JANUARY 2005 TRANSREPORT TRANSPORTATION NEWS FROM THE BOSTON REGION METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION The Silver Line Waterfront Line Opens for Service New Tunnel under Silver Line Waterfront, the second phase Leverett Circle Opens of the MBTA’s Silver Line bus rapid The Central Artery/Tunnel Project transit service, was officially opened on opened a new, direct connection from December 17. Storrow Drive to I-93 North and the “Today, the barrier between downtown Tobin Bridge in December. This connec- and the South Boston waterfront has tion, via a new two-lane tunnel, allows been removed,” said MBTA General drivers headed north to bypass Leverett Manager Michael H. Mulhern. “Frequent Circle, one of Boston’s worst traffic and reliable rapid transit service is now choke points. The left lane of Storrow available to thousands of people who Drive eastbound separates from the other seek quick and easy access to jobs, hotels, two travel lanes, takes cars down into a restaurants, and other destinations like tunnel, and then takes them up onto the the city’s new convention center.” I-93 North Connector. The $601 million project has created Prior to the opening of the new tunnel, rapid transit service running from South approximately 25,000 vehicles per day Station, under Fort Point Channel to the Silver Line Waterfront’s Courthouse Station passed through Leverett Circle on their World Trade Center, and then to the way to I-93 northbound and the Tobin From Silver Line Way the service pro- Boston Marine Industrial Park and City Bridge. About 1,300 of those are ceeds in—currently—two branches: Point. Later in 2005, service to Logan expected to use the new 600-foot Stor- Route SL2, Boston Marine Industrial Airport and to Andrew Station will be row tunnel each hour during the morning Park, and Route SL3, City Point via added. commute, and another 1,500 vehicles per Boston Marine Industrial Park. During hour during the evening commute. Silver Line Waterfront service connects 2005, two additional surface branches By allowing so many vehicles to bypass to the Red Line at South Station. In the will be implemented: Route SL4, Andrew Leverett Circle, the tunnel will also Waterfront area, the Silver Line serves Station via Boston Convention and prove to be a boon to motorists headed two new underground stations, Court- Exhibition Center and D Street, and to Msgr. O’Brien Highway or Nashua Route SL1, Airport Street via the circle. In addition, Terminals. Silver Line Waterfront < Leverett Tunnel cont. on p. 2 operates during the same hours as the Red Line, meeting the first and last Red Line INSIDE THIS ISSUE trains of the day. Ser- vice from South Sta- house Station and World Trade Center MPO activities update . 2 tion to Silver Line Way operates as fre- (WTC) Station. Beyond WTC Station, TIP adjustment . 2 quently as every 2 minutes during peak Silver Line Waterfront crosses D Street commuting hours. It runs every 5 min- Longfellow Bridge bike counts . 2 at grade, passes under the new Manulife/ utes during off-peak hours, including on Chinatown development . 3 John Hancock building, and makes a stop on Silver Line Way. Lovejoy ferry service ends . 3 < Silver Line Waterfront cont. on p. 3 Meeting calendar . 4 The members of the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO): Executive Office of Transportation • City of Boston • City of Everett • City of Newton • City of Salem • Federal Highway Administration • Federal Transit Administration • Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority • Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Advisory Board • Massachusetts Highway Department • Massachusetts Port Authority • Massachusetts Turnpike Authority • Metropolitan Area Planning Council • Regional Transportation Advisory Council • Town of Bedford • Town of Framingham • Town of Hopkinton < Leverett Tunnel cont. from p. 1 BOSTON REGION MPO ACTIVITIES it will benefit drivers on Storrow Drive BOSTON REGION MPO ACTION ITEMS who are headed to I-93 South, North At its meeting on December 16, the Transportation Plan- Station, or the FleetCenter. ning and Programming Committee approved an administra- tive adjustment to remove references to transit carryovers in TIP Adjustment the fiscal years 2005–2009 TIP (see article on right side of page). The Committee also took the following actions: On December 16 the Transportation • Approved the Bus Deployment Needs Study and the Proposed North Andover Planning and Programming Committee (Lucent Technologies) Commuter Rail Station Feasibility Study work scopes of the Boston Region Metropolitan Plan- ning Organization voted unanimously to • Approved public circulation of the memorandum, “Improvements to Signalized adjust the fiscal years 2005– 2009 Trans- Intersections in the Inner Core” portation Improvement Program. This • Approved the 2004 Congestion Management System report, Mobility in the Boston adjustment removes MBTA carryover Region: Existing Conditions and Next Steps, for public release funds for items that were awarded by the • Tabled action on the schedule for certification document activities, pending Federal Transit Administration before revisions the end of federal fiscal year 2004. The REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COUNCIL UPDATE adjustment reduces the total carryover At the December Advisory Council meeting, MBTA Federal Program Manager funds from $307.9 million to $137.2 mil- Charles Passanisi gave a briefing on the MBTA’s draft FYs 2005–2010 Capital lion. The Committee suspended its stan- Investment Program (CIP). The presentation included information on the process dard public review period of 15 days to for CIP development and on funding constraints and a listing of the projects pro- make the adjustment effective immedi- posed for inclusion. The majority of funds in the draft CIP are dedicated to state-of- ately. good-repair projects, in keeping with MBTA policy. At this meeting, members also discussed an amendment to the draft FYs 2005–2009 Transportation Improvement Program and voted to recommend its approval to the MPO. Longfellow Bridge Bike The January Advisory Council meeting will feature a briefing by Deputy Secretary Count Observations of Transportation Astrid Glynn on the transportation reform legislation passed last A bicycle count was conducted at summer. Boston’s Longfellow Bridge on November ACCESS ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO THE MBTA (AACT) UPDATE 30. Bicyclists were counted crossing over In December, the river as well as riding along the path AACT, in addition on the Esplanade under the bridge. The to holding its peak-hour count of 121 bicyclists was monthly meeting, almost 50 percent higher than the 82 held an Executive peak-hour bicyclist count recorded in a Board meeting and November 28, 1984, count at the same had its annual holi- location. day party. The party What was very striking was the increased was attended by AACT members, staff of the MBTA and the Central Transporta- volume of vehicular traffic since then. In tion Planning Staff, and vendors for THE RIDE. A good time was had by all. The 1984, backups on the bridge were regular monthly meeting included reports and updates from RIDE vendors, the extremely rare. When that happened, MBTA Police, and many motorists impatiently changed the the MBTA Office of breakdown lane into a third travel lane, Transportation making bicycle travel much more diffi- Access. cult. However, when traffic on the bridge The January AACT this past November was backed up in the meeting will feature inbound direction for over an hour, a discussion of THE motorists seemed to take it in stride as RIDE’s new dis- part of their regular commute. And bicy- patching system. clists did not seem to mind as they passed the stalled traffic in the breakdown lane. < Bike Count cont. on p. 3 TRANSREPORT 2 JANUARY 2005 < Silver Line Waterfront cont. from p. 1 Development on Former Artery Land in Chinatown Saturdays and Sundays. Beyond Silver The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Extension was built in 1962. Previously Line Way, Routes SL2 and SL3 provide issued a request for proposals in Decem- the Hudson and Albany street area south peak-period service to stops every 6 to 12 ber for the development of one of the of Kneeland Street was a residential sec- minutes. plots of land made tion of the Chi- “This is a historic day. The Silver Line is available by the Cen- natown neigh- changing the dynamic of the city of tral Artery/Tunnel borhood. The Boston by opening up a whole new area Project, Parcel 24 in guidelines for to efficient and reliable transit service Chinatown. The the parcel were and economic development,” said Trans- Boston Redevelop- developed portation Secretary Daniel A. ment Authority through a com- Grabauskas. “This project will be a major (BRA) guidelines for munity review impetus for activity and investment on the 58,000-square- process con- the South Boston waterfront.” foot parcel, situated ducted over the between Hudson, Parcel 24 in Chinatown past 18 months One new development adjacent to Silver Kneeland, and Albany streets, call for the with BRA’s Chinatown/Leather District Line Waterfront is Waterside Place, creation of 275 to 325 residential units, Central Artery Advisory Committee. which will be built on 10.3 acres of the with a significant proportion of those set approximately 50 acres of Massport prop- Of the total land being freed up by aside for affordable housing. The devel- removal of the old elevated Central erty being made available for mixed-use opment will also contain ground-floor development in the Waterfront area. Artery and associated roadways, three retail space and ancillary parking. In quarters will become open space. Parcel The project is proposed to include resi- addition it will have 5,000 to 10,000 dential and retail space, a cinema, and a 24 is part of the one quarter of land set square feet of community space and a aside for development. parking garage. Construction is slated to park at the center.