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Major Back Bay streets to be reduced to one lane amid bike lane controversy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

People in Back Bay are pushing for the city to pause on a new bike lane design on Boylston Street where part of the street would change to one lane of traffic for cars.Residents have gathered at Berkeley Street Thursday to express their concerns on whether the plan will cut down on congestion, while bicyclists say the bike lane infrastructure needs to be built up. With this plan, adding bike lanes to these streets among others means some of the busiest streets in the city will be turned into one lane roads for cars.The Mayor’s Office released in a statement that Boylston will become one lane, with turning lanes and a bus lane between Ring Road and before Dartmouth Street. The single lane road turns to two through travel lanes for cars between Exeter and Dartmouth Streets with a left turn lane.Berkeley Street and Boylston Street are two of the roadways the city is looking to add these bike lanes to, turning three lanes of traffic for cars to one to expand the bike lane that bike...

Travelers encounter few delays at Logan Airport on busy travel day ahead of Fourth of July weekend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

Travelers were encountering few delays at Logan Airport Thursday afternoon even as experts said many traveling out of state for Fourth of July vacations would be preparing to fly. There were few delays and cancellations, with some flights even arriving early.Among the cancellations that had taken place, the website Flight Aware showed United Airlines with the most cancellations for flights in or out of Logan Airport. Within the airport, there were few complaints.“Everybody’s on time,” said Phillip McCarty, who was at Logan to pick up his son. “Getting here and getting back is probably the toughest part,” he continued.Naomi Daniel, who flew on Thursday, said she didn’t encounter any delays. “But, at first, my flight was pretty booked so they were asking people if they wanted $300 to get on a different flight,” Daniel said. Minimal delays at Logan on Thursday came after some travelers were met with major headaches at certain US airports in recent days. A total...

Pence meets with Zelensky during Ukraine trip

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

(CNN) — Former Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a visit to the country, a show of support for the European nation under attack from Russia as Republicans vying for their party’s presidential nomination have been divided over America’s role in the ongoing conflict.Pence met with Zelensky at the presidential palace in Kyiv, telling the Ukrainian leader that the US will continue to stand with Ukraine “until victory is achieved but then justice is also achieved.”The former vice president made stops at three different cities and villages – Bucha, Irpin and Moschun – outside of Kyiv that had seen heavy destruction from shelling and gruesome violence against civilians under Russian occupation last year. He toured the wreckage, met with locals and laid flowers at memorials for those killed in the war.“The American people are praying with you, supporting you in Ukraine,” he told families that he met in Irpin.Pence has...

Massachusetts will again have an air quality alert due to wildfire smoke: ‘Unhealthy for sensitive groups’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

The smoke from the out-of-control Canadian wildfires is expected to still impact the region heading into the holiday weekend, with state environmental officials extending an air quality alert for parts of Massachusetts.The Department of Environmental Protection has issued an air quality alert on Friday for five counties in western and central Massachusetts: Worcester, Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden counties. The Canadian wildfire smoke will likely continue to influence particle pollution levels.“Air quality is expected to be unhealthy for sensitive groups,” MassDEP wrote in its alert. “Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, such as asthma, older adults, children, teenagers, and people who are active outdoors. People with either lung disease or heart disease are at greater risk from exposure to air pollution.“MassDEP advises people in sensitive groups to reduce prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion, take more breaks, do less int...

Connecticut native Ryan Preece making the grade with Stewart-Haas Racing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

Stability is the payoff for perseverance in the rough and tumble world of motorsports.That’s certainly been the case for NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Preece, the operator of the No. 41 IUOE Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing.Preece, 32, is a native of Berlin, Conn., who methodically worked his way up through the NASCAR hierarchy to the fringes of the Cup Series Tour.Reese’s fortunes took an upswing when he gained the confidence of upper management at SHR and took over the No. 41 from Cole Custer. That’s the closet thing to job security that an upstart driver can expect while establishing his presence on the Cup Series Tour.“Coming from where I have come from and the work I have put in and everything it takes to get to this level, it is nice to have people at the organization to have my back,” said Preece.“At the same time, we can grow and continue to build and continue to get better. I love being at SHR. It’s a place where I’m at the race shop all the time as if it were my own an...

For some Yankees fans, Domingo German’s imperfect past made his perfect game hard to root for

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

The pursuit of perfection often unites the baseball world.As a spotless pitcher marches toward the final outs, baseball diehards and casuals alike will turn their TVs on in hopes of witnessing history. Even those who don’t root for the team involved will lend their support, as only 24 perfect games have ever been recorded.But the 24th — twirled by the Yankees’ Domingo German in an 11-0 win over the A’s on Wednesday night — brought about more mixed reactions than the typical perfecto. Some, including Yankees fans, simply couldn’t bring themselves to root for a pitcher who, in 2019, was suspended 81 games for violating Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy.“My first thought was, ‘Oh, god, we’re gonna have to celebrate this guy for doing this,’” Stacey Gotsulias, a fan who hosts the “Locked On Yankees” podcast, told the Daily News. “So I took it as being happy that the perfect game happ...

Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action: Here is what justices wrote in the opinion

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

The Supreme Court on Thursday banned affirmative action in college admissions.Here are some of the key excerpts from the ruling:Chief Justice John Roberts, who wrote the majority opinion: “The student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual –not on the basis of race. Many universities have for too long done just the opposite. And in doing so, they have concluded, wrongly, that the touchstone of an individual’s identity is not challenges bested, skills built, or lessons learned but the color of their skin. Our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice.”“We have never permitted admissions programs to work in that way, and we will not do so today. At the same time, as all parties agree, nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting universities from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise.”Justice Clarence...

Emanuel Lopes trial: Jurors yet to reach a verdict in Weymouth cop-killer case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

A Norfolk Superior Court jury has gone a second day without a verdict in the case of the 25-year-old man charged with the murder of Weymouth Police Sgt. Michael Chesna, 42, and bystander Vera Adams, 77, nearly five years ago.Emanuel Lopes, 25, faces a total of 11 charges. In addition to the murder charges, he stands accused of attempted murder, weapons, assault and other charges. Lopes has pleaded not guilty.Jurors received the case on Wednesday, and continued to deliberate on Thursday.At opening arguments three weeks ago on June 8, prosecutor Greg Connor outlined the day of July 14, 2018, and the horrific scene early the next morning that would result in the deaths of Chesna and Adams, who was sitting on her porch nearby as the violence unfolded.Connors said at the start of the trial that on that summer day, Lopes was getting along with his friend he was staying with, Garret Hunt, along with Hunt’s girlfriend Kim Moreia, and Lopes’s girlfriend Mary Cronin. Later that night, Lopes p...

MBTA reveals cause of Orange Line track fire

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

A fire on the Orange Line tracks near Tufts Medical Center was caused by an overheated third rail insulator, an MBTA spokesperson said.The incident, first reported by a train operator at 11:50 a.m. Wednesday, caused major delays on the Orange Line.Service was suspended between North Station and Back Bay for more than an hour while the fire department investigated and the T’s power department made repairs, MBTA spokesperson Lisa Battiston said.Regular service resumed, with delays, at approximately 2 p.m.Related ArticlesLocal News | Somerville’s Community Path a recreational oasis Local News | Sumner Tunnel shutdown will back up traffic for miles, state highway chief says Local News | MBTA Red Line dragging death caused by ‘short circuit’ in train door Local News | Portion of Green Line to close for 12 days in July to replace track where trolley derailed last week Local News | Under review: En...

Travelers endure another day of airport agony. One airline has by far the most cancellations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:17 GMT

By DAVID KOENIG (AP Airlines Writer)DALLAS (AP) — Air travelers endured another wave of flight disruptions Thursday despite better weather along much of the East Coast, while United Airlines continued to account for the majority of canceled flights nationwide. United vowed to get back on track over the July 4 holiday weekend, when the number of air travelers could set a pandemic-era record.Hundreds of thousands of people have had travel plans thrown in the air after a wave of storms raked the Northeast over the past few days and frustrations are running high. Airports in Chicago, Denver and Newark, New Jersey — all hubs for United — were seeing the most delays on Thursday, according to FlightAware.By early evening on the East Coast, United had canceled more than 400 flights, the bulk of the 600-plus cancellations toted up by FlightAware. The Chicago carrier was poised to lead all U.S. airlines in cancellations for a sixth straight day. United CEO Scott Kirby has bl...