Commonwealth Conversations: Transportation

Holiday Travel Tips: Hot Spots

MassDOT encourages residents and visitors to plan ahead to avoid delays during the upcoming holidays and winter driving season.

Thanksgiving holiday traffic will be especially heavy on Wednesday November 25 and Sunday November 29. I-90 Exit 9 connecting I-84 to Connecticut and New York will experience heavy traffic congestion and delays at toll plazas. To avoid delays on Wednesday and Sunday, drivers are encouraged to consider travel during the early morning or after 8 p.m.

Traffic congestion is also expected at the I-95 and I-495 Turnpike interchanges along with I-495 and I-93 northbound leading into New Hampshire.

MassDOT suspends highway construction projects across the state during heavy holiday traffic. However, travel restrictions will remain on larger road projects. 

All Highway Division traffic cameras, including four new feeds from the Tobin Bridge, have been merged into one online traffic camera webpage with more than 90 live traffic cameras throughout the highway system. The cameras refresh every 10 seconds to provide real time traffic views.

Drivers can also call the state's 511 traffic information line and check radio traffic reports for updated information.  To promote safe driving for travelers, free coffee will be served at all 18 MassDOT service plazas courtesy of McDonalds, Burger King, and Gulf between 10 p.m. on Thanksgiving night, Thursday, November 26 to 5 a.m. on Friday, November 27.

Learn more about holiday travel. The MassDOT traffic cameras-alerts page is here.

MassDOT Funds Clean Diesel Buses

Students and residents will breather cleaner air in the Amherst-Pelham Regional, Pembroke, Sharon and Sturbridge public schools, thanks to a program supported by $16.5 million in state and federal funds from MassDOT under an agreement associated with the Central Artery/Tunnel Project.

“MASSCLEANDIESEL: Clean Air for Kids,” a Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) program encourages Commonwealth school bus owners to install free pollution controls on eligible diesel school buses. 

The retrofits reduce pollution from the exhaust and result in healthier air.  MassDEP says children's developing lungs are especially susceptible to diesel fumes' damaging health effects.

Amherst-Pelham, Pembroke, Sharon and Sturbridge schools have installed retrofits on 12 buses that transport approximately 900 students to and from school daily, as well as various afterschool and enrichment programs.  Another 20 bus owners are expected to complete the retrofit process on more than 500 buses over the next few months.  Learn more about MassCleanDiesel. 

Methuen Route 28 Bridge Opens Early

As part of the Patrick-Murray Administration’s Massachusetts Recovery Plan to secure the state’s economic future, Transportation Secretary and CEO Jeffrey Mullan today announced the reopening of the Route 28 over Route 213 bridge replacement project in Methuen, a streamlined MassDOT Highway Division project substantially completed 17 months ahead of the original schedule.

“Our team is committed to the kind of innovation and hard work that makes achievements like this expedited bridge opening possible,” said Governor Deval Patrick. “We are completing projects ahead of schedule here in Methuen and across the Commonwealth, and that’s great news for our residents and businesses.”

The $10 million project involved complete replacement of the four-lane Route 28 (Broadway) bridge over Route 213. Crews earlier this summer demolished the existing bridge and constructed a new two-span steel superstructure bridge with five-foot sidewalks. 

MassDOT Highway Division working with the contractor S & R Corporation, Lowell, streamlined the project by using two temporary bridges for traffic, allowing the work to be completed in a single stage.  This move reduced the work schedule by a full year with opening expected in April 2010 rather than 2011.  However, work progress continued at a quicker than expected pace and the bridge has now opened 17 months earlier than first planned.

While delivering more projects, the MassDOT Highway Division has reduced consultant procurement times from 18 months to 5.7 months and reduced construction procurement time by 45 percent.  MassDOT continues to reform design and construction timelines, including an aggressive program to reduce the time it takes to reconstruct and rehabilitate bridges, and has entered agreements with environmental agencies to streamline the permitting process.  Learn more about MassDOT's Highway Division projects.

Massport Approves Tobin Bridge Transfer

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) Board today voted to transfer ownership of the Tobin Bridge to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). The vote paves the way for transfer of the 2 1/4-mile-long span on January 1, 2010.  The transfer is another milestone of the state’s historic transportation reform legislation signed by Governor Deval Patrick.

The transfer of the Tobin Bridge to MassDOT means that for the first time all major state roads, bridges and tunnels will be managed by one unified transportation organization.

Massport personnel led by Bridge Director Mary Jane O’Meara worked closely with the MassDOT Highway Division in recent months to integrate the Tobin Bridge into the state highway system.

On November 1, 2009, four camera feeds from the Tobin Bridge were added to the MassDOT Traffic Camera website where commuters and visitors can view real-time traffic feeds from Highway Division cameras on key routes throughout Massachusetts.  Camera feeds from the Tobin Bridge have also already been integrated into the MassDOT Traffic Operations Center where employees monitor and respond to traffic congestion and accidents on the state’s roadways, tunnels and bridges.

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) operates Boston Logan International Airport, the Port of Boston, Hanscom Field and Worcester Regional Airport.  Learn more about Massport.

All New Blue on the T

It is out with the old and in with the new on the MBTA Blue Line. 

As of September, the Blue Line has been all new six-car trains, all of the time. 

The first of 94 new Blue Line cars began operating last year, replacing over time the old four-car trains. 

The old trains and Maverick Station under construction are seen in the top photo at left, with the new Maverick and new cars attracting passengers in the bottom photo.

The new six-car trains are safer, more reliable, and bring increased capacity. 

The old cars have been retired except for 20 maintained as backups, otherwise to be seen again only in the annals of the T.  

Check out the Blue Line here. 

Green Line Extension Public Hearing

MassDOT will host a public hearing at Somerville High School on Wednesday, November 18, to collect public comments on the Green Line Extension Project.  MassDOT filed a Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment on the extension of the Green Line to Somerville and Medford.  Members of the public, agency representatives and other stakeholders are invited to attend the hearing and make comments on the report.  Details: 

When:                       Wednesday, November 18, 6 pm start

Where:                      81 Highland Avenue, Somerville Auditorium        
    
This long-envisioned transit project will extend existing service from relocated Lechmere Station through the communities of Cambridge, Somerville, and Medford, with an extension of the main line to Medford Hillside and an adjunct line to Union Square.

View the draft environmental report and learn more here.

Cape Canal Task Force Tackles Traffic

MassDOT today announced creation of the Canal Area Regional Traffic Task Force to build consensus on the immediate, near-term, and future transportation needs related to ongoing traffic congestion at the two canal bridges in the Cape Cod region. 

Congressman Bill Delahunt requested creation of the Task Force in response to recent congestion caused by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers repairs to the Sagamore Bridge and the long-term issues created by rising traffic volumes on the Sagamore and Bourne Bridges.   Sagamore Bridge construction work began at the end of summer and is ongoing this fall and continuing in spring 2010.  One lane of traffic is reduced in each direction. The result has been significant congestion and in some cases traffic being stalled at the bridge and clogging highways in the area.

At the direction of MassDOT Secretary and CEO Jeff Mullan, the Task Force will be chaired by Tom Cahir, Administrator of the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority.  Task Force participants will represent federal, state, regional, and local officials, including the Office of Congressman Delahunt, Army Corps of Engineers, Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Cape Cod Commission, Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, Towns of Bourne and Sandwich, and other local business representatives. 

The Task Force is expected to focus on near-term improvements necessary in spring 2010 when Sagamore Bridge construction resumes along with discussion of longer term solutions including alternate routes and other ways to mitigate traffic congestion and preliminary cost proposals for recommended long term investments.  The Task Force follows recent meetings hosted by MassDOT's Highway Division to develop solutions to ongoing construction related traffic problems. 

View the Army Corps bridge work information and traffic alerts.

Fed Stimulus Funds Hire Rail Employees

MassDOT, MBTA, and the Mass Bay Commuter Rail company (MBCR) today announced the hiring of a diverse group of 15 employees with funds from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA).  MassDOT Secretary and CEO Jeff Mullan, MBTA interim General Manager Bill Mitchell, and MBCR General Manager Richard Davey joined the new workers at an orientation, above.  Mullan provided an update for MassDOT on Twitter. 

The new jobs support the $9 million Fitchburg Commuter Rail Line project funded through the ARRA stimulus program and part of the Patrick-Murray Administration's Massachusetts Recovery Plan.  The Massachusetts Congressional delegation worked with colleagues in Washington, D.C. to allocate a total of $319 million in recovery funds for transit projects at the Regional Transit Authorities and the MBTA. 

The 15 Track Laborer jobs involve work related to construction of track and right of way as part of the larger Fitchburg project to modernize the existing commuter rail line along the 50-mile corridor from Fitchburg to Boston.  MBCR operates and maintains the commuter rail network under contract with the MBTA.

The project not only creates new jobs but will benefit commuters through increased capacity and faster travel times on the Fitchburg line. The MBTA has applied for additional stimulus funds to complete double tracking of the Fitchburg Commuter Rail Line, allowing 80 mph travel speeds, up to 12% better on-time performance and reduced operating and maintenance costs.  The Fitchburg line is the longest in the MBTA system in distance and travel time, serving a region with limited commuter options.

Learn more about MBTA, MBCR, and the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.

Developers Challenge Winners, Real-Time Bus Data

MassDOT today announced the winners of the 2009 MassDOT Developers Challenge at the first annual MassDOT Developers Conference.  The Challenge inspired developers to create both mobile phone applications and data visualizations based on open data feeds provided on the MassDOT Developers Page.

MassDOT also announced the release of a Real-Time XML Trial Feed of MBTA bus locations on five of the MBTA’s most popular bus routes.  The feed includes data for bus route 39 which serves Jamaica Plain, the Longwood Medical Area, and Back Bay in Boston; and bus routes 111, 114, 116, and 117 which serve Haymarket Station, East Boston, Chelsea, and Revere.  Developers will be able to access the feed and incorporate the real-time information into mobile phone and web-based applications that help MBTA customers know the actual location and estimated arrival of their bus.

The winner of the Application Challenge was the MassTransit iPhone application, built by Cambridge-based Sparkfish Creative (http://www.sparkfishcreative.com/masstransit/).  The winner of the best Data Visualization was James Kebinger, for his artistic representation titled “MBTA in Motion” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6Ye1AvMGtY). The Challenge winners receive a CharlieCard valid for one year of free travel on MBTA buses and rapid transit.

Second place in the Application Challenge went to OpenMBTA, a free and open source iPhone application that helps users navigate the MBTA’s system (http://iphonembta.org/).  Second place in the Visualization Challenge was awarded to a team of three local residents, for their work, “A Day in the Life of the MBTA”.

The Conference built on MassDOT’s historic step toward openness and transparency through creation of the MassDOT Developers Page.  MassDOT previously reached out to developers, holding a developers’ meeting and engaging the community through Twitter and Google Groups, and hopes to expand its data and incorporate more information in real-time.  More information is available at the MassDOTDevelopers Page.

MassDOT I-90 Toll Calculator

The I-90 (MassPike) toll calculator web page is now available on the MassDOT website. 

The calculator page allows drivers to enter the beginning and ending point of their travel along I-90, along with vehicle type, and calculate the toll.

Check the toll calculator here.