The Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD) is pleased to share the final report for the Mystic River Path to Minuteman Bikeway Feasibility Study. The document is split into two files below, the final report narrative and the report appendices:

• Download the Final Mystic River to Minuteman Bikeway Feasibility Study.
• Download the Feasibility Study Appendices.

The report is split into five chapters: the Project Context, Concept Design Options, Recommended Conceptual Design, Implementation, and Appendices. It covers the guiding principles of the study, placemaking and ecological preservation within the project scope, proposed path cross-sections and alternatives, priority intersections to be redesigned, project phasing, permitting, maintenance recommendations, and next steps. Woven through the narrative is discussion of the public engagement process which is discussed in more detail below.

Feasibility Study Public Engagement

Public engagement was a critical part of developing the study and included three public meetings, two public surveys, four Project Team meetings, one focus group meeting, and one community meeting. Summaries of the public engagement are included in the main narrative and detailed in the report appendices. Recordings and presentation slides of the three public meetings can be found in the following paragraphs.

On Wednesday, June 22, 2022, DPCD hosted the third and final virtual public meeting about the Mystic River Path to Minuteman Bikeway Feasibility Study. Toole Design Group, the Town's consultant, presented the draft final Feasibility Study, with the preferred alternative, an implementation matrix, estimated costs, and illustrative graphics. They also shared the results of the second public survey, discussed next steps, and provided time for questions and answers.

More information about the June 22 meeting, including presentations slides and the recording, is below.

• Download presentation slides from the June 22 meeting.
• View the recording of the June 22 meeting below or by clicking here. 

The second public meeting was held on Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 7:30 pm. At this public meeting, the Town’s consultant Toole Design Group presented a summary of the results of the public survey from late January/early February; discussed various trail and intersection concepts, with plans, benefits and trade-offs; and identified opportunities and constraints of the trail project. The Town sought public feedback on these concepts and project elements both at the meeting and through an online survey.

Toole Design Group also developed a Memorandum of Existing Conditions for the project, which discusses the goals for the project, the regional context and related planning initiatives, reviews crash data, and provides an assessment of infrastructure, safety, and traffic conditions. Read the Memorandum.

More information about the March 30 meeting, including presentation slides and the recording, is below.

• Download presentation slides from the March 30 meeting
• View the recording of the March 30 meeting below or by clicking here

This second meeting was a follow-up to the first public meeting on January 26, 2022, where the project was introduced and the Town’s consultant presented about the goals, existing conditions, and design issues to be addressed in the project area. Information about that meeting is below.

• Download presentation slides for the January 26 meeting
• View the recording of the January 26 meeting below or by clicking here

Background

The Mystic River Path to Minuteman Bikeway Feasibility Study will review the existing trails and feasibility of creating new trails along the Mystic River from Decatur Street in Arlington, along the Mystic Valley Parkway, to Summer Street in Arlington, over to the Minuteman Bikeway via Mill Street. This project was funded through a grant of $80,000 from the MassTrails Program and $10,000 from the Lawrence and Lillian Solomon Foundation. The Town contracted with Toole Design Group to complete this work, and DPCD staff managed the project in partnership with the Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA).

This trail connection is envisioned in several studies and master plans, including the state Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Mystic Reservation Master Plan, the recently released DCR Parkways Master Plan, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) Landlines trail plan, Arlington’s Connect Arlington Sustainable Transportation Plan, and the Mystic River Watershed Association’s Mystic Greenways Initiative. This length of the project is approximately 1.7 miles and the report includes a study of the rotaries at Route 60/Mystic Valley Parkway in Arlington and Medford, and the intersection of Mystic Street/Summer Street/Mystic Valley Parkway, to improve safety and access for people walking and biking.  

The MassTrails Program is an inter-agency initiative of the Commonwealth led by the Governor’s Office in collaboration with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Conservation and Recreation. Funding for MassTrails grants comes from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation’s (DCR) capital budget and from the motor fuel excise tax on off-road vehicles including ATV’s and snowmobiles, which is provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Surface Transportation Act in coordination with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). MassTrails grants focus on the improvement of existing trails, the construction of new trails, and the maintenance of the statewide trail system.