Two To One: Committee Considers Single Belmont Station

Does Belmont need two commuter rail stops? Is there room in city planning for more bike paths and racks?

The answer to those questions are some of the tasks that the Transportation Subcommittee of the Energy Committee seeks to find.

Ian Todreas gave Energy Committee members with an update on what the subcommittee has on their agenda regarding reducing the city's carbon use via public transportation, including the commuter rail station located in Belmont Center. 

The discussions about the commuter rails allude to the MBTA  possibly considering consolidating the two stops, by creating one stop either at a new location or closing the Belmont Center station, thus leaving the more used Waverly Station as the only stop in Belmont.

"This is the jewel in the Belmont crown," said Todreas of the Belmont Center stop which is in the heart of the city.

Although strategically located in the middle of town near Town Hall and numerous shops and restaurants, MBTA figures show that is not used as much as one would think considering its location.  

"The ridership is surprisingly low," said Glenn Clancy, head of the Office of Community Development.

The ridership for that stop is in the hundreds, which compared to bus ridership in the thousands is minimal. However committee members said that the other stops on the line along with the various times needs to be considered, as well as the accuracy of the figures they have now.  

Todreas said that the Transportation Subcommittee is working on ways to inform residents that the rail is there in order to boost ridership. Furthermore they are seeking partnerships with real estate agencies to assess the value of the stop.

Members supported that idea as they know people who have moved to Belmont not only for the top schools but also for its convenient access to the city.  

The positive sign of the low usage is that there is room for single occupancy drivers to leave their vehicles behind and take public transport into Boston, said Todreas. 

Making the stop more known and usable to residents brings up the issue of parking and traffic.

"One of the things we are going to do is find out why or why not people are using the commuter rail," said Clancy.

A complex issue, Clancy said, will be the current traffic under the bridge and if there was parking for the commuter rail would that increase an already congested intersection at Common Street and Concord Avenue. 

He mentioned that the town will be reviewing the layout of Belmont Center, and in conjunction a study will be conducted to determine transportation patterns for the redesign of Belmont Center and possibly the current roadways. 

In addition to reviewing the public transportation the Subcommittee is in the process of reviewing bike paths and current routes and where there is room on the roads for new bike lanes. 

They are collecting data on Belmont's bike racks, and where they can establish more. Along with that they spoke of partnering up with local bike stores and encouraging the creation of a community bike group, possibly a "Bike Belmont Group."

The Energy Committee has a five-year action plan to cut carbon emissions in the areas of residential, municipal, commercial and transportation.

The Transportation Subcommittee will address ways to increase walking in town in future meetings.