Boston got almost 4 inches of heavy wet snow on Sunday. With rain on top and an overnight freeze, this could have made for tricky cycling this morning. In fact, the paths were all plowed, and except for the Arboretum, where the shade can be heavy and no salt or sand are used for environmental reasons, the paths I used were all plowed to bare pavement by 10:00 am Monday morning.
Please send updates and reports on the conditions of other paths in Massachusetts to Doug Mink dmink@massbike.org.
Arnold Arboretum 1.5 miles of park roads which are mostly closed to automobile traffic with no intersections Boston Parks and Harvard University | The main road up Bussey Hill from Bussey Brook is torn up for water main construction, so I've been using Walter St. and the paved shoulder of Centre St. to the entrance at the top of the hill. The park roads were covered with rough ice, slush and water this morning. The only way it could have been worse was if the ice were smoother. A day of bright sun should clear most of the road, but the ice has lasted for weeks in places, so beware. Some day, I'll finally get studded snow tires. |
Jamaicaway Bikepath 1.5 miles of mostly bike/ped-separated paths paralleling a busy 4-lane parkway; two intersections with traffic lights Boston Parks Deparment | This path was sanded and plowed by this morning, and most of the snow on the path was melted. There was a bit of ice in shady areas, but this snow was too heavy to drift like the last snow did. The frozen mud covered by water around the bollards at Pinebank is still dangerous. |
Olmsted Park Paths 3/4-mile of mostly bike/ped-separated paths built over Riverdale Road, across Leverett Pond from the Jamaicaway. Brookline Park Department | I forgot to look this morning. |
Muddy River Path 12-foot-wide 0.6 mile shared bike/ped path with no intersections Brookline Park Department and DPW | All bare, wet pavement, except just east of the Longwood Ave. overpass, where there was a bit of rough ice. It should melt by evening. The path slopes toward the Muddy Rive, so there will be a lot of water running across it which could become ice if it freezes tonight. |
B.U. Bridge The bridge road lanes are narrow, and the sidewalks are wide and relatively unused by pedestrians. | The western sidewalk and aproaches on both sides of the bridge were clear, often to dry pavement. The roadway is clear, too. |
Charles River Bikepath Narrow, shared bike-ped path with few intersections Metropolitan District Commission | It looks like it snowed less or melted more in Cambridge. The path is almost totally free of ice, though there are some huge puddles on it by Magazine Beach and the Riverside Boat Club, where the drainage is poor. |
Southwest Corridor Bikepath Separated Bike/Ped path with poorly-designed intersections Metropolitan District Commission | It hadn't been plowed at all as of Monday morning, and is rough ice from pedestrian traffic. Use parallel streets. |
Melnea Cass Bikepath Separated Bike/Ped path Boston Parks or Transportation Deparment | Not checked yet. |
Neponset Trail Mostly paved Bike/Ped path Metropolitan District Commission | This path may be plowed from Port Norfolk to Granite Ave. Discussions are under way as to whether the entire path should be plowed. |
Cambridge Bike Lanes Striped lanes of varying widths on major and connecting streets City of Cambridge | Cars are still parked out from the curb due to remaining snow/ice, so bike lanes are often narrowed. |
Fresh Pond Bike Path Parallel to Fresh Pond Parkway in Kingsley Park City of Cambridge | Not checked yet. |
Red Line Linear Park Over the Red Line from Alewife Station to Cedar St. Cities of Cambridge and Somerville | Not checked yet. |
Minuteman Bikeway From Cambridge through Arlington and Lexington to Bedford Each town | This path is not usually plowed, except sometimes from Lake St. to Alewife Station. |