Public partnership needed to ensure long-anticipated regional infrastructure is completed
A February 6th article in the Boston Globe (Everett officials envision aerial gondolas from City Hall to the casino to Assembly Station) described Encore’s proposal to replace an 800-foot pedestrian bridge connecting Assembly Row across the Mystic River to the casino with an aerial gondola. The next day, the Baker-Polito Administration announced a $13.7 million contract to complete the 11.5-mile Northern Strand Trail, which would now dead-end at the site of this long-anticipated bridge (see map below).
The Mystic River Watershed Association—along with more than a dozen walking/biking advocacy organizations—has been advocating for the completion of the Mystic River Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge for years. A workhorse piece of public infrastructure, it will connect residents of Lynn, Saugus, Revere, Malden and Everett with Somerville, Boston and Cambridge. It will be to people-powered commuters as the Zakim and Tobin Bridges are to drivers. Such safe non-motorized routes are increasingly necessary as our region grapples with gridlock and the need to cut carbon emissions.
With Encore having committed considerable resources to getting its employees from the Orange Line to its facility, the Commonwealth has a can’t-miss opportunity for a public-private partnership to complete this critical infrastructure. We call on the MassDOT/MBTA, MassDCR and MassEOEEA to work with Encore on a solution that fully serves both public and private transportation needs.
Additional benefits of the Mystic River Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge:
Unlocks high-capacity, non-motorized access to the Orange Line, thus reducing automobile trips and vehicular traffic.
Closes a highlighted gap in the 3,000-mile, Maine-to-Florida East Coast Greenway.
Connects Somerville’s Baxter Park and Draw 7 Park and Everett’s Gateway Park.
Photo Credits: AECOM
ARTICLE LINKS
Everett officials envision aerial gondolas from City Hall to the casino to Assembly Station By Jon Chesto Globe Staff Updated February 6, 2020
Walkers and cyclists worry that an Everett gondola would cost them a ‘crucial connection’ By Adam Vaccaro Globe Staff, February 7, 2020
Baker-Polito Administration Announces Construction Will Begin to Complete Northern Strand Community Trail February 7, 2020, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
City, Encore Casino Studying Two New Gondola Links In Everett By Christian MilNeil StreetsBlog Mass, February 11, 2020
State Breaks Ground On New Links To Northern Strand Trail By Christian MilNeil Streetsblog Mass, February 12, 2020
Will We Fall for Gondolas Again? By Spender Buell Boston Magazine, February 14, 2020
Now is the time for a Somerville-Everett footbridge By Joseph A. Curtatone, The Somerville Times, February 25, 2020
