On September 22, 2018, Pangea performed on the East Boston Greenway. East Boston residents and out of towners alike were enjoying this music so much, we felt guilty engaging them in a conversation about their use of the Greenway. Even so, we managed several brief conversations, and one very clear response.

(Scroll down for pictures)

The larger question was about people’s usage of this public amenity, but the more specific one, as in the title, was designed to determine what they enjoy about it. Here’s what we heard:

“We like it because it serves a purpose for us.”

It turned out there are several purposes — purposes that serve people’s lifestyles. The purposes themselves range widely, but the common running thread is that being on the Greenway is in and of itself an outdoor activity.

1. Walking with kids
   • For families with small kids (toddlers), the only safe place to let the kids walk is the Greenway. Street sidewalks are out of the question, because, as anyone with a toddler knows, the toddler doesn’t know where she or he is going 🙂
2. Skate-boarding
   • For folks who love skate-boarding, the Greenway is a fun place. And skate-boarders range from late teens into thirties.
3. Running
   • This is a significant portion of Greenway users. And their destination is not so much a place they enjoy the views from, or a place to read, it is more the destination that serves their running distance goals.
4. Biking
   • Whether it is their own bikes, or blue bikes, or the trikes that Friend of East Boston Greenway introduced, people love biking on the Greenway. This works especially well for families with kids of biking age.
5. Going to the library/Y/PiersPark
   • For several folks, the Greenway is a nice alternative to walking on the streets — safe, beautiful, and slow-paced (compared to motor-vehicles). The destinations we heard repeatedly:
     • Bremen Street Park
     • Piers Park
     • The library
     • The YMCA in Bremen Street Park
6. Sitting down to eat my lunch
   • It appears some residents who work from home near the Greenway step out to grab lunch and sit on the Greenway to enjoy their lunch with a view, and presumably some social interaction.