The area’s transit-oriented improvement growth has prompted the MBTA to look into “innovative” methods to fund capital enhancements alongside the Red Line.
A $576,000 grant the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded to the MBTA this week shall be used to develop a long-term examine that can decide the feasibility of utilizing sure “innovative financing tools” to help transit-oriented improvement occurring round 5 Red Line stations.
If deemed possible, infrastructure enhancements can be made at Alewife, Broadway, Andrew, JFK/UMass and Quincy Center stations to each help the expansion and relieve the ensuing ridership pressure on the area’s busiest subway line, MBTA spokesperson Joe Pesaturo mentioned.
“Transit-oriented development is critical to our work to make housing more affordable, improve access to transit for marginalized communities, and promote economic growth in the Greater Boston area, and we must ensure our transit infrastructure keeps pace with increased demand,” mentioned U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley.
Pressley mentioned the grant “will help the T provide safer and more reliable service to commuters who depend on the Red Line to access jobs, food, healthcare and other essential services.”
In July, Pressley signed onto a letter U.S. Sen. Ed Markey despatched to Nuria Fernandez, administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, expressing help for the MBTA’s grant software.
According to the letter, Boston and its surrounding neighborhoods are a extremely transit-oriented area, the place 25% of housing items and 37% of employment exists inside a half-mile of a speedy transit or commuter rail station.
The letter additionally cited statistics from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, which estimates transit station areas “could accommodate more than 76,000 new housing units and space for more than 130,000 new jobs by 2035, nearly one-third of projected housing growth regionwide and more than half of projected job growth.”
The MBTA’s Red Line TOD District Framework Study will discover potential income sources, similar to tax-increment financing and developer-supported funds, to make capital enhancements on the 5 focused stations, Pesaturo mentioned.
All have “experienced significant real estate development in the surrounding area, including the construction of new apartment buildings and mixed-use complexes, and several of these stations are also set to see additional development in the coming year, increasing the strain on the Red Line’s aging infrastructure,” the letter said.
The examine will look into enhancing multimodal connectivity and entry to transit hubs, by way of upgraded bicycle facilities, staircase and elevator enhancements, strolling paths and bus circulation enhancements.
“I am proud to have led our federal delegation’s effort to bring more federal dollars to Greater Boston and ensure the T can accommodate more riders safely and reliably,” Markey mentioned.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”