Mayor Walsh investing $1.4 million to improve safety and traffic conditions in Readville

The project will reduce congestion, improve bus operations, and increase safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced that the City of Boston is investing $1.4 million to improve safety and traffic conditions at three key intersections in the Readville neighborhood of Hyde Park, including intersections on either side of the Father Hart Bridge. The project is aimed at reducing traffic congestion, improving MBTA bus operations, and making streets safer and more welcoming to all users of the roadways, including pedestrians and bicyclists.

"Significant upgrades will be made at these three busy intersections to ensure that neighborhood streets safely accommodate Hyde Park residents and others who regularly travel through the area using all forms of transportation," said Mayor Walsh. "Using current planning and engineering techniques and equipment, the City of Boston will work to reconstruct the locations to best meet the needs of the Hyde Park community."

The intersections are Milton Street and Neponset Valley Parkway; Milton Street and Hyde Park Avenue; and Neponset Valley Parkway and Hyde Park Avenue at Wolcott Square. Improvements will include:

New traffic signals at Milton Street and Neponset Valley Parkway
New traffic signals at Milton Street and Hyde Parking Avenue/Fr. Hart Bridge
Upgraded traffic signals at Neponset Valley Parkway and Hyde Park Avenue at Wolcott Square
New ADA compliant wheelchair ramps at all locations
New crosswalks at all locations
Improved on-street geometry and vehicle circulation. This includes minor reshaping of the two Milton street intersections to ensure that it is safe and comfortable for pedestrians to cross at crosswalks. At the Wolcott Square intersection, the MBTA bus stop will be relocated and the traffic signals reprogrammed to provide a better approach to Neponset Valley Parkway and smoother traffic flow.

"These upgrades are in keeping with Go Boston 2030 and Vision Zero goals for enhanced transportation safety and access on streets throughout the City," said Boston Transportation Commissioner Gina N. Fiandaca. "As part of this project, the City will also seek to install data and video communications between the new Hyde Park traffic signals and the Traffic Management Center at City Hall to allow for real-time traffic monitoring and response."

The intersection of Milton Street and Neponset Valley Parkway is jointly owned by the City of Boston and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation; the intersection of Milton Street and Hyde Park Avenue is jointly owned by the City of Boston and Massachusetts Department of Transportation; and the intersection of Neponset Valley Parkway and Hyde Park Avenue at Wolcott Square is owned by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Although the intersections have multiple owners, the City of Boston is taking the extra step of providing full funding for improvements at all three intersections in response to concerns expressed by the Hyde Park community.

"It has come to everybody's attention that over the last decade the traffic congestion in the Readville section of Hyde Park has become a serious issue and continues to get worse," said Boston City Councilor Timothy McCarthy. "I am very happy to work with Mayor Walsh, and Mass Dot to address this quality of life issue. Let's be clear, this has been a problem for years and certainly will not go away if left as it is today. With the help of the professionals at the Boston Transportation Department, Mayor Walsh and I are confident we can find a solution to help relieve some of the traffic congestion in our neighborhood."

Project construction will begin in the fall of 2017 and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2018.