City Officials Hold Open House for Kendall Main St. Bike Lanes

Cambridge officials held an open house Tuesday night to gather feedback on a proposed plan to transform Kendall Square’s Main Street bike lanes into separated lanes.

Dozens of attendees filtered in and out of a meeting room at 355 Main St. as they spoke with city representatives, wrote suggestions on sticky-notes, and read informational posters about the proposed changes.

The proposal aims to introduce separated bike lanes on Main Street in order to mitigate traffic and bike safety concerns, according to several organizers. The plan is the latest installment in Cambridge’s Cycling Safety Ordinance, which requires the construction of 25 miles of separated bike lanes in the city.

The Kendall Square proposal comes after months of heightened controversy regarding bike safety in Cambridge. On Monday, the City Council passed a policy order calling for a lower speed limit and fewer vehicle lanes on Memorial Drive following the death of cyclist John H. Corcoran ’84 last month.

The separated bike lanes have shown to be effective in crash reduction and increasing pedestrian and driver safety, according to Andreas W. Wolfe, a street design project manager for Cambridge’s Traffic, Parking, & Transportation Department.

The Main Street proposal includes two milestones. Beginning in late October, initial pavement markings will be drawn on Main Street from Vassar Street to Galaxy Park. By early December, complete pavement markings and flex-posts lining the lanes will be installed.

Cambridge Transportation Comissioner Brooke M. McKenna said that because of the minimal construction required to transform the lanes, this quick-build project will have little to no impact on traffic during construction.

“A project like this goes in practically overnight,” McKenna said.

Main Street currently has a lower “bicycle level of comfort” due to its non-separated bike lanes, according to McKenna. It is also a street with high traffic volume due to its close proximity to the MIT campus, the Kendall/MIT MBTA station, Longfellow Bridge, and biotech companies around Kendall Square.

According to Wolfe, one instance of heavy traffic that exacerbates the need for separated lanes is the volume of BlueBikes docked on Main Street in the mornings, which requires a valet to manage the excess bikes.

“The demand is so high,” McKenna said. “To justify BlueBikes putting out a valet, the demand is tremendous.”

McKenna added that improving the bike lanes will help reduce traffic congestion and make biking a safe experience for commuters.

“Improving access to transit is a tremendous part of improving the bike network,” she said. “We want to make sure that anyone who wants to make the choice to bike can do so safely and comfortably.”

While some attendees said the timing of the open house — 4 to 6 p.m. — may have decreased its accessibility, several others said they came away from the event with a positive outlook on the proposal.

Quintin E.J. Smith, who attended the open house and said his bike has been his main mode of transportation in Cambridge for 18 years, said the project is an “improvement, to be sure.”

“We’re basically on a bike highway. This area gets incredibly congested,” Smith said. “Having a separation here in rush hour is going to be a significant improvement.”