Issue Position: Transportation

Issue Position

Introduction

Ensuring that all residents have access to safe, reliable, and efficient transit options is an essential part of building vibrant communities in the 7th District. Our transportation infrastructure - including roads and bridges, commuter rail, subway, buses, bike paths, and sidewalks - connect residents to opportunities and critical services, in the forms of jobs, school, child care, the grocery store, the hospital, recreation, and more. This opportunity, however, is not equitably distributed across our district, and the problem has been exacerbated by the absence of national transportation policy leadership and the lack of regional coordination related to transportation infrastructure.

We can, and must, do better. Broken trains, shuttle buses, and traffic congestion have become the new normal. Until we have authentic, bold and strategic Congressional leadership we will continue to make the same mistakes over and over again. Disparities in access to reliable transportation options contribute to growing income inequality and persistent opportunity gaps between different communities. For example, Black and Latino transit-commuters in Boston "experience longer average travel times than their white counterparts," potentially as a result of "historical patterns of discrimination that results in lower-quality service being provided to minority neighborhoods."[22] For workers living outside the urban core who rely on their car, the average driver in Greater Boston can expect to sit in more than 150 hours of traffic each year - the equivalent of nearly a full week.[23] These challenges are not merely annoyances - they are tied directly to gaps in economic opportunity and access to critical services. Lack of access to reliable, efficient transportation infrastructure means the single mother in Chelsea has to leave earlier and comes home later, increasing costs for child care; it means the commuter in Everett loses hours of productivity every week getting to and from work; it means the senior in Cambridge struggles to get to the grocery store or the doctor's office without a car.

Existing federal policy and funding supports the development of mega projects like Somerville's Assembly Row, Boston's Seaport, and our interstate highway system, but ignores critical maintenance and expansion projects like the 111 bus to Chelsea, the 99 bus from Everett to Wellington, or the Fairmount line. The current administration has set us back even further by threatening federal funding for transit projects that are critical to communities like those in the 7th District. Federal policy and investment in transportation has not reflected its tremendous importance and, too often, transit-dependent communities have been left out of the transportation planning process.

On the Boston City Council, I have championed strategic, multi-modal transportation projects that have improved conditions for everyone in our city, including piloting bus rapid transit, passing an ordinance to better protect bicyclists, and expanding access to public transit. In Congress, I will work with advocates, residents, and private and public stakeholders in every community to champion the development, adoption, funding, and maintenance on a 21st century regional multimodal transportation and infrastructure plan. I will work to modernize funding and structure at the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), and will be intentional about linking infrastructure investments with local economic development efforts and smart housing policy across the district. By making comprehensive community input central to the development and maintenance of our regional transit system, we can help ensure equity in planning and outcomes.

Transportation Priorities

Funding, Mass Transit, and Infrastructure

Repeal the $1.5 trillion Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The tax reform legislation signed by President Trump in December 2017 threatens millions of dollars in funding for transit, walking, and biking, which may be lost as offsets to replace the trillions in giveaways the tax bill promised for the top 1 percent. We need to repeal this legislation and preserve funding for a regional multimodal transportation and infrastructure policy platform.
Make a substantial investment in rebuilding, repairing, and modernizing our national transportation infrastructure. Modernizing our transportation infrastructure will require massive investment over the next decade; it is critical that we begin thinking strategically about how to fund modernization efforts, because safe, reliable transportation infrastructure is critical to public safety, national security, and represents a huge opportunity to grow our economy and create good-paying, middle-skill jobs. In Congress, I will champion legislation and regulations that modernize the USDOT funding mechanisms to support the maintenance and expansion of regional multimodal transportation and infrastructure projects, with a particular focus on transit-dependent communities. By increasing access to transit for transit-dependent communities, we also unlock economic opportunities and improved community health for people of color, people with disabilities, seniors, and low-income people. To accomplish this, I believe we can build on many of the ideas included in the Jobs and Infrastructure Plan for American Workers, recently introduced by Senate Democrats. Some of my priority policy areas would be:
Increased funding and reformed competitive grant criteria in the TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) grant program that prioritizes regional and local mass transit and infrastructure projects like the procurement of new buses and rail cars for high ridership corridors; incentivizes local manufacturing of new bus, rail, street cars, in our district and our Commonwealth;
Connect all USDOT funding to compliance with procurement/contracting goals to ensure the equitable participation of small businesses, minority business enterprises, veteran business enterprises, and women-owned businesses in all publicly financed transit and infrastructure projects.
Increased federal funding for capital investments to fund Gold Standard BRT corridors and regional rapid transit like the Fairmount Line;
Increased federal funding to expand the availability of bike-share programs like BlueBikes to underserved areas, including mandatory multilingual community outreach.
Increased federal funding for State of Good Repair backlog to help local and state transportation agencies address current maintenance and repair old infrastructure;
Increased federal funding to metropolitan planning organizations to support small level transit improvement projects like sidewalks;
Increased funding to preserve, maintain, and expand affordable housing;
Increased funding of Choice Neighborhoods and Community Development Block Grants to support neighborhood revitalization efforts;
Increased federal funding to the Federal Highway Administration to ensure its solvency and repair crumbling local roads and bridges, particularly in Randolph, Chelsea, Everett, Mattapan, Roxbury, and parts of Dorchester;
Support the creation of career technical education pathways for young adults, unemployed adults, and incumbent workers to address the current skills gap and high-demand of the transportation and infrastructure industry;
Protect workers' rights by ensuring that all federal funding only go to companies that respect a worker's right to receive fair wages, right to organize a union, respect the civil rights of all workers, and maintain a harassment-free work environment;
Increased federal funding for paratransit vehicles and ADA accessibility and improvements to paratransit service operated by nonprofits and/or public-private vendors like The Ride, ride sharing companies or Amtrak that serve the elderly and people living with disabilities.
Increase connectivity to rail and Gold Standard BRT throughout our district I will sponsor legislation that mandates that all USDOT grant funding include an equity connectivity provision that ties grant funding for bicycle, sidewalk, street, and rail infrastructure investments to high-speed, high-capacity rail and Gold Standard BRT development, maintenance, and operations. The legislation would establish equity connectivity criteria and align federal funding to outcomes such as reduced asthma rates, reduced obesity rates, increased ridership, reduced carbon emissions, and vehicle miles traveled.
Sponsor federal legislation to promote healthy, safe, and inclusive conditions for transit-dependent communities. I will sponsor legislation that requires a rigorous, grassroots-driven process to define what constituencies comprise the transit-dependent community, and co-develop a bill of rights to ensure equity and sustainability. The legislation would also require that post-secondary urban planning partners in the district such as Tufts University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and/or UMASS Boston, partner with community-based organizations who work with transit-dependent communities, such as GreenRoot Chelsea, Alternative for Community and Environment, or Mattapan Food & Fitness Coalition, to pilot a participatory health action assessment. This model ensures ongoing stakeholder collaboration, community engagement, and equity for transit-dependent communities.
Provide tax breaks to low-income families for cost of transportation to and from school and work. Lack of access to affordable transportation should never be a barrier to school or employment. I will advocate for changing the Federal tax code to ensure that any family eligible for SNAP benefits or Medicaid receives a tax break equal to the cost of transportation to and from work and/or costs associated with transporting a child to and from school.
Planning

Establish the Congressional Transportation Equity caucus to promote a regional approach to transportation planning. Sponsor legislation that creates a regional planning body for our district. A critical element of ensuring that all of our communities have access to safe, active modes of transportation is the development of synthesized and seamless network hubs, including regional rail rapid transit, subways, walking and biking infrastructure, and gold standard bus rapid transit (BRT) (e.g. dedicated right of way, busway alignment, off-board fare collection, intersection treatments, and platform level boarding).The creation of these modern mobility hubs requires ongoing, inclusive regional planning. This bill also establishes a Congressional Transportation Equity caucus. This would create the forum for members of the House from urban, suburban, and rural communities to come together and work with local leaders to identify, coordinate and promote funding, land use, and transit service planning practices that emphasize equity and sustainability.
Pass the "Mobility, Opportunity, and Vocation Enabling (MOVE)" Act. Introduced by Representative Keith Ellison, this legislation would direct the U.S. DOT to establish performance measures for use by states and local agencies to assess "the connectivity and accessibility of roadways, public transit infrastructure, pedestrian and bikeway infrastructure, and other transportation infrastructure," with a specific focus on accessibility for historically disadvantaged communities.
Expand Funding for the Department of Transportation's Ladders of Opportunity Program. In 2015, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) launched the Ladders of Opportunity Transportation Empower Pilot (LadderSTEP) program, a pilot program designed to leverage transportation projects to generate sustainable economic development. Working closely with seven cities across the country, USDOT provided funding and technical support to advance multi-modal transportation projects that included public transit, walking, and biking infrastructure. This would improve our district's transit network and provide more high quality, high frequency on-street transit options and support public private multi-modal transportation development.
New Technology and Innovative Approaches

Invest in technological improvements to increase reliability, accuracy, and rider experience. It is critical to ensure that, as new technologies are implemented, accessibility for transit-dependent communities is not negatively impacted. For instance, the MBTA's Automated Fare Collection System may help reduce travel times, but could impact people who lack access to credit cards or smartphones. I will work to ensure that federal policy creates opportunities for the incorporation of new technology in our transportation infrastructure, while being intentionally inclusive of transit-dependent communities.
Setting accountability and performance standards related to the use of autonomous vehicles. As automakers and technology companies continue to invest in making self-driving cars a reality, the USDOT must emerge as a leader to establish a regulatory system to oversee its maintenance, operation, and ensure public safety. I will advocate for public and private research investment to develop a regional mobility plans to explore the future impact of self-driving cars with the current transportation and infrastructure of the region.
Leverage the emerging autonomous vehicles industry to expand economic opportunities for people living with disabilities. Federal and state policy ensures special protections for people living with disability to get where they, live, work, and play. But protection does not ensure access. I will advocate for regulations that unlock the economic opportunities that self-driving creates for people living with disabilities and the elderly.

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