Somerville Patch: “Green Line Extension Takes Step Forward With Feds”
“The Green Line Extension has permission from the administration to enter the ‘preliminary engineering’ phase of planning. This puts the proposed Green Line Extension on a master list of transportation projects across the country the Federal Transit Administration is considering for federal funding. It is not a guarantee the project will get federal assistance, but it’s a necessary step for all projects seeking New Starts funding. It’s also an initial stamp of approval from the feds.”
Statehouse News Service: “Taxes, fees, fare hikes could be in works for Green Line extension”
“To pay for its portion of the proposed $1.3 billion Green Line Extension through Somerville and Medford, state transportation officials have outlined as options a new cent-per-mile-traveled tax, casino revenues dedicated to the project or an increases in fares, according to a letter from the Federal Transit Administration.”
“[I]t is clear that in order to garner FTA’s financial participation in the project, we must move from hypothetical proposals to implementing a long-term financial fix for the MBTA during the next legislative session,” wrote Transportation Secretary Richard Davey in a letter to the Green Line Extension delegation. “Otherwise it is virtually certain the FTA will decline providing financial assistance to the project.”
Boston Herald: “Sides staked out for ‘adult conversation’ about transportation funding”
“The Federal Transit Administration requires the MBTA to have a strong financial footing to receive New Starts funding, which would make up 42 percent of the Green Line project’s cost. Davey said he hopes federal funding will eventually make up half the $1.3 billion project.”
