THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF TRANSPORTATION
OEVAL
L.
ev.
f t. .
PATRICK
GOVERNOR
TIMOTHY P. MURRAY
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
JAMES
A.
October 15,2009
ALOISI JR.
SECRETARY
The Honorable Ian Bowles
Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
100 Ca.."TIbridge Street, Suite 900
Boston, MA 02114
Re: Urban Ring
Dear Ian:
I am writing to withdraw the Notice of Project Change submitted by the Executive Office of
Transportation to your office on June 30, 2009 in connection with the Urban Ring Project in light of
significant new circumstances that ought to inform further decision-making in connection with the
Urban Ring. Those circumstances arise from the Commonwealth's now completed rail acquisition
agreement with CSX, and the imminent approval of the Boston Regional Transportation Plan.
As you know, I have been a strong advocate for a phased approach to implementation of the
Urban Ring, beginning with the so-called Northern Tier. I have supported this approach in the spirit
of providing people with meaningful benefits and mobility improvements in the short term and not
asking them to wait needlessly for mobility improvements they need and deserve now. This
approach is also supported by the conclusion of the state's rail acquisition agreement with CSX.
This agreement provides for the purchase by the state of a variety of critical rail rights, including the
Grand Junction from East Boston through Chelsea, Everett, Somerville, Cambridge and Allston.
This creates an opportunity to make real progress on moving early elements of the Urban Ring
Project forward, as I explain in more detail below.
The East Boston/Chelsea Haul Road connecting the Airport Blue Line Station with the
Chelsea commuter rail stop will enable us to significantly enhance regional mobility, reduce traffic
and improve air quality in-communities that have long suffered from the burden of urban and
airport-related traffic. This can be an important, achievable element of the Urban Ring with
independent utility that demonstrates the efficacy of the larger proposed project. As Transportation
Secretary, I have articulated a specific vision for improving access to Logan Airport via public
transportation for people working at Logan Airport and for travelers. The East Boston/Chelsea
Haul Road component of the Urban Ring is an essential element of that vision - one that can and
should be built and funded by Massport as apriority.
The CSX deal also unlocks exciting new mid-range opportunities that should be considered
in more detail. Specifically, the best long-term option for Northern Tier Urban Ring service may be
TEN PARK PLAZA, BOSTON, MA
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The Honorable Ian Bowles
Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs
October 15, 2009
Page 2
by rail using DMU vehicles. This possibility has not yet been properly analyzed, but in the
aftermath of the CSX deal, serious consideration of DMU service on the Grand Junction from East
Boston to Allston Landing should be considered more fully.
The true significance of the CSX deal must be to provide short-term mobility improvements
for our citizens. In the long term, it will enable the Commonwealth to meet its goal of bringing
commuter rail service to Fall River and New Bedford, and significantly improve passenger rail
service between Boston and Worcester. In the short term, the CSX deal enables meaningful
progress on critical pathways within the urban core.
In addition to the East Boston/Chelsea Haul Road, I believe we can make progress on the
component [:om the BU Bridge, across the CSX trackage at Allston Landing to Cambridge Street,
and continuing across the proposed Stadium Way via Barry's Comer to Harvard Square - as
essentially described in the DEIR. This branch of the Urban Ring has high ridership potential and is
now realistically achievable in the near term.
Likewise, I believe that it is also feasible in the near term to proceed with the branch of the
Urban Ring from the BU Bridge to Kendall Square Station, over a combination of Albany, Vassar
and Main Streets, and then proceeding to Lechmere Station on the Green Line. This branch has also
been identified as having high ridership benefit at modest cost. For each of these components, the
precise details of signal prioritization and detailed routing remain to be resolved in a collaborative
effort with Boston, Cambridge and Brookline.
I believe that these initiatives have been vigorously vetted, and will have no adverse
environmental impacts. I hope that in the near term your office will be able to give MassDOT a
green light to move forward on each of these.
Finally, and as a separate issue, I note that much of the area encompassed by the Northern
Tier of the Urban Ring will soon be impacted by simultaneous repair and reconstruction projects on
several bridges crossing the Charles River. I want to use this opportunity to reiterate my strong
advocacy for transit-specific measures that will serve as appropriate mitigation for the expected
traffic disruption and congestion associated with the upcoming repair and reconstruction of the
Charles River bridges. The cost of implementing these critical measures to increase and enhance
bus and subway service should be borne by the Accelerated Bridge Program.
I hope that you will continue to be vigilant ab(;mt ensuring that our transportation dollars are
spent in a manner that respects the environment and '1nproves the quality of life for all of our
citizens.
I,
James A. Aloisi, Jr.
Secretary
cc:
David Mohler
Jamey Tesler
Maeve Bartlett