Statement: Cyclist killed by truck in Harvard Square spotlights need to transform transportation in Massachusetts

Area’s sixth cyclist fatality of the year underscores the deadly cost of inaction on transportation reform

MASSPIRG

BOSTON –  A cyclist died after being struck by a tractor-trailer in Harvard Square on Tuesday. This was the area’s sixth cyclist fatality in 2020, and it occurred in nearly the same spot as where a pedestrian was killed by a large truck a year ago. Since the incident, community members and advocates for safer streets and better transportation options have raised their voices, calling for protected bike lanes, traffic restrictions on heavy-duty vehicles, and a redesign of Harvard Square to make the area safer for everyone using the road. 

Matt Casale, Director of the MASSPIRG Transportation Campaign, issued the following statement:

“This is tragic news, and our hearts go out to the family of the man who was killed. What makes this all the more heartbreaking is that this isn’t the first fatal crash in Harvard Square and these deaths are preventable. We need a new approach to transportation — one that no longer prioritizes automobiles and, instead, creates a safer, cleaner and healthier system for all users of our roads.

“The Massachusetts legislature has been considering transformative transportation legislation this session that would raise new money to fix and improve our statewide transportation network. But now, even with an extended session, the Legislature appears poised to once again kick the can down the road. It doesn’t have to be this way, but the longer it takes us to act, the higher the chance that we’ll see grim headlines like the one we did on Tuesday.”

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