A. General.
B. Reality.
2. Nice words on the photos posted last Sunday, and on the Charles River Connectivity Report.
A. Goose Photos, February 2, 2014:
B. Charles River Connectivity:
3. The rest of my photos from Sunday, February 2, 2014.
4. Context.
A. Harvard Medical School relocation.
B. Con game with irresponsible bicycle activists with Cambridge connection..
[2006 aerial photo]
1. Reality proves a bunch of lies false..
A. General.
Last Sunday, February 2, 2012, I took a number of photos on the Charles River.
I published photos more directly associated with the Charles River White Geese at http://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/photos-charles-river-white-geese-in.html.
Since then, I have been thinking over how best to present the balance of the photos, which have to do with the off ramp from I-90 (Mass. Pike) Harvard is targeting for the railroad bridge under the BU Bridge. This clearly is the source of a lot of the dirty tricks and destruction going on.
On February 5, I passed on to this blog a preliminary state report on Charles River Connectivity. This has been in the works since 2011. In the meetings, the planners scoffed at the “underpass” proposal which is the con game tactic being used to destroy hundreds of trees between Magazine Beach and the Longfellow Bridge, four bridges (including the BU Bridge) to the east of the Magazine Beach playing fields. The trees are being destroyed to straighten out Memorial Drive so that it can handled the traffic from the I90 off ramp. The “underpasses” were condemned as environmentally destructive and just more Cambridge nonsense.
The con being used to get that off ramp in is that they are proposing a bike highway for widening the railroad bridge, but the planners at the preliminary meeting I attended in 2011 commented that such a bike highway would be nonsense. The lie is that the proposed bike highway would connect with existing bike highways on the Boston / south side. The planners in 2011 commented that it simply could not be done.
The report I passed on goes into great detail as to improvements needed to improve connectivity of traffic around the Charles River. Neither of these Cambridge Machine pieces of nonsense are recommended, as far as I can see.
That report is at http://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/charles-river-conductivity-study.html.
On February 7, 2014, I passed on a shortened version of the blog report to the Governor. If you would like to read the shortened version provided the Governor, my comments on the Charles River White Geese facebook page are essentially identical to the communication to the Governor.
Basically I will go through the on the ground photos and then put them into context in the later sections of this report.
B. Reality.
[0524]
This shot brings the lies together and proves them lies.
This photo is taken from the Boston end of BU Bridge above the railroad bridge passing under the BU Bridge.
Storrow Drive / Soldiers Field Road and the Boston side bike highway are visible at the lower part and buildings along Comm. Ave. are visible in the upper part.
The green sign is above the westbound side of the turnpike.
The railroad track is the one track of the Grand Junction railroad route in use in this area. At the bottom of the photo is the vestigial portion of the two track bridge which used to hold a second railroad track.
The plans are to add a third area to the left which will hold one lane, the off lane, carrying traffic from I90 (Mass. Pike) to Cambridge, MA, so that Harvard can build its Medical School / other facilities on the current off ramp from I90 to the Brighton neighborhood of Boston and to Cambridge, MA.
The existing track will become the lane from Cambridge to I90. The empty, former track, area will hold the Grand Junction railroad track.
In the very middle of the photo is a railroad bridge. Under the railroad bridge is Storrow Drive / Soldiers Field Road. This is the boulevard which follows the southern side of the Charles River in Boston. It is the corresponding highway to Memorial Drive which follows the river on the northern side of the Charles River in Cambridge.
On the left side of the photo is a tree. At the top of the photo are more trees, probably on Commonwealth Avenue, Boston. Below the trees is a large building, part of the Boston University Campus. Below that large building and partially obscured by the first tree I mentioned is an automobile. Look ahead of the automobile, and you can see that green sign and the highway the automobile is traveling on. The automobile is traveling outbound / westerly on the outbound / westerly side of I90, the Massachusetts Turnpike.
As I said, the track you see is targeted to be the ramp which takes traffic from Cambridge to the Massachusetts Turnpike. All you have to do to connect to the roadway that car is on is to run the ramp straight ahead.
Not really seen is the inbound / eastbound traffic on I90 / the Mass. Pike. That traffic is beyond the car. Blowing up this photo, it is possible that side of the Mass. Pike can almost be seen in the very middle of the shot. On the other hand, I might be imagining that.
All that is necessary to connect that traffic to the inbound ramp to Cambridge which is proposed to the left of the railroad track you see is to construct a roadway from the eastbound side of the Mass. Pike over the westbound side of the Mass. Pike.
When the Mass. Bay Transportation Authority proposed this connection, the MBTA commented that this arrangement would only accommodate traffic between Cambridge and areas west.
Within months, Harvard bought the off ramps from the Mass. Pike to Brighton and Cambridge. Within months a U turn was approved in the area to the right of this photo allowing traffic going west on the Mass. Pike (I90) to turn around and go east, and thus to make this off ramp viable for traffic going between Cambridge and both directions on the Mass. Pike (I90).
2. Nice words on the photos posted last Sunday, and on the Charles River Connectivity Report.
Anjell Benjanian commented:
A. Goose Photos, February 2, 2014:
Yes, they r well and alive!--- Made my day Robert, and thankssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
B. Charles River Connectivity:
This helps a bit or a lot in me knowing more, but, I am still not really clear. But so good of u Robert, to have done this much work finding out about it.-- thanks and more thanks, and want to know more about the well being of the geese.-- thank u VERY MUCH
Ed: The planners who wrote the Charles River Connectivity report noted the lack of connection between the BU Bridge and the bike highways on that side of the Charles River. They did not recommend any connection. Verbally they called the connection impossible.
But the Cambridge Machine is lying to destructive bike activists, people they will shaft when / if that off ramp is built. Then the bike highway will connect to Memorial Drive by way of the L on Vassar Street which comes close to the tracks where the bike highway will meet Harvard’s off ramp, if at all.
3. The rest of my photos from Sunday, February 2, 2014.
[2006 aerial photo]
[0522]
The concrete (?) running up the left side of the photo is the eastern sidewalk of the BU Bridge. The metallic line to its right is decorative, and strong protection for pedestrians.
Straight ahead is a large building which contained a Cadillac - Olds dealer for half a century or more. It is now owned by Boston University. Directly below the Cadillac Olds building is Commonwealth Avenue. At this point, both Commonwealth Avenue and the BU Bridge are constructed on air rights above I90 (the Mass. Pike). The brownish coloration is a field which has been left to nature since the Mass. Pike construction in the 1970's. The Mass. Pike runs through this area. The change in color between the field and Commonwealth Avenue is the Mass. Pike.
That field would be used for construction of the ramp from the inbound / eastern direction of the Mass. Pike to the inbound / northern ramp off the Mass. Pike to Cambridge.
Below the Grand Junction is the Boston Side bike highway the Cambridge Machine is tempting the destructive bike activists with. There are signs in the area of that bike highway warning of the muggings which have occurred in the area at night.
The supposed reason for the massive destruction of environment including trees in Governor Patrick’s House Bill H3332 (Historic Parkways) is to duplicate this dangerous area and destroy hundreds of trees in the process (while keeping the destruction as secret as possible).
I do not have the slightest idea what the barge is there for.
[0525]
The mostly frozen Charles River is shown against the Boston shore.
The monstrous buildings straight ahead are new Boston University dormitories.
The line at the foot of the buildings is the Mass. Turnpike. This segment of the Mass. Pike is the only portion of I90 built in Boston on air rights.
Below the Mass. Pike is Storrow Drive / Soldiers Field Road.
If you follow the river up to the bend, you and see vehicles on Soldiers Field / Storrow. If you look above it and below the brown building to the left of the dormitories, you can see the elevated Massachusetts Turnpike / I-90.
The thin structure at the very right is probably in the area where Harvard now proposes to build a massive expansion, an area larger than Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood, purchased by Harvard in 2004 / 2005. This includes off ramps from the Mass. Pike to Brighton and Cambridge.
I90 is depressed from its eastern extremity at Boston Logan Airport to the Commonwealth Avenue / BU Bridge intersection. It rises above the rail yards which Harvard now owns and intends to use for the Harvard Medical School. The comparison to adjacent properties varies after the rail yards.
The next bridge across the Charles River west from the BU Bridge is the River Street Bridge. River Street is called Cambridge Street in Boston. Cambridge Street goes over the Mass. Pike which is at ground level under and beyond Cambridge Street and eventually is raised again.
4. Context.
A. Harvard Medical School relocation.
[Aerial Photo / 2006 / Harvard Med - DNA]
This photo is a cropped and marked up version of a state photo in a 2006 environmental report. I have copied it twice above for reference.
The Charles River is the blackish (black and white photo) expanse running from the central portion of the right side of the photo to the top of the photo about a third of the way from the far left.
On the left side of the photo, occupying all of the photo except the bottom is what I understand is now an empty railroad yard along with the existing exits from I90 to Cambridge and the Brighton neighborhood of Boston. The area is much larger than is shown.
Harvard’s key purchase in this area from the state occurred just months after a report from the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority determined that the railroad bridge under the BU Bridge could be widened to add a lane so that the widened rail bridge would contain a two lane off ramp and one railroad track. The continuing railroad track connects this purchased area to railroad storage associated with Boston’s North Station.
Harvard’s holdings are larger than Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood.
Harvard has attempted to get the state to create a subway spur from the Red Line subway stop in Harvard square (further to the left and above the Charles River) to a location near the Harvard / Longwood Medical Center in the Fenway area of Boston. The proposal would connect the subway spur to a supposed bus tunnel proposed to connect from a location near Boston’s Kenmore Square (Green Line Subway) to Louis Pasteur and Longwood and then to a location near the Ruggles Station (Orange Line subway). I have done an extended analysis of this proposal on this blog. The Louis Pasteur Station would provide excellent connections to the Longwood / Harvard Hospitals.
Harvard has announced intention to move the Harvard School of Public Health to its holdings in Allston. Clearly this is being done to allow hospital expansion in place of the Harvard School of Public Health. In an even more obvious location for Harvard Hospital expansion is the Harvard Medical School which, in turn, is also very close to the Louis Pasteur stop. The Harvard Medical School currently abuts and is to the east of the Harvard School of Public Health,.
Clearly, Harvard’s holdings in Allston are targeted for the relocation of the Harvard Medical School, and Harvard’s Red Line spur is intended to have the state provide a shuttle service from the relocated Harvard Medical School to give its medical students ready access to the Harvard Hospitals in the Longwood / Harvard Medical Area.
B. Con game with irresponsible bicycle activists with Cambridge connection..
I have done a detailed photo essay on the responsible way to construct the (according to the Cambridge Machine) sanctified north south bike route.
Looking at this aerial photo, there is a thick highway running south of the Charles River from the BU Bridge to the future Harvard Medical School area. The BU Bridge is the nearly vertical crossing of the Charles River toward the right side of the photo. It is marked, as is the railroad bridge below it.
Compare this aerial photo to photo 0525 which I analyzed above.
[0525]
On the right hand side of the aerial photo is an “M” which is the beginning of “Memorial Drive” on the less cropped version of this aerial photo. Directly above the “M” is a street whose segment in this photo is L shaped. This is Vassar Street.
The railroad crosses the bridge in almost a straight line and comes very close to the point of the L of Vassar Street.
The corrupt situation in Cambridge is telling irresponsible bike activists that Harvard’s off ramp over the railroad bridge is their future bike highway. The responsible route for the bike highway is to connect to Memorial Drive by taking a narrow strip connecting the point of the L to the railroad.
[2013 / 05 / 05-17A / 04 15 Vassar Street]
This is the L of Vassar Street. The white building fronts on Vassar Street and backs to the railroad. The responsible place for the bike path is the near side of the white building.
The following photo is of the railroad side of the white building.
[2013 / 05 / 05-17A / 07 18 Gd Jctn, Bk Hwy]]
That is the route the con artists will “suddenly” discover when Harvard decides to go forward with the off ramp over a widened railroad bridge, widened to “allow” the stalking horse bike highway. The reality, however, is not widening the railroad bridge for the bike highway because the promise is impossible of connection to the bike highway on the Boston side, so the bridge will not be widened as part of the bike highway.
The real con is the Memorial Drive railroad underpass. Memorial Drive starts at the right, with that M on top of it and runs through the photo basically parallel to the Charles River, leaving the photo just to the right of the Charles River. The underpass will hold two railroad tracks. It is not enough for the 2 lane off ramp and one railroad track. It is also not wide enough for the bike highway and two railroad tracks. The con is to widen the underpass “for the” bike highway which would then do even more destruction to the Destroyed Nesting Area of the Charles River White Geese.
This is the current underpass viewed from next to the Destroyed Nesting Area.
[2013 / 06 DNA / 06-23A / 0206]
The above three photos are part of the much more detailed photo analysis which I published concerning the fraud being inflicted on the irresponsible bike activist highway lobby.
The precursor to this highway is the northern of the crushed gravel highways which has been built in the Destroyed Nesting Area, photo taken on January 11, this year. The lower part of the gravel was wantonly dumped by workers associated with the DCR..
[0505]
This bike route is much longer, much more time consuming and much more expensive than just cutting over to Vassar Street, but the destructive bicyclist highway lobby are being promised a bike highway over the Charles, and this route will be the “Oh, I am so sorry” alternative, the first shafting of some destructive people.
The second shafting will be to put the bike highway where it belongs.
