MPO Meeting Minutes

Draft Memorandum for the Record

Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization Meeting

May 4, 2023, Meeting

10:00 AM–11:15 AM, 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:

Meeting Agenda

1.    Introductions

See attendance on page 10.

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 with CTPS: Data Scientist, Manager of MPO Activities, Manager of Planning and Policy, Manager of Multimodal Planning and Design, and Program Manager of the LRTP.

T. Teich stated that staff continue to develop the Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan. Activities include a workshop on human services transportation coordination in the Boston region and a survey to gather information about needs and priorities for human services transportation.

T. Teich stated that staff will be hosting two TIP open houses, one on May 8, 2023, at 6:00 PM and the other on May 11, 2023, at 2:00 PM.

4.    Public Comments  

There were none.

5.    Committee Chairs’ Reports

Derek Krevat, MassDOT, stated that the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) Committee met on April 27, 2023, to approve a funding scenario for the FFY 2024 UPWP.

Brian Kane, MBTA Advisory Board, stated that the Administration and Finance Committee met before this meeting to continue the development of the Operations Plan and receive updates on CTPS’ State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2023 operating budget and projected overhead.

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

L. Diggins stated that the upcoming meeting on May 10, 2023, will have a focus on resilience.

7.    Action Item: Approval of March 30, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

1.    March 30, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes (pdf)

2.    March 30, 2023, MPO Meeting Minutes (html)

Vote

A motion to approve the minutes of the meeting of March 30, 2023, was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) (Eric Bourassa). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

8.    Action Item: Work Scope for MBTA Sources of Community Value—Paul Christner, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

1.    Work Scope for MBTA Sources of Community Value (pdf)

2.    Work Scope for MBTA Sources of Community Value (html)

P. Christner, MPO Staff, stated that the work scope for MBTA Sources of Community Value is scheduled for seven months with a budget of $125,000, paid for by MassDOT-Directed PL funds. Since March 2020, the MBTA has relied on emergency funds from the COVID-19 pandemic, while farebox revenue has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The objective of this work scope is to document and evaluate options to accrue incremental sources of value and revenue for the MBTA beyond existing frameworks.

In Task One, staff will review existing work and studies, including a review of funding practices in peer agencies and the scope of work for MassDOT’s State Planning and Research Program. In Task Two, staff will evaluate the feasibility of modifying existing revenue streams for the MBTA. Each revenue source will be evaluated by estimating the annual revenue from the source, predicting other benefits to the MBTA, and documenting lessons learned from other agencies. In Task Three, staff will produce a technical memorandum to document the findings and assess new funding streams. The documentation will include political feasibility, technical and operational complexity, annual size of the revenue stream, and impacts to livability, equity, and competitiveness.

Discussion

L. Diggins asked if this work scope is related to transit-oriented development. D. Mohler answered that the work scope will identify potential revenue sources and mechanisms for the MBTA.

B. Kane stated that this work scope is an important study because the one-time relief funds from the COVID-19 pandemic, which have been supporting the MBTA’s operating budget, are expected to end at the conclusion of the fiscal year.

Jim Fitzgerald, City of Boston, Boston Planning and Development Agency, asked if this work scope will indicate the beginning of a larger effort by the MBTA to examine budgetary challenges. Elizabeth Winters Ronaldson, MBTA Staff, stated that this study is an initial step for the MBTA to identify new sources of revenue to support transit.

J. Fitzgerald asked about opportunities for municipalities to be involved as the work progresses.

Brad Rawson, Inner Core Committee (ICC), City of Somerville, spoke of the statewide and regional benefits of the MBTA.

Steve Olanoff, Three Rivers Interlocal Council (TRIC), asked if the MAPC’s existing study on raising state and local taxes to support road and transit investments will be consulted. P. Christner stated that staff can discuss the study with the MAPC and MBTA. E. Bourassa stated that the MAPC has done research on value-capture and can help to connect to national stakeholders. Kenneth Miller, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), shared existing resources such as the Value-Capture Initiative, the Office of Innovative Finance, and the 2023 value-capture webinar series.

Vote

A motion to approve the work scope for MBTA Sources of Community Value was made by the ICC, City of Somerville (Brad Rawson) and seconded by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

9.    Action Item: FFYs 2023–27 TIP Amendment Five—Ethan Lapointe, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

1.    FFYs 2023–27 TIP Amendment Five (pdf)

2.    FFYs 2023–27 TIP Amendment Five (html)

E. Lapointe stated that the FFYs 2023–27 TIP Amendment Five proposes a cost increase to one project, new design ear marks for two projects, and funding adjustments for four MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) projects. Proposed changes can be found in Table 1 through Table 3.

Table 1
Amendment Five FFY 2023 Statewide Highway Program Changes

Project Name

Former Value

New Value

Change

Wilmington – Bridge Replacement, W-38-003, Butters Row over MBTA

$10,225,199

$16,433,155

$6,207,956

MBTA = Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.


 

Table 2
Amendment Five FFY 2023 Statewide Highway Program Changes:
Design Earmarks

Project Name

Change Type

Funding Source

Budget

S12756: Peabody – Border to Boston Trail Design

New Project

Earmark

$375,000

S12757: Salem – Border to Boston Trail Design

New Project

Earmark

$375,000

S12837: Wakefield – Broadway Commuter Rail Crossing (Design Funding)

New Project

Earmark

$250,000

 

Table 3

Amendment Five FFY 2023 MWRTA Project Changes

Project Name

Change Type

Former Value

New Value

Change

RTD0011100: MWRTA – Acquisition of Bus Support Equipment/Facilities

Cost Increase

$150,000

$215,000

$75,000

RTD0011128: MWRTA – Electronic Sign Board

Cost Decrease

$200,000

$50,000

-$150,000

RTD0011122: MWRTA – 2023 EV Migration

Cost Increase

$100,000

$250,000

$150,000

RTD0011099: MWRTA – Operating Assistance Non-Fixed Route ADA Paratransit Service

Cost Decrease

$2,646,494

$1,727,836

-$918,658

ADA = Americans with Disabilities Act. EV = Electric Vehicle. MWRTA = MetroWest Regional Transit Authority.

Discussion

L. Diggins asked for clarifications on the project cost changes for the MWRTA’s Operating Assistance Non-Fixed Route ADA Paratransit Service. D. Mohler stated that the $2.6 million figure was an estimate of the MWRTA’s apportionment of capital funds, which can be directed to operating costs, while the actual apportionment of the funds was approximately $1.7 million.

K. Miller, FHWA, asked who will be implementing the project in Wakefield. D. Krevat stated that the town of Wakefield will implement the design.

K. Miller asked for additional information about the design earmarks and asked if additional earmarks will be amended to the TIP to reflect the total figure of a $1.2 million design earmark for the entire Border to Boston Trail. D. Krevat stated that two design earmarks have been amended on the Merrimack Valley MPO’s TIP for the towns of Boxford and Newbury.

Vote

A motion to release the FFYs 2023–27 TIP Amendment Five for a 21-day public review period was made by the Regional Transportation Advisory Council (L. Diggins) and seconded by the MAPC (E. Bourassa)

10. LRTP Investment Program Sizing—Bradley Putnam, MPO Staff

B. Putnam reviewed decisions made by the MPO board at previous meetings. A list of MPO projects to include in the Destination 2050 LRTP and their estimated cost in the FFYs 2029–33 time band are found in Table 4.

Table 4

Destination 2050 LRTP MPO Projects

Location

Name

FFYs 2029–33 Budget

Boston

Rutherford Avenue

$154,000,000

Framingham

Route 126, Route 135, and MBTA over CSX Railroads

$145,500,000

Lexington

Routes 4 and 225, Hartwell Avenue, and I-95 Interchange

$57,000,000

Somerville

McGrath Boulevard

$33,800,000

Total

Blank

$390,300,000

 

B. Putnam stated that at the previous meeting, the board approved allocations for the seven investment programs. B. Putnam stated that when factoring in the costs of the projects voted to be included in the plan, the Major Infrastructure investment program in the FFYs 2029–33 time band is above the approved allocation by 17 percent, shown in Table 5.

B. Putnam requested for the board to determine how it should allocate funds across the investment programs to address this discrepancy.

Table 5

Investment Program Allocations FFYs 2029–33

Program

Approved Allocations (percent)

Approved Allocations (dollars)

Accounting for project costs (percent)

Accounting for project costs (dollars)

Complete Streets

45%

$374,900,000

45%

$374,900,000

Major Infrastructure

30%

$249,900,000

47%

$390,300,000

Intersection Improvements

12%

$100,000,000

12%

$100,000,000

Bicycle Network and Pedestrian Connections

5%

$41,700,000

5%

$41,700,000

Transit Transformation

5%

$41,700,000

5%

$41,700,000

Community Connections

2%

$16,600,000

2%

$16,600,000

Bikeshare Support

1%

$8,300,000

1%

$8,300,000

Total

100%

$833,000,000

117%

$973,400,000

Difference

 

Blank

17%

$140,400,000

 

Discussion

B. Kane asked how federal funds flow to the MPO and for clarification on the role that organizations such as the Massachusetts Association of Regional Planning Agencies play.

L. Diggins suggested two options: remove $140 million from the four projects in the FFYs 2029–33 time band or decrease allocations to other investment programs.

E. Bourassa discussed the Lexington project and noted its similarity to the Complete Streets program. E. Bourassa suggested reducing the Complete Streets allocations to 30 percent to account for the disparity.

L. Diggins expressed concern about exceeding 30 percent of allocations for the Major Infrastructure program.

Steve Olanoff, TRIC, noted that the investment program allocations are goals for long-term MPO investments.

B. Rawson spoke in support of E. Bourassa’s suggestion.

E. Bourassa suggested reducing both the Complete Streets and Intersection Improvements programs to rectify the overallocation of the Major Infrastructure Category.

Vote

A motion to reduce the Complete Streets investment program allocation to 30 percent, the Intersection Improvements program to 10 percent, and increase the Major Infrastructure allocation to 47 percent for the FFYs 2029–33 time band was made by the MAPC (E. Bourassa) and seconded by the ICC, City of Somerville (B. Rawson). The motion carried through a roll call vote.

11. Members’ Items

There were none.

12. Adjourn

A motion to adjourn was made by the MAPC (E. Bourassa) and seconded by the ICC (B. Rawson). 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)

John Alessi

At-Large Town (Town of Brookline)

Robert King

City of Boston (Boston Planning & Development Agency)

Jim Fitzgerald

City of Boston (Boston Transportation Department)

Matt Moran

Federal Highway Administration

Kenneth Miller

Federal Transit Administration

 

Inner Core Committee (City of Somerville)

Brad Rawson

Massachusetts Department of Transportation

David Mohler

Lyris Liautaud

MassDOT Highway Division

John Romano

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)

Ali Kleyman

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)

Kristen Guichard

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)

South West Advisory Planning Committee (Town of Medway)

Three Rivers Interlocal Council (Town of Norwood/Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce)

Steve Olanoff

 

 

Other Attendees

Affiliation

Sarah Bradbury

MassDOT District 3

Joy Glynn

MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA)

Michelle Ho

MassDOT Office of Transportation Planning (OTP)

Sandy Johnston

MBTA

Chris Klem

MassDOT

Josh Klingenstein

MBTA

Raissah Kouame

MassDOT

Derek Krevat

MassDOT OTP

Jackie LaFlam

Cape Ann Transportation Authority

Owen MacDonald

Town of Weymouth

Ben Muller

MassDOT District 6

Sheila Page

Town of Lexington

Michelle Scott

MassDOT OTP

Jon Seward

 

Tyler Terrasi

MWRTA

Andrew Wang

MassDOT OTP

Elizabeth Winters Ronaldson

MBTA

 

MPO Staff/Central Transportation Planning Staff

Tegin Teich, Executive Director

Blake Acton

Logan Casey

Paul Christner

Annette Demchur

Hiral Gandhi

Betsy Harvey

Stella Jordan

Heyne Kim

Ethan Lapointe

Erin Maguire

Rose McCarron

Rebecca Morgan

Srilekha Murthy

Bradley Putnam

Sean Rourke

Judy Taylor

Sam Taylor

 

 

 

The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) operates its programs, services, and activities in compliance with federal nondiscrimination laws including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, and related statutes and regulations. Title VI prohibits discrimination in federally assisted programs and requires that no person in the United States of America shall, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin (including limited English proficiency), be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity that receives federal assistance. Related federal nondiscrimination laws administered by the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, or both, prohibit discrimination on the basis of age, sex, and disability. The Boston Region MPO considers these protected populations in its Title VI Programs, consistent with federal interpretation and administration. In addition, the Boston Region MPO provides meaningful access to its programs, services, and activities to individuals with limited English proficiency, in compliance with U.S. Department of Transportation policy and guidance on federal Executive Order 13166.

The Boston Region MPO also complies with the Massachusetts Public Accommodation Law, M.G.L. c 272 sections 92a, 98, 98a, which prohibits making any distinction, discrimination, or restriction in admission to, or treatment in a place of public accommodation based on race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or ancestry. Likewise, the Boston Region MPO complies with the Governor's Executive Order 526, section 4, which requires that all programs, activities, and services provided, performed, licensed, chartered, funded, regulated, or contracted for by the state shall be conducted without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, disability, veteran's status (including Vietnam-era veterans), or background.

A complaint form and additional information can be obtained by contacting the MPO or at http://www.bostonmpo.org/mpo_non_discrimination. To request this information in a different language or in an accessible format, please contact

Title VI Specialist
Boston Region MPO
10 Park Plaza, Suite 2150
Boston, MA 02116
civilrights@ctps.org

By Telephone:
857.702.3700 (voice)

For people with hearing or speaking difficulties, connect through the state MassRelay service:

·       Relay Using TTY or Hearing Carry-over: 800.439.2370

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For more information, including numbers for Spanish speakers, visit https://www.mass.gov/massrelay.