IT’S BEEN ABOUT six months since the Healey-Driscoll Administration took office, an opportune moment to assess its performance in connection with the revitalization of the beleaguered MBTA. Let’s look at decisions regarding personnel, resources and actual outputs to get a clear picture of whether, and what kind of, progress is being made. From a personnel […]
James Aloisi
Posted inOpinion
Is transit a public good?
A RECENT Bloomberg City Lab article by the highly regarded transportation thought leader David Zipper used recent statements by proponents of free public bus transit in Boston and Washington, DC, to assert, quite provocatively, that transit is not a public good. His assertion relies on adherence to the economic definition of “public good,” a definition that […]
Posted inOpinion
The dirty secret about ‘clean’ electric vehicles
AUTOMOBILES EMIT tailpipe carbon emissions, we all know that, and these emissions in the aggregate are now the largest single source of carbon emissions in Massachusetts and many other states, surpassing the energy and building sectors. Efforts to reduce transportation sector emissions have rightly taken center stage as a matter of public policy, but the […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA not susceptible to magical solutions
LAST WEEK’S NEWS regarding T safety conditions and slowdowns took most people by surprise, as the hope associated with a new gubernatorial administration and the feeling that perhaps the absolute worst was behind us gave many a false sense that a corner had been turned. The news forcefully and persuasively pushed aside those misplaced hopes. […]
Posted inOpinion
Hiring new GM at T shouldn’t be first priority
THERE IS A VIEW among many in and out of the transit advocacy world – a misguided view in my opinion – that it should be a top priority for the Healey administration to find a new general manager for the MBTA. While I understand the appeal of pushing a restart button on the T […]
Posted inTransportation
A new MBTA board of directors is needed urgently
THE HEADLINE spoke volumes. As the MBTA’s interim general manager laid out a comprehensive presentation on the history and current status of the troubled procurement of new Red and Orange Line cars, the MBTA’s board sat silent and “asked no questions.” It was a jaw dropping, but unsurprising headline, describing the behavior of a board […]
Posted inOpinion
An MBTA to-do list for Gov. Healey
THE HEALEY/DRISCOLL administration will take office at a time when rider confidence in the MBTA and T employee morale have reached unprecedented lows. The necessary task of restoring confidence and morale will be a challenging one, but it cannot be avoided or deferred. In a recent article, I observed that while it is unlikely (and, […]
Posted inTransportation
Sargent and Dukakis offer lessons for Healey
AS THE DAYS dwindle down toward another Boston winter, a new gubernatorial administration prepares to occupy the rabbit warren of office space dedicated to the executive branch in the Bulfinch State House. Speculation abounds as office seekers, would-be influencers, and self-imagined power brokers vie for attention by the Great Mentioners of the local media. It […]
Posted inOpinion
A roadmap for fixing the MBTA
THERE’S NOTHING complicated, surprising, or even new about what ails our metro Boston public transportation system. The task may seem daunting (it is), and the troubles may seem to be mounting (they are), and progress appears to come in slow motion (indeed it does). But none of this means it’s complicated to understand, and then […]
Posted inOpinion
In defense of autonomous vehicle law
A RECENT Barron’s article by the Brookings Institution’s Clifford Winston brought to mind two aphorisms: “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,”and “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.” Winston wrote to decry what he fears is the emergence of a new body of law, “autonomous vehicle law,” a broad […]