Boston Bike Lanes: Are They All Needed? Part 2

It's nice Boston's news Radio.

All Kyle, thank you very much. We are talking about bike lanes in Boston, specifically referring to an interesting column in Yesterday's Boston Atte written by old friend Brian McGrory. Brian wrote a piece entitled is the Boylston Street bike lane really necessary? Well, the answer I think is clear in the question the once grand thoroughfare now feels like a crowded, unkempt, chaotic mess. Yes it does, and that can apply to a lot of other areas. Now, Brian

Good Dan, how are you?

I'm doing just great. So you're in East Boston. You get some bike lanes over there.

The bike lanes are on the sidewalk because no one wants to drive in the street, so they go flying down.

You know.

I live on Bennington Street and it's a great you know family. Most of the people that live in the houses have been here for years, but also there are new people with babies and carriages and dogs, and I think the worst part is that there's no room for all of this. So we were sitting out the other day. Let's just tell you quickly that this neighbor of mine had her dog and her baby in the carriage and

Yeah, basically one.

Yeah.

No, he came back a.

Classic guy, A classy guy.

Yeah, really, classic kid. It's a kid.

It was a kid.

So it's these kids. And he came back in front of my house four or five times. So not only are they intimidating when they are on these wheels, but you tell them to slow down and they're in and

They believe that they owed many of the bikes on the road.

Yeah.

Literally, they don't pay for the roads, the insurance on their viehicle, They don't pay sort of any sort of like gas taxes to support the roads. But they feel that they have a right to do whatever they want and they don't comply. Many of them do not comply with red lights. And some of them find themselves in situations, sadly where they get injured on bikes because they have been ready to believe that they are impervious and they

They're changing Dan, they're changing the signals so you can't turn right on red anymore. But that's that's for cars, because bikes don't follow that. The other point is, you know what's wrong with taking taking some lessons on learning how to ride a bike or get a license if you want to ride in the street. And I know that's not popular amongst any bike but although.

The bike, the bike riders, the bicyclists want to be free to use whatever road they want. They do not feel they have to pay anything insurance, any sort of registration. And if a bike bike, it has happened to people, happens to impact your car, scratch your car, or God forbid, take out the mirror on your car, you're in the hook.

Well because they need the mayor. So, I mean, the mayor would never allow half the things that she's allowing in Boston next to her house. So we all say, you know, do you want a twenty twenty condo building next to your house? N answer would be no. Do you want to pop up restaurant next to your house?

No?

So I mean it's it's just ironic that we continue to have to suffer for these kind of innovations that go great somewhere else but not in Boston.

Well, they might be great in the city like Phoenix, which has big, wide streets and weather, you know, eleven months out of the air at sunny and Phoenix and you have a few rainstorms at at different times, but it's not Boston, right, not Boston. But guess when someone gets elected mayor, they have four years to do whatever the heck they want, and she certainly has in terms of bikelines.

I'll tell you, but one more thing. Do you see wheelchairs now have any right to the road because they can't even get through. And I think that was brought up in the Globe, and I think it was on your show when you have Flynn on a couple of weeks ago, where they were talking about there's no advocacy for anybody that's disabled in a wheelchair. Now it's by reserve to bike lanes, but where the wheelchairs.

Go nowhere, Nowhere. Again, you do not have a wheelchair lobby. You have a bike lobby and politicians right lobby to political lobbies. That's it's simple. It's as simple as that, Joey. Look at what's happened to the restaurant owners in the North End. They basically be rolled over by the mayor's They said, you don't want to participate, you don't want to play and do what we say we will. We

I hope I help Flynn runs I hope Flynn runs because I'll vote and work on his campaign.

All right, Well, if that's listening a situation.

Dan, Dan, if you want to talk about East Boston, you call me anytime, because I'm an advocate here and I'm constantly, you know, trying to bring attention to not blaming people. But let's take responsibility as shared responsibility, that we're working together and it's not one section pitted against another. But that's what's happening. And I love your show.

By the way, so well, Joey, thank.

You so much. Please call more often. I love your calls. Thank you very much.

I will do that.

Take a care to tell your neighbors about night Side. You know, you don't have to sit in front of the boob tube and just watch. They can participate.

I just put it on Facebook. I just call them. Than take care, Okay.

Good night, We'll keep rolling here. The only well, I got one line hoping that Joeanne was on six one, seven, two, five, four, ten thirty and two lines at six one, seven, nine, three, one ten thirty. I got Bill and Lexington Paul and need him coming up in this room for you. We're talking about bikes in Boston. And when The Boston Globe former editor Brian McGrory agrees with me, he's not an anti bike person. I'm not an anti bike person either,

Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World to night side studios on WBZ News Radio.

It's funny tonight all of our calls have been from Massachusetts. Very rarely do we have a program without any out of state calls. We have stuck with local issues tonight, primarily these the Steward healthcare crisis here in Massachusetts and now bike lanes in downtown Austin. But if you want to weigh in from another region of the country, love to know if you are infested with the number of bike lanes or infected. I'm not sure which word you

I'm okay, how you doing.

We're just great. I don't know if you get a chance to get into Boston, but Lifton on what you think about Boston's desire for more and more bike lanes.

I am more all over Boston in the metro area. I've been driving for thirty plus years. I've never once been like, huh, we need bike lanes. There's so many bikes out here, there's between.

Yeah, that's the point, you know, when you think about the amount of asphalt or or city streets that are given to bike lanes and compare that. I mean if we were Amsterdam where everybody was in a bike, fine, get rid of cars and go to bikes. That's eight percent of the vehicles on the road in Boston, and an ave given day of are automobiles. But automobiles don't have ninety percent of the pavement or the asphalt.

One hundred percent in the millions of dollars that go into painting the bike lanes. And it's not just in Boston, it's all around. To go twenty miles out side of Boshington and they're painting bike lanes on state roads and how many bikes do I ever see on them? One? Maybe on a Sunday, not Monday through shadowy Yeah, it's it's it's very like, huh, why we wasting got money on this?

Well, we're wasting our money on it because politicians respond to political lobbyists, and the bike bicycle lobby has been very effective in Boston. They basically have rolled many of the political leaders, including Mayor.

Wou You couldn't have said a better dam And that's some big problem in the whole world.

Yeah, and I don't think it's going to get better anytime soon in Boston in my opinion.

You can't. You can't be dumbing money at politicians and have them both the way their constituents want. You need to ask you situents like it's just it is. It's kind of crazy. I would like to personally see a bike lane built through the CEO of Stuart Healthcare's bank account and maybe have some of the bike was staged back, some of the money, Like why do you get these multimillion dollar bonuses when you you can't produce and make money at a hospital.

Yeah, I mean I think that if the politicians paid more attention and what was going on with Stewart Healthcare as opposed to paving paving the road with bicycle lanes, we'd all be better, but.

Hey, better empty. They're all empty. I mean, love you, love you if you bike to work. Yeah, like i'd be honestly.

Thanks Bill, appreciate you call. I have a great ongod night pleasure all right, right back, got you. Uh, look, we can always add a little humor here. But if I wasn't going to laugh, you bought to cry. Because I think Boston is being really railroaded with this. All of a sudden, I got a bunch of open lines. Couple of folks drop off, Let's fill them up. Six one, seven, two, four ten thirty six one seven, nine three one ten thirty.

You quite well? Welcome back to Italy.

Thank you.

Yeah. I think the two main problems are one that most people don't vote. I think in the last election, what percent of Bostonians voted because everybodyisms is no point. But I think people, I mean I've not met many people, hardly any that like may Wou. And the other thing about her is you can't get through to her at all. I've called several times. She will not take my call.

You have a city councilor that is assigned to west Roxbury. And if west Roxbury doesn't want to get out and vote your city councilor. I think also where presents part of make complane.

He doesn't care about what doctory you know? He But the thing is you can't disagree with her because if he did, and I don't think he does anyway, but if he did, I mean she would just you know, cold shoulder him. And you know he's doing all these things that that she wants. That's how she runs it. Mae Andnino, who's the only one I really knew. Well, he was so approachable. I mean he show up places and you go up and talk to him face to face,

And Nadia face and Tomnina was a great mayor.

Well, he cared about the city. She doesn't. She doesn't care about at all. Dirty or she's stupid.

The one thing I know about Tom Minino, and I know tom Nino very well, he loved being mayor.

Yeah he did.

That was the epitome of his career. He had no aspiration to go anywhere beyond mayor, beyond the mayor of Boston. I cannot say that about the current mayor.

Clearly, I think she knows better than anybody. And you know that's the whole attitude of the city council.

But Mayor Wu, I think is counting the days until Elizabeth Warren decides to give up her sendency. Or Eddie Marky because she sees herself as Senator Wu in Washington.

Well, I don't know.

No, I don't either, but I think that's what her aspiration is she is not gonna be she would serve two terms if if, if she's lucky enough to be re elected, and that will be it. Because she feels that from an actual oarial point of view, either Marky or Warren are going to have to give up their Senate seat and now there'll be a competition. I think Governor Healy might be interested in it. I think that Joe Kennedy might want to make a comeback. But well, we will see.

But that's what Mayor is looking at. Well, I mean, we have a few now, but for the most part, they're not strong enough. They don't have the money, and they don't you know, they just feel like people aren't going to vote. And I think most people, I mean I was an avowed Democrat. I think most people wore but Democratic Party, you know, isn't what it used to be. It's ridiculous, you know.

Well it's you know, they talk about how we got to be We've got to have to have transparency and Donald Trump's an autocrat and we don't like authoritarians and autocrats. But look what has happened.

Here is the worst autocrat that I've ever and Kamala I mean and and then she goes and steals his ideas. That's that's all he's going to do.

We talked about that, We talked about that last Yes, I just joke. I think it's amazing that the vice president has become the nominee of the Democratic Party without ever campaigning for the job, without.

Ever the last night that way, Well, I.

I truly consider it to be miraculous.

Yeah, I know, what do you call it? The immaculate? I mean, the whole thing is a joke. I mean, you know what everything they say about I mean, no, I don't think anybody likes Trump. It's a person.

He's at me that The phrase I'm using is the immaculate nomination.

Immaculate nomination. But you know, Trump knows what he's doing. He made the country a safer, better place. And Joe Biden I don't. I don't know if he's dirty or not, but either way, he is stupid. And that's not a nice word, I know, But you know.

It's I think we can we cant that a little bit. City We could. We could say that he's lost a little off his fastball.

Well I don't think he ever had anything.

Well, we could say that too, but we don't want to say.

He's stupid, right, No, it's a bad word, and I feel bad about it.

We can strike that from the record, Okay, I.

Mean, but no, the people of the worst, the constituents of the country, because I don't see what's happening right in front of Well.

I looked at the voter turnout in West Roxbury. Yeah, last mayoral race in city council election, and it's not the West Roxbury that I once knew. It's not the West Roxbury that used to have, you know, political rallies on the night before primaries and the night before elections that we come.

Well, everybody was a Democrat, but it was a good thing to be a Democrat in those days. You know, all the maze that I knew. But especially Menino listened. They didn't impose she doesn't listen at all.

Not only doesn't she listen, doesn't mayor will listen, but Mayor lou Will then enjoys the confrontation she had, the confrontation with the North End restaurant owners. And you you upset a sufficient number of people, and your road to reelection can be tough. But we'll see, we'll see. You got to call more often, Sandy, Okay, you got to wake some of your people up in West Roxbury, but we're awake.

But you know, it just feels like an uphill battle cliffs. She's obleak, terribly oblique, and you can't get you can't get through to her, and you can't get through to anybody who works for her, because you know, if you hadn't minute, can I tell you that when she invited me for lunch? Do you have a minute for that?

All right?

So one day I get this email, the May wants to invite you, and I almost clicked it off because I thought it's another one of these zom things. And I opened up the dacy, Andy, the May wants to invite you to lunch at the old Ale House on Center Street and touch and Touch a day please, RSVP. So I thought, what is this? So I emailed a few people I knew, and they know they hadn't been invited. So then I called back and I said, yes, I'd

Well that was pretty poor planning. Hey, Sandy, I'm way into my newscast. Remind me I got to take a break.

Interesting story people point, Yeah, yeah.

Surrounds yourself with bad people, arrogant and incompetent. That's not a good combination. Not a good combination. Thanks Andy, talk.

To you, they ca, thank bye bye.

Take a quick break. Here's the news six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty one line there six one, seven, nine, three, one ten thirty Coming right back.

You're on Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZY, Boston's news radio.

Thanks Kyle, let's get right back to the Coles calls. We have full lines. Let's see what everybody wants to talk about. Karen and Wisconsin. Karen, you are next on nightside. Got any bike lanes in Madison, Wisconsin?

Oh yeah, I've got them behind my house. And then they decided to take my avenue and spend a year and a half redoing it to put a bike lane in when there's one right behind the house, so they could call it loop around the lake. You know, it's more fun to have water while you bike, So I guess we have to go a block back.

Maybe they should put they should put a bike lane through the lake and see how they would do driving on their bike lane right through the lake.

I have more trouble with the trains here. They don't put any signals up to tell you there's train coming that that.

Could be a real problem, Tarn. I've seen some of those train accidents.

I saw it coming and there was nothing telling me one was coming.

But I hope that's I do.

I will just say I wonder how she really likes it, because she's got to be she's living right on top of West Roxbury. Unless she's only going into Boston proper and back, she's living right there outside of Rosie Square. Yeah, roaches, you know, right down the street and I hear roach. How can people I talk? I don't talk to a million people, but I lived there. I know what west Roxbury's like.

I can.

I can tell you people don't even want to go into roads because they've got it.

Oh yeahangerous. Now center Street. I've been on Center Street.

I mean, I think that's the roach. I would say, I'll see it road.

Street. Absolutely, that's when I'm back in Boston. That's where I go to shop.

That's and and I can't see how the you know, all the restaurants, the things that are still in West Roxbury are going to survive with this. And and she lives right by the what does she do ride or bike to West Roxbury?

I guess I don't think she gets to West Roxbury very much. I think to a nice indoor parking space at city Hall. Hey, Karen, I got a run. We'll talk soon. Stay safe and stay well.

I will you too, Dane.

We're gonna let's let's go down the cape. Larry and Dennisport. Larry, welcome next on night Side.

How are you hi? Dan Taylor?

So you know we have the rail trail over here, and but I want to mention my son is a homicide detective in the Boston Police Department and he spent quite a few years in the vehicular homicide unit. Here's the problem. Cyclists have to obey every rule of the road, just like a car does that they don't, well, they're supposed to know. Sure, So you mentioned one of the problems.

No? I can just imagine in Summerville.

It must be yeah, same thing. They got those white lines and I couldn't even find the entrance into the doctor's office. You know what I said.

They have those stanchions that you have to park outside.

Right, those white picket fences all along broad So to solve the problem, I just found a new doctor.

Well it's too bad that you have to find a new doctor. That is not easy to do in Massachusetts.

I know, I know.

But on the rail trail here. You've been on Cape Cod right, you know what it's like. They come through the rail trail, they get to the crossings, whether it's Deepot Street or whatever street it is, they're supposed to stop and walk their bike. If they're walking their bike in a crosswalk, they're considered a pedestrian. But if you're riding on a crosswalk, you're not a pedestrian and you don't have the right of way.

Well, they do some crazy things.

And again, and I'm an avid cyclist.

No I understand, No, I know that, But you're a responsible Yeah.

Well, you know what the difference is. You know what I did. Now, I don't like riding in the roads. I switched to my mountain bike and ninety percent of my riding is in the gorgeous wooden trails of Cape Cod.

You know something, You're a wise man.

Someday.

Great, dear you boys. Thanks, Okay, we'll talk soon.

All right, Thanks, all right, Dan, alright, bye bye.

Good night. Okay, Okay, we'll get one more in here before the break. Let me go to in in San Antonio, Texas in you were next on nightside.

Welcome back, Hi, Dan, how are you good? Very good? Thank you. This is a pity call. I'm so sorry for what's going on. It's really just awful. It's terrible representation. The arrogance of it all is astounding.

Do you have do you have many bike lanes popping up?

And don't have any?

And I just hope it doesn't happen.

Well, if you get if you get some progressive city councils or god forbid, a progressive mayor in San Antonio, you'll you'll, yeah, they will, they will.

Pop up, whether you like it or yeah, and be crazy. I can't vote for our mayor because I live in the town, mayor county, but you know, I'm in San Antonio and he's been a wonderful mayor. Though Mayor ron Nurrenberg. He's been wonderful, but this is his last year and the three people that are going to be running at this point are.

Not are not. All you need, well, all you need is one, you know, one good candidate who's going to say, hey, we're not going to trip the roads over the bicycles. That's all. But up here it is in up here, it is just wild. I mean, there's more, yeah, bike

Stock the quality of life is is really taken a down turn to think that they don't even have uh handicap accessible. Uh that's terrible. Well I just can't imagine.

Well, don't come to Boston. Trust me.

Well, we've had we've had visitors down here and they're they're talking about the bike lanes and all the traffic that uber and and you're right, and it's very sad. It's very sad, and it's.

Not getting any better, and thank you so much. We actually had we have like a bikes are in Boston. We have a rats are and a bikes are. That says a lot about Boston if you want.

Who well, you know what your called what your caller said about her luncheon with the mayor that that was astounding, and see it said something else as well, and uh, I can't remember what it was now, but uh it was a good call day and us.

Is a good call as well. Keeping keeping contact with you later. Okay, we do have a break. We got in on and off, but we're a little bit late, so let's go to the break. We're gonna get Michael, Laurie and g O w in. I am gonna try and I think we can do it back on nights out after this.

Now back to Dan ray Mine from the Window World night Side Studios.

On w b Z News Radio. All right, let's try to get everybody in here. We're gonna go next to Laurie in Idol. Got the bike lings out Idaho.

Laurie, Well, no, because there's a sign when you enter the city where I live. This says, you know what, pedestrians and michaelists bicyclists have the right of way no matter what. So it's kind of like back in the day. I remember back in the day, Boston was kind of the city and said, if a pedestrian drops out of the sky and you hit the pedestrian, your fault. And so that's that's kind of like, yeah, here the the the buckers and the bikers how the right away. But

Right no, particularly in the winter when it's snowy, well just not No, they've allocated probably twenty five percent of the city's street surfaces to the bike lanes and just ridiculous. Yeah it's it's not being used, right, but they don't care. Those bike lanes are never going away.

Wow yeah, yeah, yeah, that's that's you'll see them when you come back, you know.

Why.

And I can admit it. I can envision them. I'm familiar with the arion A letter stuff and I just I can't even imagine. And everybody who calls, well, I might see one bicycles a day in them, and she just is not backing down.

No, no, she's not backing down on anything. And hey, we'll see what happens. I mean, the bike lanes support the bicycles. It's a very powerful lobby. It's as simple as that. And it can it can, it can influence a city election. And that's that's what she's mean. Yeah, for sure, you see Lloyd Love You gotta go here. I got two more going to try to get in Okaya.

Good night, welcome back back.

Thanks thanks so much, Michael and Aiboro. Michael got room for you in one more.

Please go ahead, Michael, me Dan.

I'm on this website. Senna Street Post construction re routing three percent of the time versus point three percent preconstruction. But here it's just parking reduced by seven spaces on Center and two on Belgrade, and a DA space is increased by one, which ridiculous plants add three more. I've been over there.

There's a few spots oddball spots down near Rah that famous donut shop that.

We in Duet in his donuts, right, yeah, yeah, it's it's like ten bucks.

It's a little more expensive than me. I'm sticking with Duncan's. But that's that's just the point of personal preference.

Yeah, yeah, anyway, and may good but maybe not that good. Okay, right, anyway, anyway, the.

That area and a couple out of the years with the curved.

Stats to uh become rounded so you can mark the side street, they did a thing where the bikes them against the curb and they made packing.

Right. You got to park in the middle of the street and you got a hope that you're near a meter. It's unbelievable, unbelievable.

Chance of being killed. I'm only cutting off because chance of being killed when struck by a driver as curious speeds by age.

About I don't want. I hope no one gets killed. Michael. I got to get one more in my friend earlier. More time.

Okay, you why you know why she's getting back in there.

I'm here, I'm here. Yeah, I'll give you five more seconds.

Fight the Asian businessman.

We haven't edity.

I don't really think so, Mike. I think that's got nothing to do with it. Thanks for the call, Geo, Geo, you're late.

Go ahead, Dan, Which one doesn't belong We all went to Rome, Geo, Dan Ray, Tommy Menino, and Fred schell Vuci from MIT who planned the big gig. Which one doesn't belong Dan Ray, who went to Rome and failed to come back, describing Rome as a walking city with bicycles and without cars.

Well, first of all, first of all, Rome does have cars. Okay, and I don't know when you were last in Rome, but they it is a walkable city. But don't get in front of the cars in room, Geo, or I won't have you as a caller anymore.

When you went to the did you go to the Trevy Fountain? Of course, cars from the Trevy Fountain.

Yeah, right, that's that's one area. That's one area of Rome. So you're right on Trevy Fountain. But again, Geo on the mistake and never in doubt. Buddy, great to hear your voice. Gotta go. Thanks J I appreciate it. Okay, Oh my god, Geo is amazing. What do we got? Thirty thirty? So okay, great, we're done Geo early, we get have more time. You're a fun caller. We're done for the night. I thank Rob. I'll also thank our new producer tonight, Dan Tantano did a great job under