Amenities for bicyclists top the list of priorities for Melrose Main Street corridor improvements in a study completed and released this month.

In May, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) awarded a grant to Melrose, Wakefield and Reading to study the approximately 9-mile long corridor from Reading Depot to the Oak Grove MBTA Station over the border in Malden. Brainstorming sessions were held in all three communities to garner feedback from the public.

The final study (PDF attached) includes 42 strategies the communities could undertake to achieve goals that include improving pedestrian access and amenities; improving access and accessibility for senior transportation services; and increasing transit use and improving connections between modes of transit, among others. Some strategies could be undertaken immediately, such as improved lane markings and crosswalks, while others have an eye towards the future, such as car-sharing and bike-sharing hubs.

However, when it came to prioritizing strategies, those that focused on improving bicycle access and amenities topped the list for Melrose. During the brainstorming session at Melrose City Hall in September, many residents expressed the desire to find ways to make biking in Melrose easier, while acknowledging the narrow downtown section of Main Street presents a problem.

"Melrose is lacking in bicycle racks and accommodations for bicyclists," the study says. "The narrow width of Main Street in downtown Melrose, combined with on-street parallel parking and buses, creates a difficult environment for bicyclists to navigate.  The areas north and south of downtown Melrose, however, have adequate width for bicycle accommodations. Bicycle lanes or sharrows are not provided in Melrose."

Where Can Melrose Create Bike Lanes and Parking?

Without space downtown for proper bike lanes, the study maps out a possible bicycle network for the corridor by identify Lebanon Street to Sylvan Street and Vinton to Pleasant as two alternative bike routes.

The study and suggests that the communities explore whether there's enough space alongside the MBTA Haverhill commuter rail line to install a bike path that parallels the train tracks.

Bicycle parking is a need across the city, from shops and commercial areas to parks, playgrounds and schools. The study suggests that covered bicycle parking should be installed where appropriate, citing the recent covered bike port installed by the MBTA at the Wyoming Hill Station, along with caged bicycle parking for all-day parking near downtown and commercials areas.

Due to the cramped conditions and high pedestrian traffic downtown, the study suggested using on-street bicycle parking—taking one motor vehicle parking space and placing a bike parking corral there instead.

"An on-street parking corral in one vehicular parking space can provide between
12-14 bicycle parking spaces," The study said. "On-street bicycle corrals are structurally designed to protect parked bicycles against any contact  from motor vehicles and are mobile, giving  them the flexibility to be relocated and  removed in winter weather to enable snow plowing. Since on-street bicycle corrals are not permanent structures, they can be installed on a trial basis."

Pedestrian, Bus Improvements, Too

With all three communities now sharing a Health Department, the study said Melrose, Wakefield and Reading should form a Healthy Community Committee to promote healthy living and work with pedestrian and bicycle committees to undertake improvements in pedestrian/bicycle infrastructure along the corridor.

Crash data should also be used to identify problem intersections and improve them with signal timings, shortened pedestrian crossings, and traffic calming. Two areas singled out by the study for improvements are the Lebanon Street-Main Street-Green Street intersection across from Melrose-Wakefield Hospital and Main Street closer towards Oak Grove, where new lane markings and crosswalks could benefit pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers.

With multiple bus routes running through the city, the study said improved shelter at bus stops, particularly for the most frequently used stops, would be a simple way to encourage residents to use public transportation year-round.

Bus stops should also have schedule information posted at the most frequently used stops and, in the future, LED displays at the stops depicting real-time arrival information could encourage ridership.

Encouraging seniors in particular to use public transportation more frequently was cited in the study. In fiscal 2008, there were almost 30,000 The RIDE trips originating in Reading, Wakefield and Melrose, a 61 percent increase from three years earlier, according to the study, and slightly over 40 percent of those trips originated in Melrose.

A recent parking study said that Melrose would benefit from better signage directing drivers to parking lots off Main Street, and in a similar vein the MAPC study said signs directing drivers and bicyclists from Main Street to the commuter rail stations would be beneficial. Also looking towards the future, "smart parking" signs that provide real time information about parking space availability and commuter rail schedule information could be installed.

To facilitate improvements, the study suggests that each community either forms or joins an existing local Transportation Management Association (TMA), which are private, non-profit associations between employers, government organizations and others that aim to reduce traffic congestion and pollution by improving commuting options.