A step backwards for Worcester's downtown

The new changes to the City Hall bus stop hurts walkability

I’m working in the glass tower for the summer, so I’ve spent much of my time this past month downtown. About a week ago, I noticed some new signage on the stops outside City Hall:

Turns out the 2, 3, and 31 are skipping the City Hall stop and are instead only stopping by the glass tower, and some other lines that usually stop in front of City Hall are instead going to round the corner and stop by the bus shelter. It’s a bit of a bummer for me, considering that I take the 3 and 31 to get downtown, but what it means for the downtown is a lot more sinister than a slightly inconvenienced me.

This indicates Worcester is really going forward with their plan to turn the front of City Hall into a parking lot. Some street spots have halfheartedly opened up along the block, meaning cyclists are at much greater risk of getting doored or cut off as they pass by. Cars and trucks also routinely stop in the bike- and bus-only lanes, and at least one car is always parked in the bus bay by the shelter. It seems like this block is now suddenly a lot more friendly to cars, and cars are taking that message in stride by infringing on the little space not dedicated to them.

Instead of bus riders having a generous shelter to wait for their bus, they are forced to cross the street and stand on the thin sidewalk between the glass tower and Pleasant Street. If history tells me anything, this bus sign will be sheared clean off at the weld in approximately two weeks.

This also makes it less convenient for riders to catch a connection from downtown to the train station. Instead of waiting at the corner of City Hall and catching the first bus that shows up to one of the two stops, riders must commit to one stop or the other and hope that a bus shows up to that stop first.

As Bill Shaner of Worcester Sucks and I Love It has stated, these changes make it harder for demonstrators to gather outside of City Hall: more cars + heightened security = less friendly streets and less demonstrating.

All of this means that one of the few spots in Worcester that is slightly walkable just got less comfortable, less convenient, and more dangerous for walkers, rollers, riders, bikers, and protestors.

My solution? I really don’t think the existing setup was all that bad. Ideally, all of these lines would serve the same stop, but there are some considerable issues with bunching there. To fix this, you could either extend the existing bay to accommodate two buses at once or add a shelter on the other stop around the corner, similar to how it was before Central Hub was built. A cursory look at Google Maps suggests that there is enough space to extend the bay and fit a second stop there. Of course, remove the parking in front of City Hall and open the Commons garage to everyone, not just city officials, and give City Hall workers dedicated spots. While we’re at it, add more signage to the bus bay and along the bike lanes to remind cars that they’re not allowed to block the lane.

This way, workers have their precious spots, catching the bus to Central Hub is convenient, bikers get a clear lane, and people are still able to congregate around the front of City Hall. But this would require City Hall to realize that walkability is good for the city, actually, and that public demonstrations are an important way of holding the city accountable. And that might take some convincing!