A February 6 article in the Boston Globe described  Encore Boston Harbor’s proposal to replace an 800-foot pedestrian bridge connecting Assembly Row across the Mystic River to the casino with an aerial gondola. The next day, the Baker-Polito Administration announced a $13.7 million contract to complete the 11.5-mile Northern Strand Trail, which would now dead-end at the site of this long-anticipated bridge.

The Mystic River Watershed Association (MRWA) – along with more than a dozen walking/biking advocacy organizations – has been advocating for the completion of the Mystic River Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge for years.

A workhorse piece of public infrastructure, the bridge will connect residents of Lynn, Saugus, Revere, Malden and Everett with Somerville, Boston and Cambridge. It will be to people-powered commuters as the Zakim and Tobin Bridges are to drivers. Such safe non-motorized routes are increasingly necessary as our region grapples with gridlock and the need to cut carbon emissions.

With Encore having committed considerable resources to getting its employees from the Orange Line to its facility, the MRWA is saying that the Commonwealth has a “can’t-miss opportunity” for a public-private partnership to complete this critical infrastructure. They are calling on the MBTA, MassDCR and MassEOEEA to work with Encore on a solution that fully serves both public and private transportation needs.

According to the MRWA, the public benefits of the Mystic River Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge include:

• Unlocking high-capacity, non-motorized access to the Orange Line, thus reducing automobile trips and vehicular traffic.
• Closing a highlighted gap in the 3,000-mile, Maine-to-Florida East Coast Greenway.
• Connecting Somerville’s Baxter Park and Draw 7 Park and Everett’s Gateway Park.

For more information on the MRWA’a proposal, contact Amber Christoffersen, MyRWA Greenways Director at amber.christoffersen@mysticriver.org, or phone 703-472-4403.