Massachusetts Vision Zero Coalition

Matt O'Malley

I travel throughout my district and the city through a variety of modes of transportation. Typically, I commute to work to City Hall and throughout the district via my electric car. Other days, I hold office hours with constituents on MBTA trains, buses, and/or commuter rail. I also enjoy using BlueBikes and walking throughout my community. One of the many benefits of living and working in the country’s third most walkable city is having numerous options beyond just a private vehicle, which allows me to be more connected to my community while reducing my carbon footprint.

D6 is fortunate to contain a sizable portion of the SW Corridor, which includes 5 mi of bike/walking trails. However, some areas in the district benefit less from this & similar resources due to a lack of infrastructural connectivity. Wash & Centre Sts in WR have been particularly dangerous to non-motorists, & I am committed to implementing traffic calming measures to ensure non-motorists of all modes/abilities are safe. After a horrific crash which resulted in the death of a pedestrian, I've been working w/the community, BTD, & businesses in making Centre St. safer through a redesign process.

I've earned the vote of those concerned about mobility & walkability issues based on my record of smart advocacy, from neighborhood slow streets to expanding micromobility. On top of this, I pride myself on my constituent service & accessibility w/in the n'hood. I've been an outspoken advocate in expanding BlueBikes, lead sponsor of bringing e-scooters to Boston (with responsible oversight), called on the state/MBTA to increase funding & provide service upgrades, & made pedestrian safety my top priority. I am currently working on a proposed major redesign of Centre which includes a road diet.

Matt O'Malley

I've been a tireless advocate for slower & safer neighborhood streets. As your Councilor, I have provided 350 lawn signs to residents that say “Please Slow Down Boston” to complement city speed signage. As a Councilor, I have advocated on behalf of residents to ensure that the essentials of good street design are in good repair, from repainting crosswalks to installing new stop signs. I am an ardent supporter of both the city’s Slow Streets and the Complete Streets programs. I look forward to seeing Jamaica Plain’s Centre/South area as a true Main Street through its Complete Streets redesign. I believe Boston needs to strive to meet the ideal standards set out by the National Association of City Transportation Officials when designing streets; whether it be 10-foot wide lanes, 5-foot wide cycle track lanes with a 3-foot buffer, or 12-foot wide, ADA compliant sidewalks with a 6-foot wide pedestrian zone, we need to right-size our city to reinforce the message that our streets are open to everyone. I have also urged the city plant a greater number of street trees, which have been shown to protect sidewalks, reduce crashes, and reduce heat islands, as well as numerous other benefits.

I have been a long-time advocate for expanding the scope and types of mobility options throughout the city of Boston. I have voiced my support for the proposal put forth by the Arborway Committee for Public Transit to expand the MBTA Green Line from its terminus at Heath Street station to Hyde Square. This would provide increased service and ridership to a vital branch of the Green Line. Expanding train service to the city’s designated Latin Quarter would also be an important act of transit and environmental justice, creating direct connectivity between this vital cultural district and downtown. I have also introduced a policy proposal to the City Council to permit dockless scooter companies to operate within the city of Boston. While separate from public transit in itself, expanding micromobility is essential to decreasing private vehicle usage and tackling the first mile/last mile problem that prevents many residents from being able to access key transit hubs. This is felt acutely in Southwest Boston. Finally, I hold monthly office hours on the T, riding a different bus line/train line/commuter rail while meeting with constituents.

My district is fortunate to include a sizable portion of the Southwest Corridor and its dedicated cycle path. The main goal now is to ensure connectivity throughout the neighborhood for all who desire to access this key corridor to the Central Business District, and to allow those outside the neighborhood to access the great local businesses that thrive in the West Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Mission Hill, Roslindale, and Roxbury Main Streets districts. We can achieve this by aggressively pursuing the goals laid out in the Go Boston 2030 plan, as well as making sure that any street redesigns reflect the Complete Streets model. I know that sharrows and bike lanes do not present our streets as inviting to cyclists, and it is therefore essential to create bicycle boulevards and cycle tracks that signal to tentative cyclists that they are welcome and safe. Boston cannot be a true 8 80 City until our cycling population mirrors our greater population as a whole.