Another week, two more snowstorms! The first started Tuesday morning and ended in the early evening. The second started sometime during the night and turned to a steady rain from Wednesday mid-morning to early afternoon. I got a late start on Tuesday and found the trails not very usable. By late night, the streets were clear, but not the trails. On Wednesday it started raining, the snow on the ground got harder to shovel, and the plows didn't hit the trails in any significant way. By late Wednesday afternoon, all of the trails I normally use were impassible to a bike because the freezing snow/slush mixture was just too deep to pedal through. By Thursday afternoon some paths were plowed, which was great because streets were narrowed so much by snow banks on both sides that bikes had to line up and stay stopped with cars most of the time. I rode on the sidewalk on Mass. Ave. in Cambridge and Centre St. in J.P. to pass stuck lines of cars.

Please send updates and reports on the conditions of other paths in Massachusetts to Doug Mink.

Arnold Arboretum 1.5 miles of park roads which are mostly closed to automobile traffic with no intersections Boston Parks and Harvard University	Plowed on Tuesday morning and through the storm, but by Wednesday afternoon, it is really, really icy! Don't even attempt it without studded tires! By Friday, there was another thin coating of snow on much of the ice and some bare pavement on east-facing slopes.
Blackwell Footpath A half-mile gravel path connecting the Forest Hills MBTA station and the South St. Arboretum entrance Boston Parks and Harvard University	Unchecked, but probably not plowed
Washington St. Bike Lanes A mile of bike lanes on both sides of Washington St. from Forest Hills to Roslindale Square and beyond on Belgrade Ave. Boston Public Works Department	Bikable during the snow emergency because cars couldn't park on the cleared bike lanes. The snow emergency ended at 6:00 pm on Wednesday and the bike lanes mostly went away again.
Arborway "Bike Lanes" 1 mile of wide paved shoulder which is unmarked but usually clear of parked cars during rush hour Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Buried under the snow, and the parallel sidewalks were plowed, but barely passable. The sidewalks weren't well-plowed until Friday. On Thursday, I used May St. and had to ride in Kelly Circle against southbound traffic to get to Prince St. from Pond St.
Franklin Park Roads Much of the park loop road is closed to motorized traffic and there are bike lanes on the main road. Boston Parks and Public Works Departments	Unchecked.
Centre/South Bike Lanes A mile of bike lanes through the heart of Jamaica Plain from Jackson Square and the Southwest Corridor to Forest Hills. Boston Public Works Department	Clear during the snow emergency, but mostly parked over after. Riding slowly on the sidewalk was faster than parking in traffic.
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	On Wednesday, the snow/slush was too deep to bike through. By Thursday morning, the the path was frozen, but it wasn't plowed well until Friday, though it still wasn't easy going.
Perkins St. Bike Lanes 1.5 miles of mostly bike/ped-separated paths paralleling a busy 4-lane parkway; two intersections with traffic lights Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Mostly covered by snow, but ridable at the south end between Prince St. and Parkman Drive.
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	Plowed but there was too much snow to bike through on Wednesday afternoon. It was still hard on Friday
Muddy River Path 12-foot-wide 0.6 mile shared bike/ped path with no intersections Brookline Park Department and DPW	I finally rode it on Friday night, but which time it was fairly smooth ice with some snow on top.
Commonwealth Ave. Bike Lanes Connecting the B.U. Bridge to Boston University Boston Transportation Department	Parking is starting to cover these lanes except near the B.U. Bridge.
Brookline Bike Lanes Town of Brookline	Mostly covered by parked cars.
B. U. Bridge east sidewalk Boston to Cambridge Department of Conservation and Recreation, Plowed By Mass. Highway Department or B.U.	Packed snow and ice on Friday night.
Harvard (Mass. Ave.) Bridge bike lanes Cambridge to Boston Department of Conservation and Recreation, Plowed By Mass. Highway Department	No report, but probably clear
Longfellow Bridge bike lanes Cambridge to Boston Department of Conservation and Recreation, Plowed By Mass. Highway Department	Not checked yet.
Charles River Bikepaths Narrow, shared bike-ped path with few intersections Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	The Cambridge side has been pretty much unbikable for a week, and was even worse when I finally tried to ride it on Friday night. New Balance has renewed a sponsorship agreement with the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) to ensure area runners, joggers and walkers have clear and safe running paths along the Charles River during the 2011 winter season. ... New Balance, recognizing DCRs commitment to outdoor enthusiasts, has pledged to provide funding to support snow removal efforts along the 17-plus mile Charles River path spanning from the Museum of Science area in Cambridge to the Galen Street Bridge in Watertown. Following DCRs normal priorities, the snow removal will be performed by DCR within 24 hours of the completion of a storm. Because the route runs in close proximity to the river bank, there is limited salting and sanding that can be performed, so the DCR and New Balance urge runners to continue to use caution.
J.F.K. Park Wide, shared bike-ped path from river to Harvard Square Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Plowed almost to bare pavement on Wednesday night.
Allston bike lanes Boston Boston DPW	The North Harvard St. bike lanes have been covered since the post-Christmas storm, except near Western Ave. and northbound south of the B school. The Harvard Ave. bikelanes from Cambridge St. to the Brookline line are mostly clear. I haven't checked the Western Ave. cycle track yet.
Lincoln St. to Cambridge St. MassPike Bridge Bike/Ped connection from Harvard Square to Allston's Harvard Ave. district via Franklin St. Massachusetts Turnpike Authority	The bridge and ramps were mostly clear on Tuesday night and a bit snowier on Wednesday night.
Southwest Corridor Bikepath Separated Bike/Ped path with poorly-designed intersections Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	On Friday morning, Matt Marx reported Southwest corridor was plowed to packed powder this morning, icy in parts, but a blast to ride with studded tires! On Thursday morning, Jamie Merrill reports: I took the SW Corridor From Roxbury Crossing Station to Camden St. It was pretty clear around the MBTA stations (Rox Cross and Ruggles) but between the two was not so nice. There was a layer of snow covering a partially frozen slush underneath. Also snow piles riddled the path. I took it nice and slow and I was fine. Also saw many other biker tracks in the snow and no signs of wipe-outs. Between Ruggles and Camden St. was down to the pavement-perfect.
South Bay Harbor Trail Bike/Ped path from the Federal Court House up Fort Point Channel to the Southwest Corridor City of Boston	Not checked yet, but I suspect that the section in front of the Crosstown Development near Mass. Ave. will be done, and the path will be clear where it goes under the Expressway.
Neponset Trail Mostly paved Bike/Ped path Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Not checked but probably plowed after the snow stops. There is a Bombardier stationed at Pope John Paul II Park which is usually out as soon as the snow stops.
Vassar St. Cycle Tracks Main St. to Audrey St. City of Cambridge and MIT	Bruce Kulic reports on Saturday (2/5): The track on the north side (westbound - away from Kendall Square) appeared uncleared from Main Street to Mass Ave, although the adjacent sidewalk was clear, and the transition to and from the street had been cleared but the approach bike lanes were not. From Mass Ave west to at least the new dormitory the westbound track was clear enough to see the solar powered "runway - lights". The track on the south side (eastbound - toward Kendall Square) was mostly not clear from the athletic fields to Mass Ave, but the adjacent sidewalk was. I was not able to observe the eastbound track from Mass Ave to Main Street. Then entire length of Vassar Street was clear in the main travel lanes.
Somerville Community Path Wide rail trail from Davis Square to Cedar St. City of Somerville	Not checked, but probably plowed.
Red Line Linear Park Path Alewife MBTA station to Davis Square over Red Line City of Cambridge City of Somerville	Salted with some bare pavement and lots of slush on Friday night
Danehy Park Paths City of Cambridge	Not checked.
Cambridge Bike Lanes Striped lanes of varying widths on major and connecting streets City of Cambridge	Most roads are clear, but the bike lanes are pretty much gone.
Fresh Pond Bike Path Parallel to Fresh Pond Parkway in Kingsley Park City of Cambridge
Alewife Parkway Bridge Sidewalk Connection from Minuteman Bikepath to Fresh Pond and beyond Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Urban Parks and Recreation
Minuteman "Commuter Bikeway" Towns of Cambridge, Arlington, Lexington, and Bedford	From Lake St. to the wooden bridge over Alewife Brook near the T station, this path was packed powder to ice. Passage around the Alewife T station was very icy, but the connection to the Linear Park path was mostly bare pavement. Details are usually posted at http://www.clearthetrail.org
Upper Charles Reservation Watertown, Newton, Waltham 4+ miles of paved and unpaved bikepaths Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Not checked.
Stony Brook Reservation Hyde Park 4+ miles of paved bikepaths Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	These paths aren't plowed because they get relatively little transportation use and because they are used by snow-shoers. The marked narrow bike lanes on Enneking Parkway through the reservation were clear Sunday afternoon before this storm. It turns out that they are plowed by DCR staff instead of contractors, so the same person plows the parkway after every storm and knows the twists and turns well enough to plow all of the way to the edge of the pavement. This is not true of all parkways in Boston.
Former Metropolitan State Hospital Belmont, Waltham paved bikepaths Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Urban Parks and Recreation	Not checked yet.
Assabet River Rail Trail Hudson and Marlborough, so far Town of Hudson, City of Marlborough (so far)	Not checked, but probably not plowed.
Northampton Bikeway East-west across the City of Northampton City of Northampton	Craig Della Penna, who lives next to the path, reports that it is the intention of the DPW to make it passable ASAP after a storm. If the storm is significant, then they plow it repeatedly --sometimes 10-12 times during the course of the storm to ensure its usability.
Norwottuck Rail Trail Northampton to Amherst Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of State Parks and Recreation	No report.