TRANSPORTATION
From the MBTA and regional transit authorities to road and highway projects and policy, CommonWealth Beacon delves into the web of current public and private transportation challenges and proposed solutions to keep the Bay State moving.
One step forward for West-East Rail
The modernization project is a key phase of MassDOT’s Springfield Area Track Reconfiguration Project, which will upgrade tracks, signals, and other infrastructure to ease a major rail bottleneck in the city by reducing conflicts between freight and passenger trains. West-East Rail construction is set to begin next year.
Slideshow mistake prompts T to disclose new delay to Red Line train procurement
A project already pockmarked with delays and growing costs will once again stretch on longer than MBTA officials hoped, this time due to federal scrutiny of components shipped from China.
State, CSX agree to rail upgrades in the Berkshires
MassDOT has agreed to fund improvements and additions that would support permanent seasonal weekend Berkshire Flyer service and lay the groundwork for expanded passenger rail in Western Mass.
Green Line upgrades needed to pave way for new trains
Shutdowns of complete sections of train lines have become the norm in recent years, as the MBTA officials looks to speed up repairs.
Feds end oversight of MBTA that began in 2022
The Federal Transit Administration officially closed its safety management inspection of the Department of Public Utilities’ safety oversight management of the MBTA.
Report magnifies ‘time lost’ aboard slowest MBTA buses
The report recommends advancing planned projects, restoring, and expanding bus lanes, headway management to keep buses evenly spaces, and rolling out automated enforcement to address vehicles blocking bus lanes and bus stops.
‘Future-proof’ or ‘a strategic mistake’? Inside the MBTA’s effort to electrify its commuter rail system
The first battery-powered trains will start running on the Fairmount Line more than a decade after MBTA overseers called for electrifying the system, and they’ll be eye-wateringly expensive. Is that just the price and pace of a transformative project?
Mass. lawmakers move to create statewide framework for e-bikes and scooters
The rapid adoption and quickly changing technology of smaller vehicles has outpaced the ability of regulations to keep up, leaving riders, local officials, and law enforcement without a clear understanding of how these devices should be operated safely. New legislation sets up a statewide framework, leaving flexibility to localities for further regulation.
State offers no evidence of hunt for new transportation secretary
MBTA general manager Phil Eng stepped in as interim Department of Transportation secretary nine months ago. He has “no timeline” as to when his double duty will come to an end.
Springfield mayor calls for ending regional fare-free bus program, drawing criticism from state transit advocates
Officials and transit advocates have criticized the mayor’s approach and questioned whether the youth disturbances at Union Station can be attributed to the availability of free bus rides. Some have cited the success of the fare-free program and instead called for more policing.
Gateway City leaders celebrate one year of South Coast Rail, but final phase remains in limbo
Getting Phase 1 across the finish line was no easy feat. And just over a year later, state officials still have not rolled out a plan to finance and finish the second phase — also called the “full build” — that was proposed nearly a decade ago.
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