The Town of Wellesley hired WGI to develop a Sustainable Mobility Plan (“SMP”) and a 5-year to 10-year roadmap with a goal of reducing transportation-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The town listed several areas for meeting its aggressive goals to reduce overall emissions by 30% in 2030 and to net zero by 2050, focusing on connectivity, multi-modal transportation, safety, school travel, and grant opportunities.

WGI was chosen to lead community engagement and surveys, infrastructure, new mobility, and performance metrics.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS:

• Created an online StoryMap to inform the plan’s priorities and actions. The StoryMap hosts a series of surveys on travel patterns and preferences.
• When conducting outreach, WGI discovered non-traditional topics that affect vehicle miles traveled: childcare, the future of work-from-home, e-bicycle trends, e-commerce deliveries, and the “15-minute city.”
• Identified how to reduce the need for car ownership. This includes more transit-oriented development, housing options, and the 15-minute city.
• Documented gaps and opportunities for creating a complete multi-modal network.
• Investigated the potential for new mobility modes and technologies, including the Town’s new micro-transit service, micro-mobility, commuter mobile, apps, and parking.
• Linked Wellesley to grant opportunities and recommendations for working with the Boston MPO and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council to identify priority projects that align with the recently signed infrastructure bill.