Скачать или смотреть July 3rd is “Ride Bikes on Storrow Drive” day in Boston

For the 4th of July each year, the city of Boston shuts down Storrow Drive to set up the Hatch Shell and Esplanade for the Independence Day fireworks & Boston Pops concert.

Which means, of course, that July 3rd is, at least unofficially, “Ride Bikes on Storrow Drive” day, taking advantage of the one day a year when this road, normally a pretty high speed highway, is safe enough to ride on.

This video shows a ride from west to east on the inbound side, then east to west on the outbound side.

The music, of course, is “Roadrunner” by Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers. Which really ought to be the official Massachusetts state rock song.

Anyway.

Decades ago, Storrow Drive didn’t exist, and it was possible for people in Back Bay to directly access the Charles River waterfront. July 3rd is a once-a-year chance to get a sense of how nice that must have been, and to wish that it were possible to turn this highway back into the public park it really ought to be.