A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 19-82, regarding the possibility of Bluebikes system expanding into the Alewife/Cambridge Highlands area

C I T Y O F C A M B R I D G E Community Development Department IRAM FAROOQ Assistant City Manager for Community Development SANDRA CLARKE Deputy Director Chief of Administration KHALIL MOGASSABI Deputy Director Chief Planner 344 Broadway Cambridge, MA 02139 Voice: [phone removed] Fax: [phone removed] TTY: [phone removed] www.cambridgema.gov To: Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager From: Iram Farooq, Assistant City Manager for Community Development Re: Awaiting Report 19-82 dated 6/24/19 regarding Bluebikes system expansion into the Alewife/Cambridge Highlands area Date: July 23, 2019 In response to the above-mentioned Awaiting Report 19-82, we submit the following. With the ever-increasing popularity of the Bluebikes system, we are working on adding stations throughout the city to enhance access to public destinations, fill in gaps, increase density where there is high demand, and eventually expand to all neighborhoods in the city. Over the past year, we have focused on establishing an income-eligible program to make Bluebikes accessible to a broader range of residents, and have installed Bluebikes stations at Sennott Park and Mass. Avenue at Albany Street. New stations in the system are funded either through private contribution, typically as a special permit commitment for new development or through program funding made available when the system was transitioned to a title - sponsorship model with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts in 2018. As we evaluate new Bluebikes station locations, we consider areas with demand and/or service gaps, equitable access, and proximity to other Bluebikes stations as new stations should be sited within reasonable proximity of existing stations to best support reliability and access for users. Primarily through sponsorship expansion funding, stations are planned for installation at Cambridge Hospital, Graham and Parks School, Kennedy-Longfellow School, King Open School/Cambridge Street Upper School and lower River Street. Expansion of the system to the city’s westernmost neighborhoods began in 2016 and has been growing. In conjunction with development, new Bluebikes stations are anticipated in the Alewife area at Discovery Park, Cambridgepark Drive, and in the Alewife Quadrangle. These are targeted for installation by end of 2019. These new installations will greatly improve connectivity to Alewife station, where two Bluebikes stations are currently located, as well as to the rest of the Bluebikes system. While Rafferty Park is not a high demand location on its own and not very visible from Concord Avenue, we will continue to evaluate other locations in the Cambridge Highlands and the western Quadrangle area for a new Bluebikes station. The station planned for Alewife Quadrangle will provide the next link in the chain and as we plan for continued system expansion, we will look at additional opportunities to site stations in the area, prioritizing locations convenient for residents in the Cambridge Highlands neighborhood.