Changes to the Commute . . .
Changing settlement and employment patterns have dramatically altered transportation patterns and the network in the past 25 years.

Changes to the Transportation-Planning Environment . . .
Federal transportation funds have long been distributed through a “continuing, comprehensive, and cooperative” transportation-planning process. Federal legislation in the past 25 years has broadened the scope of metropolitan transportation planning and provided billions of dollars for transportation investments in the Boston region.

Clean Air Act of 1990
CAA recast transportation planning to provide for improved air quality.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
ADA required all MPO transportation projects, programs, and plans to be fully accessible to people with disabilities.

Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991
ISTEA was the first comprehensive transportation act, encompassing all surface transportation modes. It broadened public participation and required fiscal constraint in MPO certification documents.

Executive Order 12898 of 1994
As a result of EO 12898, the MPO identifies and addresses environmental justice transportation issues affecting minority populations and low-income populations.

Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century of 1998
TEA-21 extended federal surface transportation programs through 2003. It placed special emphasis on the deployment of Intelligent Transportation Systems to help improve operations and management.

MBTA Forward Funding
Forward funding altered the MBTA’s financial structure and expanded the MBTA’s service area from 78 municipalities to the current 175. The legislation establishing forward funding also directed the MBTA to prepare a Program for Mass Transportation every five years and an annual Capital Investment Program.

Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users of 2005
SAFETEA-LU authorizes the federal surface transportation programs for the five-year period 2005–2009. It continues to build on ISTEA and TEA-21, with increased emphasis on safety and security and on environmental streamlining.

Some Key Projects of the Past 25 Years
Central Artery/Tunnel Project
Commuter rail to Newburyport, Needham, and Worcester, and the Old Colony lines
Over 20,000 new park-and-ride spaces
Red Line extensions to Alewife and Braintree
Silver Line Washington Street and Silver Line Waterfront to Logan Airport
Hingham-to-Boston commuter ferry
I-93/Industriplex interchange and Anderson Regional Transportation Center
HOV lanes on Southeast Expressway
Route 3 North improvements
Minuteman Bikeway