Yet another reason why the J-way needs to be turned back into a two lane moderate speed parkway and not the high speed mini-highwat it is today. There was a DCR meeting about this problem last night.

Dan Rea

By The Beer Guy on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 3:48pm.

would argue this is why bicyclists need to be banned from the roadways. To quote Hit-Girl: Whatta douche!

Actually I would say it's a good argument for closing the jamaicaway to car traffic.. or (more agreeable probably) strictly enforcing a 25 MPH speed limit. Ever notice how every single tree is scarred on that road? It's not safe for any user the way it is now, regardless of their mode of transport. My understanding is that it was never meant to be used by automobiles the way it is now, and it's notoriously dangerous.

The J-way needs to be

By Haviland on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 7:33pm.

The J-way needs to be narrowed back to 2 lanes and strictly held to the 25mph limit. Our parkways shouldn't be mini-highways.

There are marked bike paths running along the JWay

By anon on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 4:24pm.

very dangerous for a bike to be on the street there.

http://www.mademan.com/mm/10-best-bike-trails-mass...

The bike paths along there

By anon on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 6:14pm.

The bike paths along there aren't great. No lighting, so if you try riding on them at night, you get blinded by oncoming cars and can't see the ground you're riding on (unless you have a much brighter light on your bike than I do). And like many bike paths, it can frequently have oblivious pedestrians on it; there's a section of the path which is both a bike path and sidewalk, and pedestrians frequently use the bike path even when there's a parallel sidewalk or walking path.

That said, I'd take the bike path there over the Jamaicaway any day. I'm somewhat uncomfortable driving on the Jamaicaway, let alone biking on it. On a bike, though, I will generally take South Huntington/Centre St rather than going that way.

I had the same thought. I

By Megan on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 10:26pm.

I had the same thought. I don't even want to be on the Jamaicaway in a car, I can't imagine trying it on a bike.

he may have been crossing the

By pierce on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 8:56am.

he may have been crossing the road to get to the bike trail..... I live about 500 feet from where he was hit and that is what I do there.

On a related matter is it technically legal to cycle on the Arb-jamai-river-way? I've often in my head toyed with the notion of cycling on it to go over route 9 rather than cross it at grade--a coin toss in terms of safety

It's legal to bike on any non-freeway

By Ron Newman on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 9:02am.

Any road that is not a limited-access freeway is legal to bicycle on. Even limited-access roads need signs to prohibit bicycles -- Storrow Drive surprisingly doesn't have any such signs at its entrances.

I've sometimes used the bridge over Route 9, but then gotten immediately on the bikepath afterwards.

A little history

By SwirlyGrrl on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 6:11pm.

Like many roadways in the area, this likely started out as a carriage path.

Perhaps it is the cars that don't belong?

You do know that activism by cyclists and the Good Roads Campaign in the 19th century are why the roadways were paved to start with.

roads paved for bikes

By anon on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 9:18pm.

Yes, you've reminded us many times!

I'd suggest anyone who needs to bike along the Jamaicaway to leave their bike at home and take a bus. Not all roads are currently safe for cyclists. That road is a nightmare.

which bus goes from JP to

By pierce on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 8:57am.

which bus goes from JP to Kenmore again?

which bus goes from JP to

By pierce on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 8:58am.

which bus goes from JP to Kenmore again?

Re: Luddites

By anon on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 9:48am.

And pray tell, what century are we in now?

No, it's the bikes that don't belong.

yawn.... go back to bed,

By pierce on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 11:20am.

yawn....

go back to bed, grandpa

riding a bike on the

By anon on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 4:13pm.

riding a bike on the jamaicaway is insanity. That's why there's a bikepath running parallel to it.

Agreed...bikers should use the bike path

By Kathode on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 4:58pm.

But it's so wrong to hit someone, cause them serious injury and drive off.

One of the few roads I won't ride on

By Ron Newman on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 7:06pm.

I ride on a number of roads that other bicyclists would avoid (McGrath-O'Bfrien Highway, Fresh Pond Parkway, Alewife Brook Parkway) but I draw the line at the J'way. Just too twisty and narrow and fast, and there's a perfectly good path next to it.

We don't know

By anon on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 5:49pm.

It's quite possible that the biker was crossing the road at an intersection to try to get to said bike path.

Just what

By billings on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 7:48pm.

he/she gets for being a f-ing retard, riding a bike on the J-way, screwing up traffic !!

Okay

By SwirlyGrrl on Fri, 10/08/2010 - 9:07pm.

So. You think that hitting somebody with a car, dragging them, and driving off without even stopping is completely acceptable?

I hope Adam is IP logging this ...

I can't even tell if the person was riding the bike ON the J-way or just crossing the street - but he had a bike, so billings says "murder is justified!".

From Patch: UPDATE: State Police ask anyone who saw the incident to call their barracks at 617-727-6780. According to an updated "Be On the Lookout" broadcast by the Brookline Police, the white van hit the bicyclist, backed up and hit him again before driving away.

Backed up and took another shot. Oh, but he deserved that because HE was RIDING a BIKE which means HE MUST DIE! Billings is very pleased with himself for certain!

Imagine if billings was the

By Herzog on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 12:40am.

Imagine if billings was the driver of the van!!! I know it's a long shot, but I would be surprised if the driver is not searching the internets for news related to his crime.

Right !

By billings on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 5:00pm.

And lets just IMAGINE it was you on that bike!!!

You hope Adam is IP logging

By anon on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 9:07am.

You hope Adam is IP logging this? Why? Because he dared call the bicyclist a retard? Is he going to send the IP address to the Internet Police? You sound so foolish sometimes.

You done goofed

By Sock_Puppet on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 12:39pm.

Swirly knows who its coming from because she's backtraced it. You have been reported to the cyber-police. Consequences will never be the same.

the white van hit the

By benos on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 11:26am.

the white van hit the bicyclist, backed up and hit him again before driving away

Whoa, what the f*ck?

Rule #2

By Kaz on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 11:36am.

Double tap.

If the guy he hit was a zombie, you'd all be thanking him right now.

It's terrible that this

By anon on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 1:52pm.

It's terrible that this person got hit whether they were biking on the jway or not. I hope they are going ot be ok.

First off, no bike should be on that road. It's dangerous as it is and there is a big ass sidewalk and bike path on either side. Second people should not drive on that road if they are not comfy with it. Know your limitations. That is what South Huntington Ave is for.

I grew up there and I will only drive on parts of it. Not b/c I am not a good driver but b/c there are too many idiots that think they know how to drive that use that road.

As for putting it back to 2 lanes - seriously? Traffic would be insane. Yes, it was a carriage path a 100 years ago but we are past carriages. It has never been 2 lanes in my lifetime so I am not sure why we need to go back. Don't ride your bike, scooter or mo-ped on it and again if you don't know the road stay off of it as there are alternate routes.

Carriage Path

By anon on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 5:38pm.

It was a carriage path in a park. It is a parkway, not a limited access road. Reduce the number of lanes (with left turn lanes at lights) and reduce the speed limit.

It should be low speed because a park is not a place for a highway.
Besides, the lanes are below standard width, the sightlines are terrible and Boston drivers are incompetent.

Another alternative

By Sock_Puppet on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 6:09pm.

How about prohibitions on vehicles over 2 1/2 tons get enforced on Boston parkways? Gross vehicle weight of a Dodge Caravan is 5,600 pounds - it shouldn't be there in the first place.

There's a reason those rarely enforced laws were created. Parkway lanes tend to be narrow and windy, and big SUVs and vans never seem to be able to stay in them on roads like the J-Way. Cars too large to drive safely on the road at travel speeds should be actively prohibited. Maybe if the driver had been driving a manageable, normal-sized passenger car instead of a big MPV, the bicyclist wouldn't have been hit.

according to the Brookline Patch update

By SwirlyGrrl on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 8:28pm.

Maneuverability didn't seem to be a problem - they guy is said to have backed up and taken a second shot.

(FTR I wouldn't ride on the J-way unless the path was blocked - but this sounds rather intentional, at least the second hit does).

Jamaicway update

By merlinmurph on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 6:19pm.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/201...

Bicyclist hit, dragged by minivan on Jamaicway

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