MPO Meeting Minutes

Draft Memorandum for the Record

Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization Meeting

March 30, 2023, Meeting

10:00 AM–12:55 PM, Zoom Video Conferencing Platform

David Mohler, Chair, representing Gina Fiandaca, Secretary of Transportation and Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)

Decisions

The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) agreed to the following:

• Approve the minutes of the meeting of March 2, 2023
• Approve the work program for the Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis
• Release Amendment One to the Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2023 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) for a 14-day public comment period
• Approve Scenario #5: Performance with amendments to be included in the Draft FFYs 2024–28 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)

Meeting Agenda

1.    Introductions

See attendance on page 12.

2.    Chair’s Report—David Mohler, MassDOT

There was none.

3.    Executive Director’s Report—Tegin Teich, Executive Director, Central Transportation Planning Staff (CTPS)

T. Teich stated that there are five open positions at CTPS: Data Scientist—Model Developer, Manager of MPO Activities, Manager of Policy and Planning, Manager of Multimodal Planning and Design, and Program Manager of the Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP).

T. Teich stated that Margaret Atkinson has left CTPS after three years with the agency.

T. Teich stated that Cherry Liu will be joining CTPS with the Data Analytics and Applications group as the new Principal Analyst/Travel Demand Modeler.

T. Teich stated that in the month of April, the board will be asked to finalize the funding allocations for the investment programs in the LRTP, Destination 2050. The board will also be asked to select projects from the Universe of Projects for inclusion in Destination 2050.

The MPO’s study, “Unlocking the Blue Hills: Addressing Equity and Access in the Blue Hills Reservation,” was featured in the Dorchester Reporter newspaper and on WBUR’s daily podcast, The Common.

The Destination 2050 Investment Prioritization public survey is now open. Members are asked to share the survey with their networks.

4.    Public Comments  

Bill Renault, Town of Wakefield, spoke in support of adopting a scenario that includes the “Envision Wakefield” Complete Streets project. B. Renault discussed benefits of the project, community support, and status of design.

Miguel Perez-Luna, City of Cambridge, spoke in support of adopting a scenario that includes the introduction of electric bikes into the Bluebikes system in Boston and Cambridge. M. Perez-Luna discussed the benefits of electric bikes for bikeshare systems and noted the project's support from all metro Bluebikes municipalities.

5.    Committee Chairs’ Reports

Derek Krevat, MassDOT Office of Transportation Planning (OTP), stated that there will be a meeting of the UPWP Committee immediately following this meeting to discuss the Universe of Studies for the FFY 2024 UPWP.

Jay Monty, City of Everett, stated that the Congestion Management Process Committee met on March 23, 2023, to discuss the Learning from Roadway Pricing Experiences study and selected five case studies to do further research on.

6.    Regional Transportation Advisory Council Report—Lenard Diggins, Chair, Regional Transportation Advisory Council

L. Diggins stated that the Regional Transportation Advisory Council (Advisory Council) met on March 22, 2023, for a special meeting to discuss the initial TIP Programming Scenarios.

7.     Action Item: Approval of March 2, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

1.    March 2, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes (pdf)

2.    March 2, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes (html)

Vote

A motion to approve the minutes of the meeting of March 2, 2023, was made by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) (Eric Bourassa) and seconded by the MBTA Advisory Board (Brian Kane). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

8.    Work Scope, Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis—Emily Domanico, CTPS

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

3.    Work Scope, Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis (pdf)

4.    Work Scope, Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis (html)

E. Domanico stated that the objective of the Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis is to develop a methodology to analyze equity impacts of fare changes to the Bluebikes bikeshare system. The analysis will report results using clear, useful metrics for determining whether changes to the fare structure are equitable. The project is expected to last 12 months and cost $96,310 with the Cities of Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville funding the work.

The work scope consists of eight tasks. In Tasks One and Two, CTPS will identify demographic data and develop a methodology to determine ridership demographic estimates from census information and distributed virtual and in-person demographic surveys. In Task Three, CTPS will analyze the impacts of fare elasticity on bikeshare ridership. In Task Four, the equity impacts will be modeled to analyze the impacts of adding e-bikes to the Bluebike system. In Task Five, fare-change scenarios will be modeled and analyzed. In Tasks Six, Seven, and Eight, CTPS will develop an interactive report to demonstrate the equity impacts of fare changes and provide support for the municipal clients through the end of the 12-month contract.

Vote

A motion to approve the work program for the Bluebikes Fare Equity Analysis, was made by the MAPC (E. Bourassa) and seconded by the Advisory Council (L. Diggins). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

9.     FFY 2023 UPWP Amendment One—Srilekha Murthy, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

5.    FFY 2023 UPWP Redline (pdf)

6.    Updated FFY 2023 UPWP (pdf)

7.    Updated FFY 2023 UPWP (html)

8.    FFY 2023 UPWP Appendix A Redline (pdf)

9.    Updated FFY 2023 UPWP Appendix A (pdf)

10. Updated FFY 2023 UPWP Appendices (html)

S. Murthy stated that Amendment One to the FFY 2023 UPWP proposes the inclusion of an MBTA project, funded by the Federal Transit Administration’s Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development Planning. The project will focus on leveraging concentrated development areas along the Red Line through District Improvement Funding to provide suitable revenue for capital improvements in these areas.

At its March 16, 2023, meeting, the UPWP Committee voted to waive the 21-day public comment period associated with this amendment because the MBTA project is entirely grant-funded and does not change the FFY 2023 UPWP budget. Staff requested that the board vote to waive the 21-day public comment period and vote to endorse Amendment One.

Discussion

Matthew Moran, City of Boston (Boston Transportation Department), requested a postponement to give the City of Boston time to determine impacts on right-of-way and other effects on the city.

B. Kane suggested releasing the amendment for a 21-day public comment period to allow time for the MBTA and the City of Boston to coordinate.

Sean Rourke, MPO Staff, stated that public comment periods begin the Friday after an MPO meeting, so the 21-day public comment period would not be complete before the April 20 meeting targeted for approval. S. Rourke suggested a 14-day public comment period to allow staff and the board time to review public comments ahead of the April 20, 2023, meeting.

Vote

A motion to release the FFY 2023 UPWP Amendment One for a 14-day public comment period was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the MACP (E. Bourassa). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

10. FFYs 2024–28 TIP Final Project Programming Scenario—Ethan Lapointe, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

11. FFYs 2024–28 TIP Final Programming Scenarios (pdf)

12. FFYs 2024–28 TIP Final Programming Scenarios (html)

13. MBTA Projects for Consideration (pdf)

14. MassDOT Projects for Consideration (pdf)

15. Public Comment Letter for Bluebikes e-bikes (pdf)

E. Lapointe reviewed the preliminary funding scenarios that were presented at the March 16, 2023, MPO meeting that act as a foundation for the two additional scenarios being presented at this meeting:

Scenario 4: Fiscal Sustainability funds 17 new projects and holds funding in reserve for contingency and the potential for schedule acceleration. New, proposed projects to be funded under Scenario 4 are as follows:

·       New Programmed Community Connections Projects

o   MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA)—CatchConnect MicroTransit Shuttle Expansion Phase 2

o   Lynn—Broad Street Corridor Transit Signal Priority

o   Medford—Bluebikes Expansion

o   Medford—Bicycle Parking Tier 1

o   Canton—Canton Center Bicycle Racks

o   Canton—Canton Public Schools Bike Program

·       FFY 2024

o   MBTA Projects

§  Deprogram Forest Hills in FFY 2024 due to insufficient funding

§  Jackson Square Station Accessibility

·       $8 million in FFY 2024 and $13 million in FFY 2025

§  Rail Transformation—Early Action Items at Wilbur Interlocking and Reading Station for $11.2 million in FFY 2024

§  Columbus Avenue Bus Lane Phase 2 for $9.4 million in FFY 2024

o   Community Connections

§  MWRTA MicroTransit Expansion Phase 2

§  Acton Parking Management System for $15,000

·       FFY 2025

o   BikeShare State of Good Repair (FFYs 2025–28)

§  $2.5 million in FFY 2025, $1 million in each subsequent year

o   Project Design Support Pilot

o   Jackson Square Station Accessibility Improvements

o   Transit Modernization Set-Aside Reduction to $3.5 million

·       FFY 2026

o   Project #612989 – Boston—Bridge Preservation, B-16-066 (38D), Cambridge Street over MBTA

·       FFY 2027

o   Project #613088 – Malden—Spot Pond Brook Greenway

o   Rebalance of Advance Construction for Project #607981 – Somerville—McGrath Boulevard Construction

§  Adds $15 million to FFY 2027 and reduces by $10 million in FFY 2029 and $5 million in FFY 2030

·       FFY 2028

o   Project #610691 – Natick—Cochituate Rail Trail Extension (MBTA Station to Mechanic Street) Natick Center Connection

o   Project #613145 – Wakefield— “Envision Wakefield” Comprehensive Downtown Transportation Improvement Project

o   Project #608158 – Westwood/Norwood—Reconstruction of Canton Street (East Street Rotary to University Drive)

Scenario 5: Performance funds 22 new projects and more aggressively funds projects in FFYs 2024, 2025 and 2027. New, proposed projects in Scenario 5 are as follows:

·       New Programmed Community Connections Projects

o   MWRTA—CatchConnect MicroTransit Shuttle Expansion Phase 2

o   Lynn—Broad Street Corridor Transit Signal Priority

o   Medford—Bluebikes Expansion

o   Medford—Bicycle Parking Tier 1

o   Canton—Canton Center Bicycle Racks

o   Canton—Canton Public Schools Bike Program

·       FFY 2024

o   MBTA Projects

§  Deprogram Forest Hills in FFY 2024 due to insufficient funding

§  Jackson Square Station Accessibility for $21 million

·       $11 million programmed in FFY 2024 and $10 million in FFY 2025

§  Rail Transformation—Early Action Items at Wilbur Interlocking and Reading Station for $11.2 million

§  Columbus Avenue Bus Lane Phase 2 for $9.4 million

o   Community Connections

§  MWRTA MicroTransit Expansion Phase 2

§  Acton Parking Management System for $15,000

§  Electric Bike Procurement for the City of Boston and the City of Cambridge for $1.02 million and $352,575 respectively

·       FFY 2025

o   BikeShare State of Good Repair (FFYs 2025–28)

§  $1 million per fiscal year from FFY 2025 to 2026, and $2 million per fiscal year from FFY 2027 to 2028.

o   Project Design Support Pilot

o   Project #609532 – Chelsea—Targeted Safety Improvements and Related Work on Broadway, from Williams Street to City Hall Avenue

·       FFY 2026

o   Project #612989 – Boston—Bridge Preservation, B-16-066 (38D), Cambridge Street over MBTA

·       FFY 2027

o   Project #613088 – Malden—Spot Pond Brook Greenway

o   Everett—Targeted Multimodal and Safety Improvements on Route 16

o   Boston—Bridge Replacement B-16-365-Storrow Drive over Bowker Ramps

§  $15 million MPO contribution in FFY 2027 only

o   Rebalance of Advance Construction for Project #607981 – Somerville—McGrath Boulevard Construction

§  Adds $15 million to FFY 2027, reduces by $10 million in FFY 2029 and $5 million in FFY 2030

·       FFY 2028

o   Project #610691 – Natick—Cochituate Rail Trail Extension (MBTA Station to Mechanic Street) Natick Center Connection

o   Project #613145 – Wakefield— “Envision Wakefield” Comprehensive Downtown Transportation Improvement Project

o   Project #608158 – Westwood/Norwood—Reconstruction of Canton Street (East Street Rotary to University Drive)

Staff requested that the board vote to approve one scenario for inclusion in the Draft FFYs 2024–28 TIP. Next steps include a vote to release the draft TIP for public review on April 20, 2023, and an expected vote to endorse the final TIP on June 1, 2023.

Discussion

L. Diggins inquired about the cost increases for the Independence Greenway project. E. Lapointe stated that the increases are due to the addition of multimodal design elements to the project as well as inflationary pressure.

L. Diggins spoke in support of Scenario 4: Fiscal Sustainability due to the current trends of inflation. J. Monty stated that inflation should not be a major concern for projects in the near years of the TIP, due to their design status. B. Kane spoke in support of Scenario 4.

J. Monty spoke in support of Scenario 5: Performance and noted the importance that the Targeted Multimodal and Safety Improvements on Route 16 has in Everett. J. Monty expressed support for the inclusion of Boston and Cambridge’s e-bike procurement request.

E. Bourassa spoke in support of Scenario 5 and stated his concern about finding projects to fill funding gaps in the near term. He suggested that funding a larger number of projects in the TIP helps to bring them through the highway design process and build a strong pipeline of projects.

Rob King, Town of Brookline, asked about Brookline’s Rehabilitation of Washington Street, noting that Scenario 4 has a budget of $28 million while Scenario 5 has a budget of $26 million. E. Lapointe responded that MassDOT’s project information system indicates a lower project budget, which is reflected in Scenario 5. Scenario 4 retains the current, higher budget estimate because the project was not yet at the 25 percent design stage and may require additional funding contingency as its 2027 start year approaches.

M. Moran spoke in support of Scenario 4 and advocated for the Jackson Square Station Accessibility project and the Columbus Avenue Bus Lane Phase 2 project. M. Moran stated that the projects will support regional transit improvements.

Jim Fitzgerald, City of Boston (Boston Planning and Development Agency), spoke in support of the Rutherford Avenue Redesign and commented on the project’s readiness to be funded in FFY 2027.

Dennis Giombetti, City of Framingham, asked if design money is allocated in any of the TIP years as a strategy to increase the project pipeline. E. Lapointe stated that Scenarios 4 and 5 include the $1.5 million Project Design Support Pilot in FFY 2025. D. Giombetti advocated for $2.5 million in additional funding to be allocated to the design pilot.

Kenneth Miller, Federal Highway Administration, advocated for allocating substantially more funding for multimodal design in the UPWP budget as a strategy to help increase the project pipeline.

Gene Manning, Town of Canton, spoke in support of Canton’s projects within the Community Connections program.

J. Monty spoke in support of the safety improvements in Everett on Route 16 (Project # 613121), the electric bike acquisition in Boston and Cambridge, and the proposed safety project in Medford (#611974). E. Lapointe noted that Project #611974 in Medford costs $7.9 million, which would leave approximately $2 million in FFY 2026 as a contingency.

J. Fitzgerald suggested that the initial year of funding for the Rutherford Avenue project could be reduced to allow for the initial phase of construction to begin.

Vote to amend Scenario 4: Fiscal Sustainability to include the Boston Electric Bluebikes Adoption and Cambridge Electric Bluebikes Adoption in FFY 2024

A motion to amend Scenario 4 to include Boston and Cambridge’s Electric Bluebikes Adoption in FFY 2024 was made by the City of Boston (J. Fitzgerald) and seconded by the MAPC (E. Bourassa). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

Vote to amend Scenario 4: Fiscal Sustainability to include Project #613121 – Everett—Targeted Multi-Modal and Safety Improvements on Route 16

A motion to amend Scenario 4: Fiscal Sustainability to include Project #613121 – Everett—Targeted Multi-Modal and Safety Improvements on Route 16 was made by the City of Everett (J. Monty) and seconded by the City of Somerville (Tom Bent). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

Vote to amend Scenarios 4 and 5 to include an additional $2.5 million for the Project Design Support Pilot in FFY 2025

A motion to amend Scenarios 4 and 5 to include an additional $2.5 million in FFY 2025 for the Project Design Support Pilot to bring the total cost to $4 million was made by the MetroWest Regional Collaborative (Dennis Giombetti) and seconded by the Advisory Council (L. Diggins). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

Discussion

John Bechard, MassDOT, spoke about the readiness of the Rutherford Avenue project. J. Bechard stated that MassDOT is working with the City of Boston to accelerate project reviews and, with continued partnership, FFY 2027 is a possible year to begin construction.

E. Bourassa expressed support for Scenario 5 and raised concern about the unprogrammed funds in FFYs 2024 and 2025 in Scenario 4.

J. Monty requested additional information about the funding of the Everett—Targeted Multi-Modal and Safety Improvements project. J. Bechard stated that the project was proposed to be funded with statewide federal funds in FFY 2027, but MassDOT recommended a delay until FFY 2028 due to project readiness.

Vote to adopt Scenario 5: Performance as the base scenario

A motion to use Scenario 5: Performance as the base scenario for further discussion was made by the Advisory Council (L. Diggins) and seconded by the MAPC (E. Bourassa). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

Motion

A motion to amend Scenario 5 to fund the Rutherford Avenue project in FFY 2027 for $8.6 million was made by the City of Boston (J. Fitzgerald) and seconded by the MAPC (E. Bourassa).

Discussion

B. Kane advocated for members to retain funding as a contingency due to the trend of project costs increasing.

M. Moran spoke in support of funding the Rutherford Avenue project and its importance to the region.

R. King advocated for funding the Washington Street Rehabilitation project in Brookline for $28 million, as in Scenario 4. J. Bechard responded that the project’s 25 percent design plans have not yet gone through MassDOT’s Project Review Committee, meaning that the budget is not finalized.

D. Krevat stated that there are multiple Advance Construction projects in the outer years of the TIP, allowing for additional flexibility across multiple years.

Derek Shooster, MassDOT, discussed the price discrepancy for Brookline’s Washington Street Rehabilitation project in the proposed scenarios, explaining the inflationary portion of the projected budget.

Rich Benevento, Tighe & Bond, spoke about the design status of the Washington Street Rehabilitation in Brookline.

Vote to amend Scenario 5 to fund the Rutherford Avenue project for $8.6 million in FFY 2027 and Brookline’s Washington Street Rehabilitation for an additional $3 million in FFY 2027

A motion to amend the prior motion such that Scenario 5 is amended to fund the Rutherford Avenue project in FFY 2027 for $8.6 million and the Washington Street Rehabilitation project in Brookline in FFY 2027 for an additional $3 million was made by the Town of Brookline (R. King) and seconded by the City of Boston (M. Moran). The motion failed through a roll call vote.

Vote to fund $8.6 million in FFY 2027 for the Rutherford Avenue project

A motion to fund $8.6 million in FFY 2027 for the Rutherford Avenue project was made by the City of Boston (J. Fitzgerald) and seconded by the MAPC (E. Bourassa). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

Vote to adopt Scenario 5: Performance as amended for the Draft FFYs 2024–28 TIP

A motion to adopt Scenario 5: Performance as amended for the Draft FFYs 2024–28 TIP was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the Advisory Council (L. Diggins). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

11.Members’ Items

There were none.

12. Adjourn

A motion to adjourn was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the Regional Transportation Advisory Council (L. Diggins). The motion carried.

 

Attendance

Members	Representatives and Alternates
At-Large City (City of Everett)	Jay Monty Eric Molinari
At-Large City (City of Newton)	David Koses
At-Large Town (Town of Arlington)	Claire Ricker
At-Large Town (Town of Brookline)	Rob King
City of Boston (Boston Planning & Development Agency)	Jim Fitzgerald
City of Boston (Boston Transportation Department)	Matthew Moran
Federal Highway Administration	Kenneth Miller
Federal Transit Administration
Inner Core Committee (City of Somerville)	Tom Bent Brad Rawson
Massachusetts Department of Transportation	David Mohler John Bechard
MassDOT Highway Division	John Romano
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)	Ali Kleyman Jillian Linnell
Massachusetts Port Authority	Sarah Lee
MBTA Advisory Board	Brian Kane Amira Patterson
Metropolitan Area Planning Council	Eric Bourassa
MetroWest Regional Collaborative (City of Framingham)	Dennis Giombetti
Minuteman Advisory Group on Interlocal Coordination (Town of Acton)	Austin Cyganiewicz
North Shore Task Force (City of Beverly)	Darlene Wynne
North Suburban Planning Council (Town of Burlington)
Regional Transportation Advisory Council	Lenard Diggins
South Shore Coalition (Town of Hull)	Chris DiIorio
South West Advisory Planning Committee (Town of Medway)
Three Rivers Interlocal Council (Town of Norwood/Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce)	Tom O’Rourke Steve Olanoff

 

 

Other Attendees	Affiliation
Maha Aslam
Rich Benevento	Tighe & Bond
Joseph Blankenship	City of Boston (BPDA)
Sarah Bradbury	MassDOT District 3
Miranda Briseņo	MassDOT Office of Transportation Planning (OTP)
Tina Cassidy	Town of Woburn
Phillip Cherry	MBTA Transit Priority
Paul Cobuzzi
Mike Dennehy	Volta Charging
Jackie DeWolfe	MassDOT
Kim Foltz	City of Boston (BTD)
Joy Glynn	MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA)
Bernard Greene
Casey Hagerty	Town of Woburn
Alex Hallowell	MBTA
Michelle Ho	MassDOT OTP
Marah Holland	MAPC
Jackie LaFlam	Cape Ann Transportation Authority
Juan Huicochea Mason
Josh Klingenstein	MBTA
Raissah Kouame	MassDOT
Derek Krevat	MassDOT OTP
Owen MacDonald	Town of Weymouth
Gene Manning	Town of Canton
Jordan Martin	Circuit
William Paulitz
Miguel Perez-Luna	City of Cambridge
Jeanette Rebecchi	Town of Bedford Department of Public Works
Bill Renault	Town of Wakefield
Jon Rockwell	TEC, Inc.
Cara S
Michelle Scott	MassDOT OTP
Derek Shooster	MassDOT
Tyler Terrasi	MWRTA
Michael Trepanier	MassDOT
Andrew Wang	MassDOT

 

MPO Staff/Central Transportation Planning Staff
Tegin Teich, Executive Director
Silva Ayvazyan
Logan Casey
Paul Christner
Annette Demchur
Emily Domanico
Hiral Gandhi
Betsy Harvey
Stella Jordan
Heyne Kim
Ethan Lapointe
Erin Maguire
Martin Milkovits
Rebecca Morgan
Srilekha Murthy
Gina Perille
Bradley Putnam
Sean Rourke
Judy Taylor
Sam Taylor