Getting Around Cambridge

Cambridge is flat and compact, with a mixture of housing, retail, and other businesses and institutions, making it is easy for most people to make at least some of their trips without driving.

As roads are reconstructed, we look for ways to make them complete streets-- streets that work well for all modes of travel. You will see facilities that encourage walking, such as sidewalks on both sides of virtually all streets, short blocks, frequent opportunities to cross the street, and signal timing that favors pedestrians. You'll see many bicycle facilities, including bike lanes, bicycle facilities separated from moving traffic ("cycle tracks"), and plentiful bicycle parking. Traffic calming projects are designed to keep automobile speeds down making our streets safer for all users.  

Efforts to make our city easier to navigate without driving have paid off.  About 30% of our households do not own cars, relying on other options that the city provides.  Many other households do not use their cars on a daily basis. Cambridge residents are among the least car-dependent commuters in the country. Among small cities we have the highest percentage of residents commuting by means other than driving. Counter to the trend elsewhere in the state, car ownership and trips have declined in Cambridge over the last ten years.

To learn more about getting around town without getting behind the wheel, check out the newest version of our Getting Around Cambridge map and brochure.      

For more information

For more information, please contact the Environmental and Transportation Planning Division at 617/349-4600.