SRPEDD Announces a 21‐day Public Comment Period and a Remote Public Meeting to hear comments for the draft Regional Pedestrian Plan.
September 18, 2024 – Southeastern Massachusetts’ draft 2024 Regional Pedestrian Plan (RPP) is being released for public comment. The RPP documents current pedestrian needs, existing conditions, priority areas for walkability improvements, and action steps for achieving more walkable communities in Southeastern MA. The updated RPP presents a comprehensive vision for improving walkability across Southeastern Massachusetts, recognizing that pedestrian improvements are key to fostering vibrant, healthy, inclusive, and economically thriving communities.
SMMPO staff engaged the public through various activities, including a public survey, tabling at various community events, canvassing in neighborhoods, focus groups, social media posts, and meetings with vulnerable road user advocacy groups and community organizations. The plan’s public survey was one of the agency’s best performing to date, with over 1400 survey responses from across the region. Public input received informed staff about public priorities for walkability, diverse pedestrian issues and goals across the SMMPO region’s distinct communities and helped ensure that this Plan’s action items reflect the needs of the region’s diverse populations and landscapes. Core themes of public input included the need for improved safety, connectivity, and travel experience. Residents raised concerns about lack of well-maintained sidewalks and safe crossings, debris, and crime limiting walkability, and voiced a desire for pedestrian access to shopping centers, schools, recreational/green space areas, transit , and on state roads such as Route 1, 6, 18, 44, 58, 123. Many respondents across the region’s urban, suburban, and rural communities identify that a town center is a major asset yet feel unsafe and unable to access their city or town center from where they live as pedestrians.
The Plan highlights 15 action items in response to public input and dialogue with municipal and state partners that SMMPO staff will work towards to help improve walkability in the region including: build a queue of Vulnerable Road User (VRU) safety projects for the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Supplemental Project List, identify and fill high priority gaps in the regional sidewalk and path network, align land use and transit planning activities to emphasize more walkable community design standards and improved connectivity to transit routes and stations, continue to improve and expand the SRPEDD Trails Program, and collaborate with MassDOT and municipalities to address a backlog of pedestrian facility maintenance needs.
The draft RPP plan will become final on October 15, 2024, at the next Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) meeting. The draft plan can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org/rpp for review. Link here: DRAFT Regional Pedestrian Plan.
Comments are encouraged and, if attendance at the above‐mentioned public meeting is not possible, may be offered by a variety of methods including:
E‐mail jgray@srpedd.org for Regional Pedestrian Plan-related questions;
PRESS RELEASE ‐ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.
SRPEDD Announces a 21‐day Public Comment Period and a Remote Public Meeting to hear comments for the draft Regional Pedestrian Plan.
September 18, 2024 – Southeastern Massachusetts’ draft 2024 Regional Pedestrian Plan (RPP) is being released for public comment. The RPP documents current pedestrian needs, existing conditions, priority areas for walkability improvements, and action steps for achieving more walkable communities in Southeastern MA. The updated RPP presents a comprehensive vision for improving walkability across Southeastern Massachusetts, recognizing that pedestrian improvements are key to fostering vibrant, healthy, inclusive, and economically thriving communities.
SMMPO staff engaged the public through various activities, including a public survey, tabling at various community events, canvassing in neighborhoods, focus groups, social media posts, and meetings with vulnerable road user advocacy groups and community organizations. The plan’s public survey was one of the agency’s best performing to date, with over 1400 survey responses from across the region. Public input received informed staff about public priorities for walkability, diverse pedestrian issues and goals across the SMMPO region’s distinct communities and helped ensure that this Plan’s action items reflect the needs of the region’s diverse populations and landscapes. Core themes of public input included the need for improved safety, connectivity, and travel experience. Residents raised concerns about lack of well-maintained sidewalks and safe crossings, debris, and crime limiting walkability, and voiced a desire for pedestrian access to shopping centers, schools, recreational/green space areas, transit , and on state roads such as Route 1, 6, 18, 44, 58, 123. Many respondents across the region’s urban, suburban, and rural communities identify that a town center is a major asset yet feel unsafe and unable to access their city or town center from where they live as pedestrians.
The Plan highlights 15 action items in response to public input and dialogue with municipal and state partners that SMMPO staff will work towards to help improve walkability in the region including: build a queue of Vulnerable Road User (VRU) safety projects for the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Supplemental Project List, identify and fill high priority gaps in the regional sidewalk and path network, align land use and transit planning activities to emphasize more walkable community design standards and improved connectivity to transit routes and stations, continue to improve and expand the SRPEDD Trails Program, and collaborate with MassDOT and municipalities to address a backlog of pedestrian facility maintenance needs.
A public meeting to hear comments on the draft RPP plan will be held remotely on Wednesday October 9 at 4:00 PM via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer feedback. This link https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697 provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone. This is the direct link to the meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82654827403?pwd=Go7Ea0qRcGKPTzubH6vZ0qKpadUFl3.1
The draft RPP plan will become final on October 15, 2024, at the next Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) meeting. The draft plan can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org/rpp for review. Link here: DRAFT Regional Pedestrian Plan.
Comments are encouraged and, if attendance at the above‐mentioned public meeting is not possible, may be offered by a variety of methods including:
E‐mail jgray@srpedd.org for Regional Pedestrian Plan-related questions;
Direct message or comment on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SRPEDD; or
Direct message or Tweet to Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS?lang=en
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Draft FY2025 Regional Pedestrian Plan
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