Annual Transportation Forum: How to Fix Route 9

Annual Transportation Forum: How to Fix Route 9 Wed. Dec. 9, 9:00 – 11:30 a.m. MassBay Community College | 50 Oakland St, Wellesley Early Bird Savings through 11/9: $20 members, $30 nonmembers We drive it. We shop along it. We sit at its lights and mutter. But when was the last time anyone asked what Route 9 could be? That question will be at the center of the Charles River Regional Chamber’s annual Transportation Forum. This aging, highway-like corridor cuts through three of our communities — Brookline, Newton and Wellesley — serving as both a major transportation artery and a commercial destination. Could it move traffic better? Be safer to cross? Become a place people want to go, not just a way to get somewhere else? We’ll ask our featured panel for ideas ranging from pragmatic to aspirational, and maybe a little whimsical. Think better traffic flow, rethought intersections, expanded multimodal access, support for businesses and new development opportunities. Then a second, shorter panel of municipal transportation planners from Brookline, Newton and Wellesley will react and offer their own take on what’s possible. And we’ll want to hear your ideas too! Featured panel: Chris Dempsey, co-founder, Speck Dempsey Srdj Nedeljkovic, transportation writer and advocate Lizzy Weyant, Executive Director, Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC)