Traffic on Blanchard Road North

1. Greetings and thanks for reaching out. The segment of Blanchard Road by Merrill Avenue has, indeed, become very congested.

   That congestion is part of a very big picture — ultimately, it relates to a couple of major planning decisions a few decades ago. First, the decision not to make Route 2 going into Cambridge into a major freeway. That was a good decision — it saved many neighborhoods. Second, the decision not to build the Red Line all the way out to Lexington. That was a tragic error but is one that is, for all practical purposes, impossible to reverse. We can hold faint hopes for relief on this congestion in the distant future, but for now, we have to take that congestion as a given (although you may be able to get more enforcement on the truck ban).

   Blanchard Road is the border between Belmont and Cambridge so changes to Blanchard always are more complicated than changes elsewhere because of the need to negotiate between the two communities. I would direct your inquiries to the Town of Belmont or the City of Cambridge depending on which side of the street you live on. They are the authorities that can modify this road or strengthen truck ban enforcement.

   Let me know if you need help figuring out who talk to in your community.

2. I agree with you. Large commercial trucks ( don’t know how to define exactly) should be banned at most residential areas in certain hours.

   The freight company might gain efficiency by shipping in larger volume. But this is achieved at the cost of the communities they pass by. It creates big problems of pollution, noise, traffic congestion and safety issues.

   In this particular case, taking a short cut from Pleasant street, Brighton street and then Blanchard instead of the route-2 approach should not be tolerated any more according to Mr. Tan’s observation.

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