MassPaths Bikepath Snow Plowing Report
Monday, February 25, 2015

Bike paths and lanes are integral parts of the bicycle transportation network, and these reports are provided to encourage their use by bicyclists who might otherwise not venture out in the snow, and to encourage their proper maintenance (which includes snow plowing) by the responsible agencies given in bold type below. If they are not plowed while the snow is still soft, paths with significant foot traffic become unskiable within a day, and remain a mess for everyone until the ice melts.

It snowed a couple of inches last night, so light and fluffy that I could shovel my walk in a few minutes. It covered all the dirty snow with bright white and drifted a bit on some bike paths, but mostly conditions remained the same as yesterday, so I'm taking advantage of this for a complete update 10 days after the last major snowstorm. Everything is either icy or clear. If you don't have studded tires or good ice biking skills, stay off the paths and learn to communicate with other street users so you can share streets narrowed by high piles of snow.

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

Arnold Arboretum
1.5 miles of park roads which are mostly closed to automobile traffic with no intersections
Boston Parks and Harvard University
The road from the Visitors Center entrance to the Forest Hills entrance is relatively smooth packed powder, not very icy at all. I rode it pretty fast on studded tires. It looks pretty skiable, too.
Blackwell Footpath
A half-mile gravel path connecting the Forest Hills MBTA station and the South St. Arboretum entrance
Boston Parks and Harvard University
Not checked yet, but probably close to impassable on a bike.
Roslindale Bike Lanes
Two miles of bike lanes on both sides of Washington St. from Forest Hills to Roslindale Square and to West Roxbury on Belgrade Ave. and buffered and wide bike lanes along American Legion Highway
Boston Public Works Department
Mostly gone.
Centre St. and VFW Parkway Bike Lanes
DCR, plowed by MassDOT
Not checked, but probably snow-covered.
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
Kelly to Murray Circle: Mostly covered by snow near the rotaries, but ridable in between.
Murray Circle to Forest Hills: mostly clear and quite usable.
Morton St. Buffered Bike Lanes
Cemetery Rd. to Harvard St.
MassDOT
The bike lanes are buried under three feet of snow, but the buffers are mostly uncovered and usable.
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
Not checked yet.
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
Pretty much totally gone under parked cars; clearer when there is no parking.
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
Between Kelly Circle and Perkin St., there's a lot of drifted snow on very rough ice. From Perkin St. to Rt. 9, there is a lot of ice, and I wouldn't bike it without studded tires.
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
Under snow, except parts of the southbound lane between Chestnut St. and Prince St., which I have been using instead of the Jamaicaway Path.
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 pretty much all rough ice. I rode it once, but no more.
Parkway and Netherlands Rd. Contraflow bike lanes
Two one-block contra-flow lanes plus and contraflow cycle track
Brookline Park Department and DPW
Still under a pile of snow.
Muddy River Path
12-foot-wide 0.6 mile shared bike/ped path with no intersections
Brookline Park Department and DPW
Pretty much solid rough ice, and I'm now using streets instead.
Commonwealth Ave. Bike Lanes
Connecting the B.U. Bridge to Boston University Boston Transportation Department
Pretty much gone.
Brookline Bike Lanes
Town of Brookline
Harvard St. lanes are mostly clear.
B. U. Bridge Bike Lanes
Boston to Cambridge Department of Conservation and Recreation,
Plowed By Mass. Highway Department
Starting to return.
B. U. Bridge west sidewalk
Boston to Cambridge
Department of Conservation and Recreation,
Plowed By Mass. Highway Department or B.U.
Both sidewalks were cleared to bare pavement, but the connections on the Cambridge side aren't very good.
Harvard (Mass. Ave.) Bridge bike lanes
Cambridge to Boston Department of Conservation and Recreation,
Plowed By Mass. Highway Department
Nick Carlisle reports on Thursday, February 26: Cambridge-bound bike lanes are moderately plowed, definitely usable in some spots but not as a whole. Advise taking the right lane. Boston-bound bike lanes are non-existent as of this morning.
Longfellow Bridge bike lanes
Cambridge to Boston Department of Conservation and Recreation,
Plowed By Mass. Highway Department
Not checked recently, but maybe starting to get clear.
Charles River Bikepaths
Narrow, shared bike-ped path with few intersections
Department of Conservation and Recreation
On the Boston side, it's clear to bare pavement along the Esplanade, but pretty narrow and snowy upstream from the BU Bridge to River St. I had to get off and walk a few times. The Dartmouth St. footbridge was bare pavement.
On the Cambridge side, it's rough ice from the BU Bridge to Western Ave., then pretty clear to the Weekes Footbridge, then rough ice upstream to Hawthorn St.
J.F.K. Park
Wide, shared bike-ped path from river to Harvard Square
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Plowed to rough ice with occasional pavement, about the worse I've ever seen it this long after a storm.
Western Ave. Cycletrack
Cambridge Cambridge DPW
Not checked yet, but it's being used by pedestrians because the city plows it.
Western Ave. Cycletrack
Boston Boston DPW
Not checked yet.
N. Harvard St. bike lanes
Boston Boston DPW
Pretty much totally under three feet of snow.
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
Plowed to bare pavement.
Southwest Corridor Bikepath
Separated Bike/Ped path with poorly-designed intersections
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Mostly bare pavement between Ruggles and Jackson Square, but not consistently clear south from there. I wouldn't ride from Forest Hills without studded tires.
South Bay Harbor Trail
Bike/Ped path from the Federal Court House up Fort Point Channel to the Southwest Corridor
City of Boston
Beverley Strain reported on Monday (2/23): South bay Bike Path is clear, but slick from Gillette to Summer St., and there is a path clear at the Children's Museum to the courthouse, but it's very narrow and slick. The connector streets in the area (A St., Melcher, Summer) are cleared, but narrow with on street parking.
Neponset Trail
Mostly paved Bike/Ped path
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Lee Toma reports: The Neponset trail from Brush Hill Road to Stop and Shop was cleared on Monday, and was rideable, but had some icy patches.
The Neponset from Central east was still covered and being used by hikers and snowshoers as of Tuesday night.
Somerville Community Path
Wide rail trail from Davis Square to Cedar St.
City of Somerville
Not checked, but probably bikeable.
Red Line Linear Park Path
Alewife MBTA station to Davis Square over Red Line
City of Cambridge City of Somerville
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday morning: Rough, but walkable and rideable.
Danehy Park Paths
City of Cambridge
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday morning: A little rough, but walkable and rideable.
Cambridge Bike Lanes
Striped lanes of varying widths on major and connecting streets
City of Cambridge
Sometimes they're slightly usable, like on Brookline St. from the BU Bridge to Central Square, but mostly they're under snow. Some of Mass. Ave. is clear because of selective parking bans.
Vassar St. Cycle Track
Buffered bike lanes from Main St. to Memorial Drive (almost)
City of Cambridge
Nick Carlisle reports on Thursday, February 26: plowed and clean, but advise riders to be especially careful in both directions where the lane "spits" you out back into the road, both because a) on-street lanes are not plowed and b) snowbanks obstruct drivers' view of incoming cyclists.
Green St./Franklin St. Bicycle Boulevard
Narrow one-way streets parallel to Mass. Ave. from Central Square to< Harvard Square/I>
City of Cambridge
I've been using Green St. instead of the river paths, and it's been amazingly clear considering that there is nowhere to put the snow. It has been lots worse in past winters.
Fresh Pond Bike Path
Parallel to Fresh Pond Parkway in Kingsley Park
City of Cambridge
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday morning: erfect. Good for walking and biking all around the pond. Great for dog walkers.
Alewife Brook Trail
DCR
Boardwalk sections aren't plowed. No report on the rest.
Fitchburg Cutoff Trail
DCR
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday morning: Not plowed. Rough pedestrian path. Not rideable.
Concord Ave. Cycle Track
Buffered bike lanes from Belmont to Fresh Pond Parkway
City of Cambridge
Not checked yet.
Alewife Parkway Bridge Sidewalk
Connection from Minuteman Bikepath to Fresh Pond and beyond
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday morning: Cleared for challenging walking. Not rideable from Terminal Road to Rotary.
Minuteman "Commuter Bikeway"

Towns of Cambridge, Arlington, Lexington, and Bedford
Rod Holland reported on Saturday (2/21): The Minuteman was actually in pretty good shape between Arlington Center and Lexington Center in the early afternoon on Saturday: well plowed, a few very localized problems caused by careless plow or snow-blower operation by people who apparently had other priorities, easy to deal with if you noticed them before hitting them at speed. That's all moot now, with some new snow, perhaps some new ice, a brief thaw, and another freeze coming in rapid succession, but at least it suggests that the next plowing job will proceed from a good baseline.
Jonathan Sainsbury reports on Thursday (2/19) morning: Perfect. Good for walking and biking.
Upper Charles Reservation
Watertown, Newton, Waltham
4+ miles of paved and unpaved bikepaths
Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation
Not checked yet
Newton Bike Lanes
City of Newton
On Thursday, Walnut St. lanes were mostly covered by snow, but when they weren't, it was sure nice to have a bit of extra space to go past long lines of cars.
Revere Beach Reservation
Revere
Shared use paths (or very wide sidewalks)
Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation
Not checked yet.
Northern Strand Community Trail
Everett and Malden
Shared use path
Everett and Malden DPW
No Report.
Stony Brook Reservation
Hyde Park
4+ miles of paved bikepaths
Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation
These paths aren't plowed because they get relatively little transportation use and because they are used by cross-country skiers like me. There are marked narrow bike lanes on Enneking Parkway through the reservation which are probably clear. Though after this snowfall, the paths should be pretty bikable, and there usually isn't any ice.
Former Metropolitan State Hospital
Belmont, Waltham
paved bikepaths
Mass. Department of Conservation 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, has reported 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
No report.