Urban Ring Phase 2
Proposed Circumferential Transit Project
Public Hearing
January 6, 2009
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Agenda
„
Open house
„
Introductions and overview of comment process
„
Summary presentation
z
Project background
z
Purpose and need
z
Alternatives analysis
z
Public outreach
z
Evaluation results and recommendations
„
Public comment
„
Closing remarks and next steps
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Project Review
„
Urban Ring Phase 2 – Revised Draft Environmental
Impact Report/Draft Environmental Impact Statement
(RDEIR/DEIS) – published November 2008
„
Document distribution to elected officials, municipal
representatives, Citizens Advisory Committee,
commenters, libraries
„
Posted on project website – www.theurbanring.com
„
Public Hearing – Tuesday January 6, 2009, 6 PM
„
Comments due to MEPA on February 10, 2009
(extended 60-day comment period)
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
What is the
Urban Ring?
Med fo rd
Ev e re t t
Wellington
Chelsea
Everett
Assembly
S o m er v i l l e Square
„
„
„
„
Proposed
circumferential –
“RING” – transit line
Connects the
“spokes” of the
MBTA’s radial system
Passes through fastgrowing
neighborhoods
outside downtown
Reaches areas
lacking transit service
Chel se a
Sullivan
Square
Harvard
Square
Charlestown
Logan
Airport
Lechmere
Cambridge
Kendall Sq
Allston
Cambridgeport
Boston
University
Kenmore/
Yawkey
South Boston
Waterfront
Fenway
BUMC/
Crosstown
Longwood
Area
Br o o k Medical
line
Ruggles
S o u t h Bo st o n
Newmarket
R o x bDudley
ury
Square
JFK/UMass
Do r ch e st e r
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Eas t
Bos t on
Why is the Urban
Ring needed?
„
Existing transit
z
Buses on congested
roads – direct but slow
z
Rapid transit through
downtown – faster but
indirect
„
Roadway congestion
„
Constraints on
access, employment
and development
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Corridor Land Use
„
z
„
Lechmere /
East
Cambridge
2030 demographics
z
„
2030
2000
Population 495,100
(2000-2030: +26%)
Employment 406,800
(2000-2030: +24%)
Established job
centers
z
“Life Sciences Cluster”
z
“Eds & Meds” = 9 of top
10 private employers
High transit demand
z
~90,000 bus trips/day
Kendall Square
MIT
Harvard
University
Logan
Airport
Boston
University
Fenway/
Kenmore
Fort Point
District
Longwood
Medical and
Academic Area
Simmons / Emmanuel
Northeastern / Wentworth
LEGEND
z
Private shuttles
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Education/Research
• Population
PopulationSciences
Medical/Life
• Employment
Employment
Research/High
Tech
1
Dot
(Year
1 dot==4040
(Year
2030 Projections)
Commercial/Industrial
2030
Projections)
BU Medical
Center
Newmarket
U Mass
Boston
Development
Opportunities
„
New rapid transit for
environmental
justice communities
z
„
Wellington
2000
z
z
Existing infrastructure
Proximity to downtown
Ev e re tt
Chelsea
Assembly
Square
merv i lle
Inner So
Belt/
Brickbottom
Ch el sea
Harvard University/
Allston Landing
Majority of boardings
from EJ areas
Former industrial areas
Everett – Rt.16/
Gateway Center
Me df or d
East
Bost on
Logan
Airport
Ca mbri d g e
93
Smart Growth and
transit-oriented
development
z
Sullivan
Square
South
Boston
Waterfront
90
Br ook lin e
A Street
Corridor
S o u th B o s to n
South Bay
Crosstown
Columbia
Point
Newmarket
Meets no EJ criteria
Meets EJ income criteria (<=80% regional median = $44,640)
Meets EJ population criteria (>=regional median = 21.4%)
Meets both EJ criteria
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
(EJ Criteria per Boston Region MPO for 2000 population, income)
Ro xb ury
Dorch est er
Urban Ring Phases and Technology
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
LRT or Orange Line
Intermodal
Connections
Bus
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Intermodal Connections
Bus Rapid Transit
BRT
Bus
Bus
What Is Bus Rapid Transit?
„
„
Boston
Flexibility of bus mode
with enhancements to
achieve rapid-transit
service quality
z
Reserved roads & lanes
z
High frequency service
z
Widely-spaced stations
z
Signal priority
z
Automated enforcement
Lessons learned from
earlier projects
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Orlando
Pittsburgh
Ontario, Canada
Netherlands
Alternatives Process
Winter 2006-07
Spring/Summer 2007
Fall/Winter2007-08
Spring 2008
VARIANTS
A-1
A-2
ALTERNATIVES
& OPTIONS
Baseline
A-3
Etc.
B-1
B-2
Etc.
C-1
C-2
Etc.
Total of 60
variants tested
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
1
HYBRIDS
2
H1
RECOMMEND
2A
H2
LPA
3
H2T
3A
Sub-Options
3B
3C
4
4A
Evaluation Criteria
„
General mobility
z
Ridership
z
Travel time
z
Travel speed
z
Congestion relief
„
Economic development/land use
„
Mobility for transit dependent riders
„
Environmental benefits
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Broad-Based Public Outreach
„
Citizens Advisory Committee: 40+ meetings
„
General public & neighborhood groups: 40+ meetings
in 7 cities and towns
„
Municipal and agency coordination: 40+ meetings
„
Institutions and abutters: 45+ meetings
„
Legislative briefings: 8
„
Project website and mailings
„
Brochures and fact sheets
„
CAC review and comment on draft RDEIR/DEIS
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Daily riders
184,000
% Reserved ROW
53%
Capital cost (2007)
~ $2.4 bn
Cost-effectiveness
~ $15-20
Ev e r e t t
Wellington
Downtown
Chelsea
Station
Medford
S o m e r v il l e
Assembly
Square
Chelsea
Sullivan
Square
Harvard
Square
E a st
B o st on
New
Lechmere
Airport
Ca m b r i d g e
Recommended
Project
Logan
West
Garage
Cambridgeport
Kendall /
MIT
World
Trade
Center
Al l s t o n
Yawkey
Broadway
BU Bridge
LMA
Ruggles
Washington
Street
Brookline
South Boston
Proposed Alignment
Mixed Traffic
Buslane
Busway (Surface)
Busway (Tunnel)
Urban Ring Stop
Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Proposed
Newmarket
Dudley
Square
Roxbury
JFK/UMass
Do rc h e s t e r
Recommended Project – Benefits
„
„
Transit system
z
+67,100 daily transit trips
z
Improved connectivity, congestion relief
Regional transportation
z
Reduced auto trips (-41,500 trips)
z
Greater pedestrian and bicycle connectivity
„
Environmental – reduced auto emissions
„
Economic development, smart growth
z
Mobility for environmental justice (EJ) neighborhoods
z
Connections and development of under-utilized areas
z
Connections to/between life science centers
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Recommended Project – Impacts
„
Transportation
z
z
„
Environmental
z
„
Minor increase in delay for automobiles at some
intersections
On-street parking eliminated at some locations for bus
lanes
Project maximizes use of existing infrastructure which
avoids or minimizes negative impacts on social,
economic, cultural, historic, and natural resources
Construction
z
Short-term localized impacts mitigated by best practices
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Northern Segment
East Boston, Chelsea, Everett, Medford, Somerville
Everett
Wellington
Downtown
Chelsea
Station
d
le
Assembly
Square
Chelsea
Sullivan
Square
Proposed Alignment
Mixed Traffic
Buslane
Busway (Surface)
e
Busway (Tunnel)
Proposed Stop
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
New
Lechmere
East
Boston
Airport
Logan
W t
Western
Segment
Harvard
Square
Ne
Lech
Cambridge
Cambridge,
Allston,
Brookline, A l l s t o n
Kenmore,
Fenway,
Longwood,
Roxbury
Cambridgeport
Kendall /
MIT
Yawkey
BU Bridge
LMA
Ruggles
Brookline
Proposed Alignment
Mixed Traffic
Buslane
Busway (Surface)
Busway (Tunnel)
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEISProposed Stop
Dudley
Square
Washington
Street
Proposed Alignment
Southeast
Segment
Mixed Traffic
Buslane
Busway (Surface)
Busway/ (Tunnel)
Kendall
Proposed Stop
MIT
Roxbury,
South End,
Crosstown,
Dorchester,
South Boston
World
Trade
Center
Broadway
Washington
Street
South Boston
Newmarket
ury
Proposed Al
JFK/UMass
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Dorchester
Mixed
Buslan
Travel Time Comparison
(Year 2030)
Travel Time Comparison
45
No-Build
40
Recommended Alternative
Travel Time (minutes
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Chelsea - Airport
Station
Chelsea - Wellington
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Sullivan Square –
Kendall Square
Kendall Square –
LMA
Boston Medical Center
– LMA
Project
Ridership
„
Everett
Wellington
Downtown
Chelsea
Station
Medford
High demand
throughout
corridor
S o me r v i l l e
Assembly
Square
Ch e l s e a
Sullivan
Square
Harvard
Square
„
Over half of
trips on Urban
Ring have both
ends within
Ring corridor
Airport
Cambridge
Logan
West
Garage
Cambridgeport
Kendall /
MIT
World
Trade
Center
Al l s to n
Yawkey
Broadway
BU Bridge
„
E a st
B o st o n
New
Lechmere
Highest growth
in transit use is
by residents in
Urban Ring
corridor
LMA
Ruggles
Washington
Street
Brookline
S o u th B o s t o n
Newmarket
Dudley
Square
Roxbury
JFK/UMass
Dorchester
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Transit Congestion Relief
„
Ridership
impacts on
existing rapid
transit lines
z
Ridership
reduction
shown in red
z
Ridership
increase
shown in
green
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Project Implementation
1996-2001
Overall
Urban Ring
Plan
Corridor
3 Phases
Draft
Environmental
FTA
Approval –
Enter
Preliminary
Engineering
Preliminary
Engineering,
Final
Environmental
FTA
Approval –
Enter
Final
Design
We
Are
Here
Design – 2011
FTA New Starts
Application
•Cost-Effectiveness
Full
Funding
Grant
Agreement
• State, MBTA
Financial Condition
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Construction – 2015
Next Steps
„
January 2009
z
„
February 2009
z
z
z
„
Public hearing, ongoing 60-day public comment period
Public comment period ends February 10th
MEPA Certificate issued
Ongoing outreach and coordination with stakeholders
March-December 2009
z
z
z
Ongoing outreach and coordination with stakeholders
Commence preparation of initial New Starts application with
project finance plan
Commence preliminary engineering and final environmental
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS
Comments
Please visit our website at
www.theurbanring.com
Urban Ring Phase 2 RDEIR/DEIS