New "No Left Turn" Signs at Walker Street/Linnaean Street and Garden Street/Robinson Street

To discourage cut-through traffic, the City of Cambridge is testing "No Left Turn" signs in two locations in Neighborhood Nine, north of Harvard Square. The City will install these signs the week of June 19.

The new left turn restrictions will be in effect during the evening peak commuting hours at:

• Walker Street at Linnaean Street: Drivers will not be able to turn left from Walker Street to Linnaean Street between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. All traffic on Walker Street will have to turn right.
• Garden Street at Robinson Street: Drivers will not be able to turn left onto Robinson Street between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Robinson Street residents can access their homes via Fernald Drive or Raymond Street.

These changes will be on a trial basis and we will monitor their impact, gather data, and ask for community feedback to see if the new regulations are working.

Why?

In the Garden Street Safety Improvement Project Local Traffic Analysis, the City observed that drivers are cutting through the neighborhood rather than taking Concord Avenue or Massachusetts Avenue to travel away from Harvard Square, especially when there’s a lot of traffic. These two “No Left Turn” restrictions will interrupt popular cut-through routes.

Next Steps

The City will install signs the week of June 19.  From June until early fall, the City will monitor cut-through traffic and gather community feedback on the changes. The City will gather “after” traffic volume data in the fall, once traffic volumes return to post-summer levels and schools are back in session. With data and feedback, City staff will assess whether to keep the signs in place and whether to make additional changes to discourage cut-through traffic.

How to Give Feedback

Give feedback by filling out this comment form or by reaching out to Street Design Project Manager Stephen Meuse at smeuse@cambridgema.gov.