Meeting Notes PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE (PTAC) TUESDAY, APRIL 4, 2017 @ 7:00 PM BROOKLINE TOWN HALL, ROOM 408 333 WASHINGTON , BROOKLINE MA 02446

7:00 CALL MEETING TO ORDER AND APPROVE MINUTES FROM MARCH 7, 2017 MEETING. CONGRATULATE NEW MEMBER DAVID SALTMAN AND WELCOME CANDIDATE JONATHAN ZELIG.

PTAC members present: Abby Swaine, Linda Jason, Jane Gould, David Saltman PTAC liaison to Transportation Board present: Scott Englander PTAC candidate present: Jonathan Zelig March 7 minutes approved unanimously.

7:05 TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA.

No guests present.

7:15 BROOKLINE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT TRANSIT: FEEDBACK FROM MARCH 16 TRANSPORTATION BOARD MEETING AND NEXT STEPS.

Abby recounted main points from summary presented to the Transportation Board (appended). The TB directed PTAC to approach the School Dept and School Committee to consider providing school bus service to BHS students, after school as well as potentially before school. (Currently no town school bus service is provided to BHS students after school, but some service is provided in the morning, appended to elementary school busing.) The TB feels it is reasonable to expect that the Town should pay, in moderation, for school bus transportation for BHS students not well-served by MBTA transit. The TB recommends that PTAC seek support from Town Meeting Members whose constituents may benefit, and from School Committee candidates. Now is an appropriate time to broach the issue, as the Town anticipates and plans for large increases in school enrolment, which will result in more congestion at BHS and other schools.

Students residing in parts of Brookline other than South Brookline may also face lengthy commutes to BHS. Some Baldwin (9th elementary) school students may need busing.

Abby passed along member Deborah Dong’s observation that for BHS students taking the Green Line to Reservoir after school, and then the 51 bus to South Brookline, the Route 51 buses often arrive late at Reservoir (but perhaps not so late to be officially considered late by the MBTA—more than 15 minutes). Therefore, the entire trip takes longer and is more frustrating than the MBTA represents, or perhaps than the Town realizes (and would consider acceptable transport for BHS students). Deborah spoke to a Baker School employee who often takes the 51 bus from Beverly Rd to Reservoir Station around the 3:00- 3:30 timeframe, and she said that that particular bus was so inconsistent that Baker staff have stopped relying on it.

Linda will ask the Tab to include school busing as an interview question for School Committee candidates.

Abby will ask the School Committee, School Dept, and BHS administration for a meeting to plan next steps, including a needs assessment.

PTAC intends to clarify how many BHS students utilize town-provided morning school bus transportation, and how many more might use it if students could make it to BHS in time for Z block. We noted that parents may find it more convenient to drop off students in the morning on their way to work than to pick them up in the middle of the afternoon.

PTAC also intends to find out how much the School Dept currently pays for student transportation within Brookline, in order to estimate the cost of additional service (which will have to be approved as part of the Town budget). Additional service could be provided on a pilot basis.

7:35 ALLSTON I-90 PROJECT PRESENTATION BY MASSDOT AT MARCH 20 TRANSPORTATION BOARD MEETING: HIGHLIGHTS AND NEXT STEPS.

Abby related high points of MassDOT’s presentation at the March 20 hearing, and responses from the Board, staff and audience (agenda: http://www.brooklinema.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03202017-4713).

The entire project, including West Station, will proceed to permitting. Funding needs to be appropriated and is uncertain, so the project may be built in stages. The Draft Environmental Impact Report will model West Station, but according to MassDOT the case for building it will need to be made once the project area shows demand. This is in part due to a new station on the same Commuter Rail route, just ½ mile away, coming on line soon (the “New Balance” station). Whether or not the station gets built, pedestrian and bicycle access through the area from points South and North will be secured. MassDOT’s vision is to build the pedestrian and bike ramps from points South first, on structures that might later accommodate bus access if/when West Station is built.

On the subject of whether bus-only access (as opposed to all vehicle access) could be provided from points South (including Brookline) to West Station and beyond (potentially north as far as Harvard Square), MassDOT said that restricting access into perpetuity could fail (and has in other cases). There is no way of building roadway access in such a way as to preclude future use by vehicles other than buses. MassDOT must present the all-vehicle-access scenario as part of environmental scoping/review, but is wary of the potential sizeable impacts on Babcock and (to a lesser extent) Pleasant . In any case, the envisioned I-90 off-ramp accounts for 50% of projected traffic impacts to those streets. In the Draft Environmental Impact Report, MassDOT will provide estimates of total traffic impact. To date, MassDOT has heard from few proponents of all-vehicle access; there is no “bloc” of allied interests, but some Allston residents are interested in allowing such access to points South as a way of potentially lessening traffic in/near the project area. The MBTA will not speculate on the benefits of providing new or modified bus service to/through the project area until it is built and demand can be assessed.

MassDOT stated that they took seriously the input received at the February 29, 2016 Brookline hearing on the project regarding the desire for bus transit access. The City of Boston has expressed interest in Bus Rapid Transit between Longwood and Harvard Square, via the Allston project location. Boston University has also come out in favor of bus-only access. MassDOT will model the transit-only scenario, in addition to the all-vehicle scenario. MassDOT raised the question of whether neighborhoods that might see new bus transit will accept it.

Crowningshield neighborhood residents were vocal at the meeting in opposition to increased traffic.

The DEIR should be out for public comment by the end of September, 2017; MassDOT will walk the Transportation Board through it. At that point the Town will have an opportunity to formally comment.

7:55 MASSDOT PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE ROUTE 60 OUTBOUND STOP OPPOSITE 850 BOYLSTON ST: DISCUSSION AND ACTION ON RECOMMENDATION TO TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT.

PTAC continued discussion of this item; see March 7 2017 minutes for first discussion. David reported that he has repeatedly sought feedback from managers of the Brigham & Women’s Hospital medical office building at 850 Boylston. A Patient Relations rep said that a large number of staff and patients arrive via automobile. There is also a shuttle service that connects 850 Boylston to the main Brigham and Women's Hospital site, satellite parking, and the Green Line. Those who ride the outbound 60 seem to board at the Reservoir Rd stop, instead of trekking to 850 Boylston. David will make a few more attempts to verify that there is no utilization of this stop by businesses across Route 9. Adjacent to the stop there are no trip-generating land uses.

Given the poor condition, desolate location, and hazardous access to the stop in question, its extremely low utilization, proximity to alternative Route 60 and Green Line stops, and the poor prospect of increased usage were it to be improved, Abby will communicate to Todd Kirrane on behalf of PTAC that the Town should acquiesce to MassDOT’s proposal to eliminate it, barring any findings by MassDOT’s survey of riders to the contrary.

8:10 BUS STOP CENSUS: REVIEW PROGRESS AND MAKE PLANS FOR FINALIZING.

Abby passed along Deborah Dong’s comment that assessing stops on Route 51 was impossible due to unshoveled snow rendering sections of impassable. This is consistent with other PTAC members’ observations of stops on other routes this winter. After the record snows of February 2015, Brookline DPW agreed to give clearing snow from bus stops the same attention as Town parking spaces, but in reality access from the sidewalk to the at bus stops is often obstructed by snow/ice banks.

Linda Jason and Jane Gould presented their findings on Route 66 bus stops. Conditions were generally good, although shelters were few.

Once all census results are in and polished, PTAC will present them to the Transportation Department and Board, the Planning and Community Development Department, and the MBTA, in the interest of leveraging improvements.

8:30 UPCOMING GATEWAY EAST PUBLIC HEARING ON 25% DESIGN: PREPARE BY REVIEWING PRIOR PTAC RECOMMENDATIONS AND CHANGES SINCE THEN.

Abby characterized PTAC’s recommendations for bus stop placement and amenities from the last time this project progressed to 25% design, several years ago. Since then, project design changes, including those occasioned by adding a cycle track, may have rendered some PTAC recommendations inapplicable. Abby will circulate to PTAC members those prior recommendations and information on the upcoming meeting. [DONE.] Jane, and tentatively Jonathan and Linda as well, will attend the hearing on April 26 to listen on behalf of PTAC.

8:50 WRAP UP AND ADJOURN.

Abby relayed news from the March 16 Transportation Board meeting, provided by Todd Kirrane, that an MBTA-financed test of Transit Signal Prioritization on the C Line at Carleton St had been completed, and that the Town is studying the feasibility and cost of full deployment, which may require traffic signal hardware upgrades. A recommendation should be ready in 6 months to 1 year. The MBTA is conducting TSP tests on the B and E lines as well, and reports little absolute trip time benefit, but that benefit needs to be multiplied by the number of riders on each train.

Jonathan Zelig indicated his interest in joining PTAC; Abby will ask Todd Kirrane to include his appointment on an upcoming Transportation Board agenda. [Done.]

Jane will continue to monitor the TRIPPS project and attend meetings.

Next PTAC meeting: Tuesday, May 2, 7 pm, Town Hall (room TBA, but probably 408).

APPENDIX TO 7:15 ITEM

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE (PTAC)

BROOKLINE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT TRANSIT: FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION TO TRANSPORTATION BOARD ON NEXT STEPS

Various BHS students have been in touch with PTAC for several years asking for more bus service, noting overcrowding and need for more arrival and departure times. Kids have done class projects on the topic & written articles for the Sagamore. On Oct 5 2016, the Environmental Action Club staged a Car Free Day. BHS students have generally been in touch with School Dept staff rather than Transportation staff, but a few have gotten through to PTAC.

Two morning school buses return from elementary school routes to pick up BHS students in South Brookline and bring them to BHS by 8 a.m. After school, they are dedicated to transporting BHS teams to/from sports venues after they finish transporting elementary school students back home, and therefore not available to ferry BHS students back home. School buses are also not available for earlier arrival times at BHS, e.g. for Z block at 7:30.

MBTA sends one Route 51 bus on a special every afternoon at 3:05 to pick up kids at BHS and bring them to 4 stops in South Brookline before returning the bus & driver to regular Route 51 service. MBTA has several spurs like this serving school populations that were created many years ago and are now vestigial. MBTA says that providing special after school service to BHS is costly, requiring the MBTA to bring a driver onto duty 30 minutes early (shifts and drivers vary widely based on route demands). The driver needs to finish both by 3:45 in order to make it to Forest Hills station by 4:03 to begin rush hour service.

Many students get to/from BHS via the “regular” Route 51 bus and the D line. After school, they can take the D line to Reservoir and catch a Route 51 southbound at 3:24, 3:35 and 3:54. This is less direct and involves some waiting at the origin & connection, but is more flexible in allowing kids time to have meetings or participate in clubs after school.

For over a year, PTAC worked with MBTA planners to see if the existing bus could be made to work more efficiently & reliably, and demonstrate a need for and feasibility of providing a second “special” Route 51 bus to serve BHS in the afternoon. We’ve reached a , with the MBTA saying that providing a second bus is both impossible under current funding/staffing levels, and improper per federal transit policy. (FTA policy: recipients of public transportation system funds cannot compete with school bus service providers.)

PTAC members rode and followed the Rte 51 bus, and observed that it is packed (SRO) and therefore unsafe, and some kids are left behind. MBTA also did their own cursory assessment. (Details of both are below). We disagree with MBTA planners on how long it should take to do two loops rather than one, and offered to pilot expedited loops with fewer stops, but they are not willing to budge. May 2016: PTAC members rode the after school 51 bus and noted it was SRO (~70 students) and may have left some students behind (a frequent occurrence according to students they chatted with). Nov 17: MBTA counted 68 students boarding. PTAC members reported that the driver waved many kids onto the bus without having them pay to expedite boarding. Seating capacity is 39 plus standing room; “crush load” is 77, and the MBTA tries to stay within a load of 66. The bus driver often lifts/locks seats to accommodate more students and their bags. Nov 18: PTAC observed 78 kids waiting, but the bus didn’t show up until 3:25, by which time all but 25 had taken the D line to Reservoir to catch the regular 51 bus there (or sought other means of travel). Nov 29: PTAC did another site visit, with similar results. MBTA did an automatic passenger count (34 kids) on an early release day in the Fall, so it underrepresented typical ridership. (Also if kids don’t have fare and get waved on, as happens regularly, their boarding is not counted.)

Abby has let School Committee, BHS administrators (Hal Mason), and School Dept transportation (Mary Murphy) & administration (MaryEllen Dunn) staff know via email that PTAC has exhausted our leverage with the MBTA, and that the logical next step is for the Town to consider providing additional school bus / shuttle service to meet current and future BHS needs, as well as Baldwin Elementary School and any other school transportation needs. School Dept rep Mary Ellen Dunn expressed interest and willingness to examine transportation needs in the context of school expansion projects, in several months’ time.

Under state law, school districts have no obligation to provide transportation to students beyond 6. Brookline Schools’ own policy is consistent with this. For K-6, districts must provide service for any students that would have to walk more than 1.5 miles to get to school.

BHS expansion plans (per community outreach meeting on March 15) scale up parking, and the “high” option provides for sub-level garage parking. Unknown: if any of that is for student parking. BHS expansion is designed for 2700 (compared to current 2000), which means 700 more kids & their parents in private vehicles per day unless they can get there on mass transit. Buttonwood Village residents note a burgeoning population of young children who will need transportation to/from BHS in a few to several years. Probably similar from Hancock Village expansion.

Currently, queueing for private vehicle dropoff is pretty intense in the morning, and kids are limited in their afternoon mobility. Upperclass students get rides from one another home and to fields & elsewhere; students are probably parking in neighborhoods without permits. At Brookline Day 2015, South Brookline residents asked for an afterschool bus from BHS to Lars Anderson for sports team practice; currently, parents are carpooling their kids; parents willing to help subsidize. Altogether 75- 100 kids.

If reliable bus transportation were provided, demand (currently satisfied by parent chauffeuring, etc) might increase. Demand for student on-street parking permits, and the need to satisfy that demand, might decrease, easing neighborhood impacts.

Taking on the cost of providing additional school transportation will not be welcomed, given looming costs of school expansions. At a 2011 meeting at Baker School on South Brookline mobility (see Appendix), parents expressed willingness to pay for student busing. Although Town officials and staff have frowned on fee-for-service schemes in the past, perhaps that should be reconsidered. BHS athletics fees ($300/sport/season) probably defray the cost of transportation, serving a portion of the student population just as a South Brookline student shuttle fare would. Providing safe transportation for students should be a Town priority.

Next steps?

Approach BHS Administration, School Dept staff, and/or the School Committee with findings, and generate options.

Poll parents of current and prospective BHS students, and current BHS students, who live in outlying areas not served by MBTA transit, to ascertain the scope of demand. Any polling should be conducted after consulting with BHS administration, and in cooperation with student advocates.

?

APPENDIX: Excerpts from

Public Transportation Advisory Committee & South Brookline Neighborhood Assn

"Forum on Public Transportation Needs Assessment for South Brookline"

May 10, 2011 -- Baker School Library

Notes from Public Comment periods (as recorded / transcribed by PTAC member Abby Swaine)

High School students' comments:

Would like Service after 3 pm from HS to SoBro.

There is no weekend or evening mobility for teens living in SoBro.

HS students would also like a way to travel to/from athletic fields after school and on weekends.

Morning problems:

Can't get to HS for Z block classes (7:30 a.m. start).

Can't get to HS for late start mornings.

Buses currently going to/from HS are clumped, and packed.

Afternoon problems:

#51 MBTA bus (which stops near HS once every afternoon) is packed-- SRO.

If passengers get too loud, bus monitor tells kids to get off and walk.

No way to get to athletic fields.

Buses don't show up on snowy days; have to take the trolley (very indirect route).

Weekend problems:

Really hard to get from SoBro to NoBro. For example, need to leave at 6 to get to an 8 p.m. movie-- actually arrive at 7, but if left later, would arrive later than 8. Frequency of #51 bus is inadequate. No friends from NoBro want to visit SoBro kids because it's too hard to get to-- SoBro kids feel isolated.

No #51 service at all on Sunday.

Evening problem: Public transit infrequent and ends early. Have to walk along busy streets in the dark to get home.

Transit just takes too long.

Can't get to Chestnut Hill Mall easily, even though nearby.

Adults' Comments

Kids who live in SoBro can't wait to drive-- they feel marooned.

(Parent resident of Arlington Rd, near Newton St) Have kids approaching HS age, and it's stressful to think how they will get to/from the HS. It's a 45 min walk to the Rte 51 bus. Would like new or modified service to the Green Line.

Biggest concern is after-school transport to home or sports. Ridiculous line of parent cars at HS for pickup. Would be nice to have shuttle from Chestnut Hill T stop to SoBro. Parents feel constantly on-call. All those car trips is a big environmental waste.

(Resident of Beverly Rd) 22 years ago, we were asking for a late afternoon bus from the HS.

(Resident of Bonad Rd) Frequency, consistency, and predictability are important. Paradoxically, kids become more dependent in HS due to mobility constraints. Very hard to wake up in time to take bus to school in time for Z block. Kids can wait as much as an hour for the #51 bus to pick them up at the HS at the end of the day.

Why don't HS kids ride bikes more to/from school? Hard to carry lots of books and athletic equipment. Some are hilly, narrow, or fast (traffic). Arrive at school all sweaty. Parents would like safer bike routes. Easier to bike on weekends.

Will need to get kids to/from new Teen Center in Brookline Village when it's open.

Several in audience expressed willingness to pay fee-for-service for enhanced HS bus service.

Start a dedicated HS shuttle to popular destinations. Students would pay per-ride fee based on ridership.

Conduct a needs assessment first to see how many HS students would use the shuttle. Open it to other residents too. Would need to do a feasibility study to qualify for any state support anyway.

Because there is no parking at the HS, there must be a great need for transit among SoBro HS students. Very few drive.

2 tiers of need: immediate need for HS service, and longer-term need for general mobility.