December 4, 2012

Orange Line Photo Show
Photos from the Elevated Orange Line are on display at the Boston Public Library
(Photo Courtesy of Roslindale Patch)
 

Government Center Station to close for 2 years starting in Sept. 2013 for $90 million overhaul Boston.com

By Matt Rocheleau-- The project will overhaul the station, including by: building a new station entrance, or “headhouse” structure; renovating Green Line and Blue Line platforms; overhauling the electrical system; installing new elevators, escalators, LED signs, improved lighting and an expanded fare collection area; and reconstructing some of the surrounding parts of Cambridge Street and City Hall Plaza, officials said.

 

Wide racial gap exists on speed of Boston-area commutes Boston Globe

By Eric Moskowitz-- At the end of a recent community meeting on the state transportation system, a grandmotherly woman with a lyrical Caribbean accent strode up to the top transportation official in Massachusetts, dispensing with pleasantries.

“Let me tell you something,” she told Transportation Secretary Richard A. Davey. “I am so upset with Number 28.”

She meant the bus route between Ruggles and Mattapan, which she boarded just after 5 p.m. at Roxbury Community College, to reach the meeting 4½ miles away at Mattapan’s branch library. “It took an hour and 15 minutes to get here,” she said, narrowing her eyes.

 

IMPROVING LIVABILITY, CONTROLLING DISPLACEMENT: Can You Upgrade a Neighborhood Without Destroying its Community? LivableStreets

By Steve Miller-- A new effort has begun to bring improved transit and bicycle facilities to Roxbury, the base of Boston’s African-American community. (Full disclosure: On behalf of LivableStreets Alliance, I’m involved.) While most local people welcome the idea of more efficient bus routes, more comfortable bus stops, and protected bike lanes there has also been some opposition based on the fear that this invites gentrification.  It is similar to concerns about the larger impact of any improvement in a low-income area, from better parks to better food in local stores to better schools.

 

DC's Massive New Transportation Experiment Starts Tomorrow Atlantic Cities

By Emily Badger-- Early Saturday morning, the Virginia Department of Transportation will open 14 freshly paved miles of highway on the I-495 Washington Beltway unlike anything drivers in the area have ever seen. The road-widening project has been a decade in the making. And it will constitute, VDOT Secretary Sean T. Connaughton boasted earlier this week, “a high-tech wonder,” the latest and one of the country’s largest attempts at a new generation of highway infrastructure – and a new model of paying for it – that could turn up in cities far from the capital.

 

How States Are Adapting to MAP-21¹s Changes to Bike/Ped Funding DC Streetsblog

The current transportation law dealt a few hard knocks to bicycling and walking programs. One big one was the restructuring of the Transportation Enhancements program into something called Transportation Alternatives, which has to fund more types of projects with less money.

The idea is that each state’s TA money will get split in half. Fifty percent gets allocated to Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) and Transportation Management Areas (TMAs) based on population. Let’s call that the “Local 50.” Then the state gets the other half – the “State 50” – and is supposed to distribute it via a competitive grant process.

"Streets"

  • Boston's New Bridge of Flowers - Gardening - Gardening tips, questions, and more Boston.com
  • Most Dangerous Intersections In Massachusetts CBS Local
  • 114 moving violations in one hour Walking Bostonian
  • Red states lead road deaths Politico
  • Street Smart Architect Boston
  • Road Work Ahead -- First, We Need a Plan Architect Boston
  • NACTO discusses McCarthy: Plan to Replace Reviled Legacy Us2
  • Wide racial gap exists on speed of Boston-area commutes Boston Globe
  • Yet another medical condition linked to exhaust Bloomberg
  • D Street is key to the Seaport’s identity Boston Globe
  • The Case for Listening to NIMBYs Atlantic Cities
  • Massachusetts to begin accepting applications for electronic billboards Boston Globe
  • IMPROVING LIVABILITY, CONTROLING DISPLACEMENT: Can You Upgrade a Neighborhood Without Destroying it¹s Community? LivableStreets
  • Somerville aldermen call for safer streets after Tufts accident Wicked Local
  • Cities With Denser Cores Do Better Atlantic Cities
  • Watch: Friends of the Community Path Co-Founder Lynn Weissman on 'Greater Somerville' Somerville Patch

Walking

  • Interview: Jeff Speck, Author Of 'Walkable City' NPR
  • Southampton voters overwhelmingly approve rail bed purchase for recreational trail Gazette Net
  • New pedestrian bridge at Wonderland T station dedicated Boston.com
  • Two elderly pedestrians hit in back to back accidents in Newton Centre Boston.com
  • New crosswalk signs installed JP Gazette
  • Walkability increasingly drives developers and real estate market Washington Post
  • Somerville aldermen call for streetlight repair Wicked Local

Bicycling

Transit

  • Smartphones: T passes of the future? Boston Globe
  • Midday clock face scheduling on commuter rail systems Amateur Planner
  • Elevated Orange Line on Display JP Patch
  • Factoring In Commuting Costs NY Times
  • Public transit keeps close eye on homeless Politico
  • Promises to Keep Architect Boston
  • Wide racial gap exists on speed of Boston-area commutes Boston Globe
  • CDD Forum: Jarrett Walker Walking Bostonian
  • Critical railroad bridge over Charles is closed to most train traffic for repairs Boston Globe
  • Gondolas Could Be the Next Great Urban Transportation Device Wired
  • MBTA Mobile Ticketing App
    • The T is 'elated' with response to mobile ticketing app Metro
    • MBTA releases mobile ticketing app at South Station Metro
    • Download MBTA Mobile Ticketing App for Commuter Rail Trains BostInno
  • Were Passengers and MBTA Officials Talking About the Same Crash? Boston Magazine

Cars/Parking

Transportation financing/Government

  • Globe Moskowitz on Transit Funding Proposal Boston Globe
  • State highway safety chief has long driving record, recent accident Boston.com
    • State highway safety director reassigned following revelations of driving violations Boston.com
  • MBTA GM
    • New GM pledges openness at T helm Boston.com
    • MBTA welcomes a new general manager NECN
    • Next MBTA general manager gets closer look at system DOT News
  • Davey and MassDOT officials hear residents' thoughts in Mattapan huddle DOT News
  • MBTA, highway system face vast deficits for FY14 Boston Globe
  • Transit advocate coalition to release report on how to improve Mass. transportation Metro
  • PVTA administrator Mary MacInnes gets 3 percent raise in first of 3-year contract; increases in future years possible MassLive
  • MBTA Government Center Station Public Meeting MA Transportation Blog
  • BRA Corridor plan meeting scheduled JP Gazette
  • Conversation on Public Transportation's Future Draws Array of Thoughts Somerville Patch
  • Government Center Station to close for 2 years starting in Sept. 2013 for $90 million overhaul Boston.com
  • Coalition calls for transportation payroll tax Wicked Local

Parks

  • Blink!, Boston's Newest Christmas Tradition, Kicks Off With Faneuil Hall Tree Lighting This Weekend BostInno
  • Lawrence "Duck Bridge" Completed Ahead of Schedule MA Transportation Blog

Development projects

  • Protest dolls displayed at 161 S. Huntington site JP Gazette
  • Old Northern Avenue Bridge beautification -- TBHA plans to install planters Boston Herald
  • Developer AvalonBay looks to start construction on 38-story residential tower next to TD Garden Boston.com, Boston Globe
  • Springfield Union Station Construction Kick-off MA Transportation Blog
  • The Boston Innovation Center: must make effort to energize Seaport Boston Globe
  • As residences rise, downtown builds a new vitality -- Downtown Boston building boom finally underway Boston Globe
  • $43 Million Wentworth Dorm Coming to Huntington Avenue Fenway/Kenmore Patch
  • Brookline selectmen, neighbors rail against Hancock Village 40B proposal Wicked Local
  • Brookline selectmen grill consultant on Emerald Necklace traffic fixes Wicked Local
  • The Empty Quarter: Opportunities in Boston's Empty Financial District Boston Magazine

Land Use/Planning

  • South Station planning sessions to kick off next week Biz Journals
  • Housing as a math problem Boston Globe
  • Jamaica Plain strikes a blow against reverse snobbery Boston Globe
  • Some safety features have been restored to Mass. Ave. design Word on Street
  • Casey Overpass
    • MassDOT Files Casey MEPA Form JP Patch
    • BTD chief: Mayor won't oppose Casey plan, backs process JP Gazette
    • Letter: A few Casey Arborway questions JP Gazette
  • Letter: What was the point of S. Huntington input? JP Gazette
  • What to do about Beacon Street Somerville News

Out-of-state

  • DC
  • New York
    • City Takes Up Zoning Changes to Erase Downtown Brooklyn’s Glut of Parking Spots NY Times
  • Chicago

National Trends

International news