Pearl Street except Walnut Street. There are raised crosswalks across Pearl Street at Marshall Street, Bradley Street, and Wigglesworth Street.
- Parking: There are parking options on the southside of Pearl Street.
- Bicycle facilities: There is a one-way protected bike lane on the northside heading west from Medford Street to McGrath Highway. Between Jasper Street and McGrath Highway, there is another one-way protected bike lane on the southside heading eastbound.
- Bus stops: The bus stop by Pearl Street Park has an expanded sidewalk to provide dedicated waiting space for bus riders, and an in-lane stop so the bus does not have to pull in and out of the travel lane. There is a new floating bus stop on the northside at Walnut Street.