Cambridge Council approves 2‑way Garden Street plan with separated bike lanes

The Cambridge City Council voted 5–4 on April 7, 2025, to advance a plan to reopen Garden Street to two‑way vehicle traffic while retaining separated, bidirectional bike lanes, a configuration city staff labeled “Option 4.”

Supporters and opponents alike framed the issue around street safety, neighborhood traffic spillover and impacts on deliveries and parking. The council vote followed more than three hours of public comment, during which roughly 100 speakers addressed the item and related neighborhood concerns.

Councilors approved a motion to implement Option 4, which city staff estimated would cost roughly $137,000 for construction with additional short‑term restoration costs and a likely implementation timeline in summer 2026. The council also heard repeated requests from residents for traffic‑calming measures on nearby side streets and for loading and accessible parking close to senior housing along Garden Street.

The debate divided neighborhood bicyclists and drivers. Dozens of speakers urged the council to keep the current one‑way configuration (Option 1), telling the council that protected, one‑way bike lanes have made Garden Street safer for children and families commuting to Danahey Park and local schools. “The current layout is the safest for pedestrians and cyclists,” said Sarah Wharton of 21 Essex Street. Several other residents and neighborhood groups presented petitions and signed statements backing Option 1.

Other residents and several councilors said the one‑way layout had increased cut‑through traffic and congestion on surrounding residential streets. Councilor Tom Toner, who supported Option 4, said reopening Garden Street to two‑way traffic would reduce the volume that now diverts onto side streets. “Garden Street was a main thoroughfare,” Toner said. “It’s the appropriate place for most of the traffic to flow through.”

City transportation staff told the council they had modeled safety and traffic outcomes for all options and that Option 4 is feasible and could be built within available right‑of‑way constraints. Staff also warned that restoring two‑way traffic would require changes to signal timing at key intersections and could increase congestion in certain locations—most notably the Huron/Sherman/Garden intersection—unless additional mitigation is applied.

Councilors debated whether to delay a decision and require a short, systematic program of traffic‑calming interventions on the surrounding streets to test if problems can be solved without changing Garden Street. An amendment to keep the street as configured while the city tested mitigation measures failed. On final passage the council recorded a 5–4 vote approving Option 4.

The council did not adopt a separate package of traffic‑calming measures at the same time; several councilors and residents asked staff to return with detailed designs for loading zones, accessible parking and intersection changes if the city proceeds with Option 4. Transportation staff said they will prepare engineering details and a work plan for the council and for public review ahead of construction.

What’s next: The city plans to finalize engineering and signal work plans, secure any necessary contracts and implement the change in summer 2026, pending available funding and the timing of other adjacent projects. Councilors also directed staff to continue neighborhood outreach and to provide regular updates to the council on the effects of any interim traffic measures.

Votes and motion: The formal motion was recorded as “move forward with Option 4 to reopen Garden Street to two‑way traffic while maintaining separated bike lanes.” The motion passed 5–4. The council recorded the tally; the vote record is summarized by tally only, per the meeting roll calls.