SCHEDULED ROAD, bridge, and transit shutdowns to improve transportation—as in the case of the Sumner Tunnel, which will be closed for four months in the summer of 2023—are a necessary […]
Tracking Transportation
Posted inTransportation
Gas tax holiday good politics, not policy
A GAS TAX HOLIDAY may be good politics but it’s not good public policy, according to Evan Horowitz, executive director of the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University. […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA resumes service at Haymarket Station
THE MBTA resumed Orange and Green Line service through Haymarket Station on Sunday, three days after it was shut down when it was discovered one of the columns supporting the […]
Posted inTransportation
More bad news for T: Haymarket shuts down
THE MBTA shut down Green and Orange Line subway service through Haymarket Station Thursday evening after HYM, the developer of the Government Center Garage, said columns supporting the garage and […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA outlines hybrid approach on rail electrification
THE MBTA’S current plan for electrifying its commuter rail system calls for a hybrid approach using trains that draw power from overhead wires but also have the capability of running […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA ramping up hiring efforts in control center
MBTA GENERAL MANAGER Steve Poftak said a hiring blitz, complete with the offer of $10,000 signing bonuses, has attracted roughly 30 potential job recruits for the operations control center, where […]
Posted inTransportation
84% of Mass. residents support low-income fare
MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS overwhelmingly support a discount for low-income riders of the MBTA, according to a new poll. The poll indicates 56 percent of residents strongly support and 27 percent somewhat […]
Posted inOpinion
Legislature should fund low-income fares for MBTA, RTAs
IN OUR COMMUNITY of Chelsea, transit is a lifeline to thousands of people who rely on it to get to school, work, and other critical appointments. Often these are essential […]
Posted inTransportation
Biden, Baker aligned on gas tax holiday
PRESIDENT BIDEN’S call for gas tax suspensions at the federal and state level is changing the rhetoric around tax relief in Massachusetts, but not Democratic opposition on Beacon Hill. Initially, […]
Posted inTransportation
Lawmakers eye $250m for East-West rail
A TRANSPORTATION BOND BILL headed for a vote this week in the House includes language authorizing $250 million in spending on East-West rail, but nothing about the creation of a […]
Posted inTransportation
Lawmakers plan T safety hearings, call for $400m in extra aid
LEGISLATIVE LEADERS jumped into the fray over MBTA safety on Tuesday, announcing plans to hold oversight hearings on the transit authority in the coming weeks and to pass legislation appropriating […]
Posted inTransportation
Getting a handle on FTA’s to-do list for MBTA
THE FEDERAL TRANSIT Administration gave the MBTA a safety to-do list last week, with each task assigned its own timetable. The MBTA had 48 hours to come up with a […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA cutting back service on subway lines
THE MBTA said on Friday that it intends to comply with a Federal Transit Administration directive on inadequate staffing levels in its operations center not by adding dispatchers but by […]
Posted inTransportation
Federal directives raise management, budget, oversight questions at MBTA
THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION’S crackdown on safety issues at the MBTA is raising questions about the transit agency’s management, its budget, and its oversight going forward. On Wednesday, the FTA […]
Posted inEconomy
Help for Boston taxi owners?
TAXI OWNERS HAVE been hit with a one-two punch in recent years. First, the explosion of the Uber and Lyft rideshare apps proved devastating to their business. The pandemic added […]
Posted inEconomy
Help for Boston taxi owners?
TAXI OWNERS HAVE been hit with a one-two punch in recent years. First, the explosion of the Uber and Lyft rideshare apps proved devastating to their business. The pandemic added […]
Posted inTransportation
FTA orders T to address “serious safety issues” immediately
THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION ordered the MBTA on Wednesday to immediately address a series of “serious safety issues” that couldn’t wait until a final report on safety problems at the […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA officials say train derailments trending downward
MBTA OFFICIALS said on Monday that the number of derailments has been trending downward over the last few years, falling by more than 50 percent since 2019. According to figures […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA nearing its day of reckoning
A LITTLE OVER a year ago, US Rep. Stephen Lynch and the state’s congressional delegation hammered away at the MBTA for implementing a series of cuts designed to save money […]
Posted inTransportation
MassDOT setting aside $20m to help recruit engineers
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ADD CIVIL ENGINEERS to the list of public-sector jobs in high demand these days. With Department of Transportation workers heading to the exits in larger numbers […]
Posted inTransportation
Transit Ambassadors complain about working conditions
SOME OF THE MBTA’S Transit Ambassadors, the people in the red shirts who assist passengers at train stations, are not that thrilled with their working conditions and rumbling about forming […]
Posted inTransportation
T looking closely at operator error on Green Line crash
MBTA GENERAL MANAGER Steve Poftak said there is no evidence that vehicle, signal, or track issues played any role in the collision Wednesday night of two Green Line trains at […]
Posted inTransportation
East-West rail ‘elephant in the room’
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A PASSENGER RAIL extension into western Massachusetts looms as one of the most impactful projects on the table now that Gov. Charlie Baker and federal officials […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t forget the poetry of public transit
WHEN ACADEMICS and advocates talk about transit, they talk about the importance of things like access, agglomeration effects, sustainability, and mobility efficiency. It’s often through the lens of these attributes […]
