Years of safety concerns preceded the fatal accident on Memorial Drive | News

The section of Memorial Drive where Newton cyclist John H. Corcoran, born in 1984, was killed in an accident on Monday evening has been the subject of safety warnings from local politicians and traffic activists for years.

The fatal accident reignited debate about safety measures on Memorial Drive – which is overseen by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation – particularly the section on either side of the intersection with the Boston University Bridge.

According to Massachusetts State Police, which is still investigating the incident, a driver drove onto the sidewalk and struck Corcoran, who was bicycling west about 150 yards from the intersection. By Wednesday, several bouquets of flowers had been hung outside Boston University's Dewolfe Boathouse to mark the accident site.

Following the tragedy, local transportation activists accused the DCR of delaying safety improvements at the nearby intersection, which has long been considered dangerous for cyclists.

Cyclists heading west on Memorial Drive must share a narrow, five-foot-wide section of sidewalk with pedestrians before reaching the busy intersection at the BU Bridge, where they come into close contact with quickly turning cars. An estimated 2,200 cyclists cross this gap daily.

“The safety concerns, particularly at the BU Bridge intersection/roundabout, have been known for years,” Councilwoman Patty M. Nolan (born 1990) wrote in a statement to The Crimson.

Although Corcoran had not yet entered the intersection at the time of the accident, activists and local officials called on DCR to implement traffic calming measures to encourage drivers to slow down before and after the intersection.

Two years ago, a group of residents formed the BU Bridge Safety Alliance to advocate for protected bike lanes on the bridge, widening the initially narrow sidewalk section to give pedestrians and cyclists more room, and restricting right turns on red lights.

“We know that the design of this driveway and sidewalk contributed to the cyclist's death,” said Kenneth Carson, co-founder of the alliance.

“We firmly believe that the cyclist would not have died if the changes we called for had been implemented,” he added.

Members of the group planned to meet with DCR in a closed session on October 9 to discuss DCR's plans for the area. After the accident, DCR decided instead to announce the planned safety improvements to the public.

According to a DCR spokesperson, these improvements include building a 12-foot-wide elevated path for pedestrians and cyclists, improving and redesigning wheelchair ramps, replacing fencing and repainting crosswalks with green paint for bike crossings.

In the longer term, the spokesman said, the DCR plans to work with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to redesign the intersection between Memorial Drive and the BU Bridge.

The spokesman did not give a specific timetable for the improvements.

City Council members, who do not have the power to enforce changes to the highway, said the state can no longer afford to delay implementing additional safety measures.

“We cannot delay improving safe infrastructure,” Vice Mayor Marc C. McGovern wrote in a statement to The Crimson. “And while the city does not control Memorial Drive, we must work with the state to ensure our state roads are safe as well.”

Nolan proposed lowering the speed limit on Memorial Drive and implementing a “road diet” – converting a four-lane undivided roadway into a two-lane roadway with guardrails and separated bike lanes – to improve traffic safety.

But the proposal to reduce the number of lanes is likely to meet with resistance from some residents. Victoria L. Bestor, secretary of Cambridge Streets for All – a group that sued the city to block the expansion of bike lanes – said that reducing bike lanes could exacerbate safety problems, even though there is empirical evidence that reducing bike lanes leads to a reduction in accidents.

Clyve Lawrence (Class of 25-27), a Harvard student who advocates for better bike infrastructure in Cambridge and Boston, said the DCR should view the fatal accident as a wake-up call.

“Although DCR had said they had plans to improve this intersection and add bike lanes in this direction, we have not seen that happen yet,” said Lawrence, editor at Crimson Editorial. “And unfortunately, this death underscores the urgency of doing so.”

—Editor Avani B. Rai can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X @avaniiiirai.

—Editor Jack R. Trapanick can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on X @jackrtrapanick.