North Shore cyclists might soon be able to ride their bikes through downtown Lynn to Nahant on a two-lane bike path separated from the road.
Public officials from Lynn and Nahant met Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) representatives on Zoom Thursday evening to discuss the Northern Strand Expansion project.
The $11 million dollar Northern Strand Expansion project, funded by the Commonwealth through MassDOT, will create a roughly two-mile network of two-way raised bike lanes and shared use paths that run from Western Avenue through Market Square, then down South Common Street to Market Street, along the Lynnway to the Nahant Rotary, and finally on to Nahant Road.
Before opening the meeting to public officials, MassDOT Project Manager Joseph Yoo said that construction is slated to begin at the end of the year.
Speaking on behalf of the City of Lynn, Principal Planner Aaron Clausen said the project fits with the city’s goal of creating expedient and safe access to the waterfront.
“That critical last piece connecting Northern Strand to the waterfront really is a piece of non-motorized transportation infrastructure that provides high quality access for bicyclists of all ages and levels of experience and really provides that critical link to our waterfront,” Clausen said.
Following Clausen’s remarks, Nahant Town Administrator Antonio Barletta spoke in favor of the project, adding that the town was eager to see a bike path connecting the municipalities. Barletta said that while he supported the bike paths, Nahant residents had expressed concern that the lanes might worsen traffic congestion on the northbound side of the Lynnway.
With residential and commercial developments going up on the Lynnway, Barletta also said he was worried the bike paths would clog traffic near the north side of Carroll Parkway.
“We do share a lot of concerns with our residents about how this bike lane, plus those future developments on the Lynnway, will impact traffic flow. But we are supportive of the project, and we’re happy to see that it’s moving along to the next step,” he said.
As the meeting transitioned into a public forum, residents expressed mixed views on the bike lanes. Save the Harbor/Save the Bay Executive Director Chris Mancini, of Swampscott, said that the project would provide a much-needed safe and environmentally-friendly route for cyclists.
Nahant resident Wayne Wilson, on the other hand, voiced his strong opposition to the project, saying that the reduced road space would cause traffic congestion and become a safety risk to drivers.
“I find the whole project particularly appalling. You’re going to inconvenience thousands of communities that use the north lane of the Lynnway on a daily basis, so that two or three people could ride a bike down there on a Saturday or Sunday,” Wilson said. “It’s just an egregious overstep of state government as far as I’m concerned.”
Lynn resident Shawn Nagle said that he completely supports the project, as he thinks it will make it safer to traverse the Lynnway on foot or on a bicycle.
“I know when I’ve been going down the Lynnway, some people really like to jerk out of that right turn lane and so when I’m crossing, so that that extra lane will certainly help keep people like me safer,” Nagle said.
