Boston Globe: “Proponents rap delay to extend Green Line”
Boston Metro: “âNot acceptable’: Somerville, Medford commuters âfurious’ at likely Green Line extension delay”
Boston Now: “Green Line plan draws ire”
Somerville Journal: “Somerville Green Line extension plans pushed back again”
Continue reading for excerpts from the articles.
The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), the legal advocacy group that negotiated the original commitment to complete the project, issued a critical press release today about Gov. Patrick's proposed delay. Read the release. Boston Metro: "Transit funding flop: Group slams Patrick, who says Green Line extension may be delayed" You can make a difference by calling the Governor's office! Read more and…
Last week, Governor Deval Patrick met with Somerville’s legislators and let them know that, for now, extending the Green Line is not on his priority list. In a stunning and unfortunate move, Governor Patrick and his Transportation Secretary, Bernard Cohen, propose delaying completion of the Green Line until at least December, 2016.
Worse, the Governor’s team suggested that the state will renege on its commitment to fully fund the $800 million to construct the Green Line from state funds. Instead they are hoping to get half of the money from highly competitive federal programs for the Green Line. The Governor plans to hit the same federal funds for the Silver Line Phase Three project in Boston and the Urban Ring; which could sink the Green Line application, putting it at the bottom of the list. In short, the future of the entire Green Line extension is in jeopardy.
This is completely unacceptable, especially when, at the same time, the Governor has given the green light — and critical funding — for immediate progress on many other construction projects around the state, even though they are not federal Clean Air Act priorities. The Governor released his $12 billion capital investment plan on Monday, August 6. It included $20 million in FY08 to begin addressing the so-called State Implementation Plan, or âSIPâ commitments, which are the legally mandated projects. These projects include improvements to the Fairmount commuter rail, the Green Line extension to Medford, a Red-Blue Line connector study, and the creation of 1,000 new parking spaces at transit nodes.â If you do the math, you can see that the $20 million to be spent on the four SIP projects is only 2.5% of the funding needed just to construct the Green Line.
Somerville deserves better.
The five-year plan covers new college classrooms, laboratories, roads, bridges, and other construction projects. A ton of money goes to roads and bridges. Just $20 million is reserved for mass transit projects, among them the Green Line extensions.
Download the Capital Budget Plan (PDF)
Boston Globe: “$12b aimed at education, transportation”
Yesterday, the Somerville and Medford congressional delegations met with Governor Patrick and Secretary Cohen about the Green Line extensions and learned that the Governor has decided to apply for federal New Starts funding for the project. This means that 50% of the cost could come from the federal program, but it also means the process would take longer and that the Green Line extensions would not open until 2016.
Keep reading for State Senator Pat Jehlen’s summary of this discouraging meeting.
The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has released the latest Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) for public review. It contains information on federally funded transportation studies and planning activities proposed for the year. The Green Line extension environmental review is listed: "EOT [Executive Office of Transportation] will now manage the environmental review for this proposed extension including an assessment of…
The Executive Office of Transportation (EOT) submitted a status report on the State Implementation Plan (SIP) transit commitments, including the Green Line extensions. The plan still includes both extensions (to Medford and to Union Square) opening by the end of 2014. Unfortunately, the report describes the Union Square branch as following the Fitchburg rail line, rather than exploring the possibility of…
Think you’ve heard more planes overhead recently? You’re right. Data shows that takeoffs from runway 33L, which come up the Mystic River and then turn over Somerville and Cambridge, are way up. In 2006, 33L accounted for 7% of all takeoffs. Now it’s 24%, an increase of 243% year over year.
This morning there was a hearing on a bill sponsored by Denise Provost that would explore the health effects of particulate matter, which is suspended particles in tailpipe exhaust. House Bill 2227 would have the Department of Public Health conduct a study on the health effects of this type of pollution, including mapping the distribution and concentration of particulate matter aorund…
For the fourth year running, STEP had a booth at this year’s festival in Davis Square. There were new “Make Somerville Green” t-shirts designed by Mark Ostrander, an updated map of potential Green Line stops, and lots of great conversations. Thanks for stopping by!