Help connect the Fenway paths
Only 1,000 feet separate the Emerald Necklace’s Muddy River path from the Fenway Multi-Use Path. Phase III (the Missing Link) would close that gap with a continuous, off-road, flat path.
Photo credit: https://mass.streetsblog.org/
The missing link
Phases I and II of the Fenway Multi-Use Path opened in 2022 and 2023. The final section, Phase III, would extend west from Fenway Station beneath Park Drive connecting to the Muddy River path and the rest of the Emerald Necklace.
Without this vital link, people walking, biking, or using mobility devices must take a longer, more complicated, and less-safe route through the busy Park Drive, Riverway, and Brookline Avenue intersections. Numerous pedestrians have been hit by vehicles here, and a woman was killed when a person driving a truck struck her on her bicycle.
5 min walk
Current route
1,800 ft · 4 traffic lights · 9 lanes of traffic · 21 ft elevation change
3 min walk
Planned Phase III connection
1,000 ft · flat and off-road
- Solid yellow line: Current route
- Dashed pink line: Planned Phase III connection
- Green line: Existing path
Why Phase III matters
Safety
It would provide a continuous off-road connection under Park Drive instead of forcing people over Park Drive, through four high-traffic intersections, and nine travel lanes. Phase III offers a safe, low-stress route for people of all ages walking, biking, and using mobility devices or strollers.
Accessibility
Linking the existing paths creates a direct route between Brookline and the Fenway area. Currently people must cross nine lanes of traffic, wait at four traffic lights, deal with a 21-foot change in elevation, and travel 800 feet out of their way.
Connectivity
Phase III gives direct access to Fenway Station, Lansdowne Station, Kenmore Square, the Longwood Medical Area, local businesses and cultural destinations including Fenway Park.
Why now
Phase III is not a new proposal—the connection has been planned for years. The project’s design was 75% complete in 2018, and it has $2.5 million in dedicated funding.
The remaining challenge is agreement and coordination on the final alignment of the path. The Fenway Missing Link Coalition is asking the MBTA and the City of Boston to resolve the remaining issues, complete the final design, and put Phase III on a construction schedule.
75%
of the design was complete in 2018
$2.5M
in dedicated funding
1,000 ft
is all that remains to connect the paths
You can help (it’s free and takes just a minute)
Sign the petition
Urge the MBTA and the City of Boston to work together to resolve the remaining issues and complete Phase III of the Fenway Multi-Use Path.
Send an email
A short personal message to MBTA leadership, the MBTA Board, and the Boston Transportation Department can help demonstrate broad support. Consider personalizing the suggested message below—how does the status quo affect you? How will this project change that?
Dear General Manager Eng, MBTA Board Chair McGee, and Chief of Streets Osgood:
I’m writing to urge the MBTA and the City of Boston to work together to resolve the remaining issues and complete Phase III of the Fenway Multi-Use Path. This 1,000-foot connection beneath Park Drive would create a safer, more direct route between the Emerald Necklace / Muddy River path and the Fenway. The project has already been substantially designed and has dedicated mitigation funding. Please complete the final design and establish a timely schedule for construction.
[INSERT YOUR PERSONAL COMMENTS]
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
The Coalition
The Fenway Missing Link Coalition is a growing group of pedestrian, disability, transit, bicycle, healthcare, and community organizations, elected officials, and others working to complete Phase III.
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Bikes Not Bombs
- Biking Brookline
- Boston Cyclists Union
- Brookline Commission on Disability
- Brookline Greenspace Alliance
- BU Bridge Safety Alliance
- Cambridge Bicycle Safety
- CargoB
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
- DotBike
- Fenway Civic Association
- Green Streets Initiative
- Jamaica Plain Transportation Advocacy Group
- LivableStreets Alliance
- LMA Cyclists
- MassBike
- Muddy River Oversight Committee
- Muddy Water Initiative
- Parkway Cycle Club
- Rozzie Bikes
- Senator Will Brownsberger
- Southwest Corridor Park Alliance
- TransitMatters
- WalkMassachusetts
- WalkUP Roslindale
- West Roxbury Bikes
- Wyss Institute at Harvard University
Join the Coalition
We welcome support from organizations and public officials. Please join us!
Email info@fenwaymissinglink.org for more information.