Committee of the Whole kicks off plans for bike connectivity

The City Council addressed two questions from Mayor Jeannette A. McCarthy about biking in Waltham at its Committee of the Whole meeting on Monday.

The City Council recently resolved to implement a bike-sharing program by Spring 2026. McCarthy requested last week that the council propose locations for “hubs” throughout the city where commuters could check bikes in and out for short rides. 

Councilor-at-Large Colleen Bradley-MacArthur said that McCarthy had provided a 300-page document of previous research into bike programs in the city for councilors to consult, some of which the mayor said came from research for the short-lived 2018 Lime Bikes program.

Bradley-MacArthur said that although much of the document was not directly relevant to this new bike-sharing program, it contained a proposal from bike-sharing company Vbikes based on 2017 survey data that the council could use as a starting point for bike-sharing hubs.

These locations include the Waltham Public Library, the Central Square Parking Deck on Common Street, the Waltham Police Department substation on Carter Street, Embassy Plaza, the McKenna playground, the Waltham Community and Cultural Center, Veterans Memorial Athletic Complex, the Conference Center at Waltham Woods, the Waltham YMCA, the Lazazzero Playground, Leary Field and the Office of Regional Record.

Bradley-MacArthur also proposed the city hold a public input hearing in the spring, although this was rejected by multiple other councilors.

Ward 9 Councilor Robert G. Logan proposed that ward councilors, who he said best know their wards, should recommend where in their wards they would like to place bike-sharing hubs. The council voted to use the 2017 list as a starting point, adding two locations — the Waltham Fields Community Farm and Rail Trail, which weren’t complete when the original list was compiled — and recommendations from ward councilors.

Ward 7 Councilor Paul S. Katz asked McCarthy how the city would negotiate hubs on private property — places like Hannaford’s or Market Basket that he suggested students in his ward visit frequently. The mayor specified she wanted to start by identifying locations on public land.

The mayor also announced initial plans to construct “arterial” bike lanes that follow major streets and allow bikers to traverse the city more easily. 

She proposed three routes: an eastern route going from the Newton city line to Waverley Station, a central route going through Farwell or Moody Street to Waverley Station, and a westerly route from South Street to Border Road and to the Lexington line.

McCarthy explained that she had put these plans together with City Engineer Robert Winn based on which city roads would be able to support them. She said some were based on existing plans to add bike lanes on specific streets, and some were inspired by plans for connectivity with nearby cities from the Route 128 Land Use and Transportation Study.

She added that, in general, she believes adding bike lanes requires resident consultation and should be determined in conjunction with residents of each neighborhood and the city — but that the city should take the first step of creating major connective bikeways.

Logan suggested that the clerk’s office schedule a public input hearing in 2026 to get public input on the locations of the proposed arterial bikeways, which the committee voted to approve.