Neighborhood Slow Streets
This program has ended. Speed humps will be added proactively to neighborhoods across the City. We will notify residents when their street is getting humps. Applications are not accepted.
The Neighborhood Slow Streets program developed and constructed traffic-calming projects in 15 Boston neighborhoods.
In 2023, the City moved away from this program. We will bring safety tools to more neighborhoods more quickly by separating our speed humps installation from intersection changes. This reduces the time needed for planning, design, engineering and construction. We plan to design and build speed humps on all eligible streets proactively.
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Speed humps programWondering about speed humps in Boston? Check our new speed humps program page for more information.
2023 Construction Update
We will hire contractors in 2023 to build the following Neighborhood Slow Streets zones:
- Chinatown
- Lower South Street and Vicinity
- Hancock Street Triangle
- Moreland Ave. and Mount Pleasant Ave. Neighborhood
We do not expect construction to begin until the fall. We will provide updates to neighbors when we have them.
2022 Construction Season Update
Construction for Neighborhood Slow Streets zones resumed in early spring, 2022. Each zone's design included reconstruction of several intersections. That's in addition to tools such as speed humps, pavement markings, and signs. While all engineering designs have been fully approved and are ready for construction, our crews were not able to complete work in every zone.
CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETED IN:- Dorchester United Neighborhood (DUN) Slow Streets zone: final markings for speed humps
- Grove Hall / Quincy Corridor Slow Streets zone: Howard Avenue curb changes and raised crosswalk
- Highland Park Slow Streets zone: crosswalk improvements at Centre Street at Highland Avenue
2020 Zones and Evaluation
We prioritized three new zones to join the Neighborhood Slow Streets program in 2020:
- Hancock Street Triangle (Dorchester)
- Lower South Street and Vicinity (Roslindale)
- Moreland Street and Mount Pleasant Avenue (Roxbury)
Within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, we temporarily changed our approach to prioritizing neighborhood zones. Rather than our typical nomination process, we decided to rescore all proposed zones from both previous rounds of applications.
2018 zones and evaluation
We are prioritized five zones to join the Neighborhood Slow Streets Program in 2018:
These five zones were selected through an objective evaluation process. We based this process on the pre-established criteria described on our web page and in application materials.
Read more about the 2018 evaluation process
Download the 2018 methodology (PDF, 9.41 mb)*
*Note: This document is not intended for printing. If you need to print any of the pages, use one of the documents provided in the "Print" section of the 2018 evaluation process page.
2018 Neighborhood specific pages
2017 zones and evaluation
Five communities joined the Neighborhood Slow Streets Program in 2017:
These five zones were prioritized through an objective evaluation process. We based this process on the pre-established criteria described on our web page and in application materials.
Read more about the 2017 evaluation process
Download the 2017 methodology (PDF, 18.9 mb)*
*Note: This document is not intended for printing. If you need to print any of the pages, use one of the documents provided in the "Print" section of the 2017 evaluation process page.
2016 Pilot Program Neighborhoods
Street Safety Design Tools
Learn about common street design tools and how we use them to make streets safer.
Common questions
Common questionsNeighborhood Slow Streets is a City initiative to slow traffic speeds and improve safety on residential streets within a specific area. When a neighborhood is part of the program, the speed limit on its residential streets will be 20 mph.
Work with your neighbors to submit nomination forms for your community. We hope to select new zones in late 2021.
No. Applications must be from a group of residents. This includes:
- neighborhood associations
- community groups
- faith-based intuitions, and
- other organized groups of neighbors.
We expect demand for the program will outpace the resources available each year. With an application process, we can objectively evaluate interested neighborhoods.
You can email slowstreets@boston.gov or call 617-635-1347. If you are leaving a voicemail, be sure to leave your name and a callback number.
The Neighborhood Slow Streets program prioritizes areas with the most need. We will use objective evaluation criteria to select three to five communities that:
- are home to higher percentages of youth, older adults, and people with disabilities
- experience higher numbers of traffic crashes per mile that result in an EMS response
- include, or border, community places like public libraries, community centers, schools, and parks
- support existing and planned opportunities for walking, bicycling, and access to transit, and
- are feasible for the City of Boston to put in place improvements.
We expect to begin working with three new communities after each application cycle.
You must collect at least two full pages of signatures (24 signatures) from people who live in your proposed zone. This helps show a baseline of community support. But, we will not factor the total number of signatures into your score.
While your proposed area could include streets that are not owned by the City of Boston, we likely cannot make changes to those streets.
You can expect to see new signs, pavement markings, speed humps, and improvements to visibility at intersections. In some places, you could see additional changes. These include raised crosswalks, curb extensions, and neighborhood traffic circles.
Stop signs are used to control how traffic flows through an intersection. An engineering analysis must be conducted before a stop sign is installed. Among other things, engineers evaluate how many people drive, bike, and walk through an intersection. They also review the number and type of crashes that have happened.
Stop signs are not traffic-calming measures, but may be considered as part of the Neighborhood Slow Streets program if an intersection meets engineering standards. If you believe an intersection needs a stop sign, make the request through Boston 311.
No. Our snow plowing teams will be notified of locations with speed humps so drivers can know to expect them. Signs will be installed on streets to notify drivers of the location of speed humps.
Who's Involved:
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Speed humps program
Wondering about speed humps in Boston? Check our new speed humps program page for more information.
