The South Coast Rail Project will host the second of two civic engagement meetings in Fall River on Thursday, September 17. An Executive Office of Transportation project team presentation will be followed by discussion. Meeting date and location:
September 17, Fall River Heritage State Park, Visitor Center, Davol Street, Fall River Open House - 6:00 to 7:00 pm; Presentation and Q&A - 7:00 to 8:00 pm.
More than 30 people from several communities including Attleboro, Norton, Stoughton and Raynham attended the first public meeting in Raynham September 14, viewing information about the proposed route alternatives and asking questions about topics including grade crossing safety and noise.
Learn more about the South Coast Rail project.
With a long-time visual impairment as the result of violence in my life, I have not been behind the wheel of a car for almost 27 years, so public transportation has been extremely important to me.
For six years (1986 to 1992), I commuted from Brockton to Boston via a Plymouth-Brockton coach, always hearing whispers about something called the "commuter rail"...for the 15 years I've lived in in the Raynham/Taunton area,I continue to hear whispers and some shouting about the commuter rail, but I'm still waiting for it to get closer than Middleboro...
In the heat of the debate, I believe that the needs of many like myself - people who would prefer to not drive or, in my case, cannot drive any longer, get lost in the noise. We must find solutions to traffic snarls and environmental damage.
I grew up in Boston with public transportation at my finger tips. When I lived in Brockton, one argument against the commuter rail was "those people" from Boston (that would be me) would flood the city. As I live in Taunton, now I hear some say that the communter rail will bring "those people" from Brockton (that would be me)...OK, so call me crazy, but I am "those people" as well as a national award winner for making a difference in the community. I would think that any community just might benefit from more of "those people" like me...
I would love to be at the meetings but have work-related scheduling conflicts.
Peace Rocks!
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South Coast Rail Mgr. Kristina Egan responds: Thank you for sharing your experiences, Annemarie. South Coast Rail is working to incorporate ADA design into the stations and we have had only limited feedback from disability advocates to date on the project. We would love to have you and others participate in our public civic engagements whenever you are available. We also want you to know that an event called Railvolution is coming up October 29 in Boston, all about building livable communities with transit. We’ve organized a great panel on universal design and scholarships to cover registration costs are available. Check it out at www.railvolution.com.
Posted by: Annemarie Matulis, Taunton MA | September 16, 2009 at 10:48 PM