Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 11hCouched in the belief that cyclists are freeloaders and that gas tax and excise tax and registration fees fully pay for building and maintaining streets 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 09/10/2026Your daily reminder that cities are not loud; cars are loud. Boston Storrow Drive edition @thewaroncars.bsky.social 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 06/10/2026The author of the Globe piece would probably only see a cyclist wearing earbuds and not four drivers committing moving violations here 021
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 16/09/2026The ghost of John Forester commenting? «…“protected” bike lanes ruin the experience of biking for normal “experienced” bikers who travel at … cruising speed (20 mph & up) & know how to ride w/ traffic…only suitable for bicyclists traveling 12 mph or less, i.e., low-skilled/incompetent bicyclists.» 031
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Build it and they'll come. Well-used Mass Central Rail Trail this morning in Waltham. Provide safe infrastructure and destinations (farmers market), and you'll attract casual cyclists. 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 12/08/2026It's amazing how much car infrastructure everywhere is installed on sidewalks and active mobility paths — parking signs, parking meters, detour signs 171
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 01/08/2026Thank goodness Waltham fire chief Randy Mullin and treasurer Tom Magno support 35mph Main "Streets", where drivers routinely go 45+, so the driver of MA G7620 can express her displeasure at having to turn her steering wheel 5° to the left to maneuver around a non-car road user 030
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 30/07/2026Sidewalks that just end; adjacent streets with center lines encouraging drivers to go faster, rushing to the light at route 9. A neighborhood designed to only be able to navigated by motor vehicle. These aren't "accidents". 1254
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 29/07/2026Red light cameras, when, in Massachusetts? Six drivers blowing through the red (the light changed to red over a second before the green bike signal comes on) 4290
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/07/2026No excuse, this driver is unfit to operate a motor vehicle, and in the BPD's words, they won't do anything unless he kills someone 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/07/2026He probably got his license 60 years ago (it's a 1968 Buick) and has not needed to take any driver's test since. 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/07/2026Though the red line shuttles are using the bike lane before Park St 111
Reposted by Saul BlumenthalGravel Influencer @gravelinfluencer.bsky.social · 28/07/2026It's very simple: If drivers can fit their cars in a space they will drive there. It's actually really easy to prevent this sort of thing! 79013
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/07/2026OP here. If I hadn't gotten his attention, he would have plowed into all these people easily at 20mph, with his probable slow reaction time. But when I filled out the police report form, the desk cop said they'll likely do nothing because he didn't hit anyone. 031
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/07/2026Boston PD won't do anything because he didn't actually hit anyone 120
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 22/07/2026The problem, as usual, is cars. The river path is at times so narrow that two bikes can barely pass, next to ten lanes of highway traffic. 040
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 09/06/2026Your brain on car fumes. This location is a mile from Boston, and these residents (unless they're bots) can't grasp the concept of a child moving around their city unless strapped into a three-ton SUV. 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 08/06/2026Here's a local realtor, violating hands-free law taking pics when driving, criticizing a woman carrying her kids on a cargo bike through this same intersection, because "traffic was backed up unfortunately two cars were blocking the crosswalk", which is a moving violation. Car-brain is a disease. 1194
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 06/06/2026Or waiting at the Junction for a Bergen Beach bus as only Kings Plaza buses would come, before bus tracking (in the '90s) 010
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 05/06/2026Exactly. The Pike is a half-mile away but urban highways disrupt cities well beyond their footprint. And railroad service was severely curtailed with losing two tracks and having platforms on only one. Thankfully Watertown is redesigning and upzoning the intersection on the other side of the river. 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 05/06/2026Walkability is more than the presence of sidewalks. Watertown Sq has a 93 Walk Score, is the terminal of several high-frequency bus routes, and is a mile from the Boston line and five miles from downtown Boston. But with the Mass Pike a half-mile away it's a miserable car sewer of an urban space. 171
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 03/06/2026A piece I wrote on why Waltham's streets are so hostile to all users walthamtimes.org/2026/06/01/w...walthamtimes.orgWaltham Needs a Transportation Planner – Waltham TimesResidents recently offered their views on the proposed development at the Watch Factory. Safety on Crescent Street for pedestrians and drivers was a 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/05/2026Tell me more about that cyclist you saw roll through a stop sign at 5mph, driver of MA 446ZV4 030
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 18/05/2026This could be so many streets in Waltham, if we get rid of a traffic commission w/ members like the treasurer who values car level of service above all, and a fire chief who insists any measure that slows his trucks will kill multitudes, and a traffic engineer who can be replaced by an MUTCD chatbot 010
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 11/05/2026The signage and raised intersections at both ends 031
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 30/04/2026Same thread, another social media commenter using their real name to advocate for killing cyclists. Daniel Donahue Jr. Wethersfield I like to give cyclists a false sense of security by keeping at least a 4’ distance. It makes it easier for the passenger to hit them with the door. Surprise!!! 251
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 29/04/2026A reminder that there are people who have zero qualms about using their real name on social media to call for killing cyclists nextdoor.com/p/by_nttBmf8KQ Margaret Pacious: «I would have.rammed the back of his bike& called 911.The biker was in the wrong,not riding in the bike lanes! Hah !» 010
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 28/04/2026@mayorwu.boston.gov @wutrain.bsky.social @streets.boston.gov There used to be flexposts turning from Arlington St to the bike lane beside the Public Garden. This is what happens when they're gone. A truck driver drove into the bike lane, and two drivers blindly followed. Please fix this. 23114
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 18/04/2026Tell me more about that cyclist you saw once who rolled through a stop sign at 5mph. When you're ensconced in a car, and so focused on passing a bike, you don't even notice a father and daughter waiting to cross the street. 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 14/04/2026How many traffic violations by these highly trained, professional motor vehicle operators can we count in Watertown Square this morning? 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 14/04/2026Me: "you ran a red light" Driver: "I know; there was traffic" It is way too easy to get and maintain a driver's license. North Beacon St, Watertown 011
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/04/2026In today's episode of "paint is not protection", two drivers completely oblivious to their vehicles' position, one on his phone 010
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/04/2026Bike lanes only look empty because they're so efficient at moving people. Seven people on bikes waiting at the light in the space one person in one car would take up. Comm Ave, Boston 051
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/04/2026Daily double of violations for the driver of MA 7CET43 this morning: parking in a bike lane, and using a phone in a travel lane. But I'm sure they once saw a cyclist roll through a stop sign at 5mph, so I guess we're even. 030
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 04/04/2026This is directed to Waltham's traffic engineer & traffic commission, who think RRFBs (flashing yellow lights) are a substitute for safe design. They're not. (This isn't Waltham but a state-maintained road with awful pedestrian & bike connections & is designed to let drivers take turns at speed.) 030
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 02/04/2026Ban right on red. This is why ROR is dangerous to those outside cars. Intersection has a NTOR sign that comes on during the pedestrian crossing (& bike crossing, if coming from below-grade train). This driver — on phone of course — camps out in crosswalk & starts to move forward during crossing. 0142
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 23/03/2026Here's the guy who maintains Waltham's traffic lights, saying at Thursday's traffic commission that he opposes outdoor dining: "parking spaces are more valuable [than dining in those spots]". He lives 25 mi west of here & like most decision-makers here, only sees city from behind their windshield. 130
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 21/03/2026Waltham cyclists: "Can we get the city or state to plow the rail trail and river paths so they're usable in winter?" Waltham Police: "Nah, but here's a $16,000 ATV that will keep you safe from the apparent rampant crime on those paths" www.facebook.com/share/r/1Gnr... 030
Reposted by Saul BlumenthalTrainsBikesBus 🚂 🚲 🚌 @trainsbikesbus.bsky.social · 04/02/2026Until we treat bikes as & walking as an ACTUAL form of transportation, we will continue to languish. We cannot flourish as a society with only cars being important. They're expensive, messing with the environment, kill ppl, take up enormous amounts of space...lets do better, plan ahead, be smart. 031
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 04/02/2026This, in Waltham. Our public works department and traffic commission policies and even the views of many elected officials have long prioritized drivers. It's only much more obvious now, between the lack of sidewalk shoveling rules and the still untouched key walking routes on city property 0143
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 20/01/2026cyclingsavvy.org/road-cycling/cyclingsavvy.orgWhy Do You Ride Like That?The answers to common questions motorists ask about roadway cycling. 000
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/01/2026Imagine if police were empowered to issue $100 fines for violating the hands-free law based on video and photo evidence. Using your phone while stopped at a light at an already-dangerous multi-use path crossing is not permitted. 010
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/01/2026When MA eventually permits red light cameras, do you think this company whose driver's blocking a crosswalk will just pass along the fine to its customers as a cost of doing business? Arsenal St, Watertown 110
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 13/01/2026Someday we'll look back at how society tolerated a transportation system that kills an American every 15 minutes, that injures hundreds of thousands a year, and that causes untold millions of dollars in damages each year. Remnants of a car crash along the Charles River path, shards on the bike path 020
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 30/11/2025US street safety and traffic engineering in one scene 021
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 27/11/2025Drivers breaking The Rules of the Road™ is so normalized and common that it barely registers anymore with fellow drivers, unless it's egregious. Can you spot the two violations in this 23-sec clip? 110
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 26/11/2025BAN RIGHT ON RED (Was just listening to the latest @thewaroncars.bsky.social podcast about rampant and dangerous right on red in California) 2948
Saul Blumenthal @saulblum.bsky.social · 26/11/2025"I made a mistake", says driver who knowingly goes through a red light during the pedestrian phase and honks (with illegal plate cover, to boot). But I'm sure he once saw a biker roll through a stop sign, so we're even I guess. 1344
