Got Traffic? Highway Improvements Casualty Of Budget Strife
Improvements to the intersection of Interstates 290 and 495 have been cut from an important regional priority list.
Many MetroWest commuters are all too familiar with the congestion caused by the narrow and windy on and off ramps at the intersection of Interstates 290 and 495.
There was hope that the intersection - labeled as one of the top 10 transportation nightmares in the region - would be improved, but a recent revision to the state's regional transportation plan puts funding for those improvements in jeopardy, much to the chagrin of transportation advocates and local officials.
The Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Boston region, which includes several MetroWest towns, recently cut the proposed $29.9 million in improvements to the 290/495 intersection from its regional transportation plan, which is a forward-looking document that outlines the area's transportation priorities over the next 20 years. While it's just a list, it's an important one - if a project is cut from the list, it's not eligible for federal highway dollars, or matching funds from the state.
Backed Up
Advocates for the region, including the MetroWest/495 Partnership and state Rep. Danielle Gregoire, D-Marlborough, had mobilized when word spread this summer that the project was at risk, but they lost their fight at the MPO's meeting last week.
Paul Matthews, executive director of the partnership, characterized the cut as "disappointing" and said that the project "deserves funding even in an era of diminished resources."
Gregoire attended the MPO meeting last week to advocate for the importance of the project, saying that it is not just a traffic concern, but also a matter of safety for the region.
"As far as I can tell, they (the MPO) have decided to focus priorities and money elsewhere," she said.
All states are required by the federal government, through their MPOs, to form regional transportation plans. For many years, the 290/495 intersection has been on the list and the project has even gone through some initial environmental permitting, according to Matthews.
However, the federal government came to the Boston MPO in December 2007 and said that its plan was not financially viable and that it needed to be trimmed, according to Marc Draisen, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council and vice chairman of the Boston MPO.
"They were right," Draisen said of the previous plan. "It was a pipe dream."
After a year and a half of review, and little additional funding from the state for transportation, the MPO was forced to trim the list of projects, and the 290/495 project was one of 17 projects cut.
Draisen said the MPC recognizes the importance of the 290/495 project, but added that the fiscal climate necessitated tough decisions.
"It's bad for the region," he said. "We need these projects. We need almost every project that was cut. But the reality is that Massachusetts has spent a long time through both Democratic and Republican administrations pretending we had money we didn't have."
Draisen said that the state has reached its borrowing capacity for funding transportation projects, yet the state legislature has been loath to allocate any taxpayer dollars.
All that borrowing is catching up to the state, according to Draisen.
"If I ran my house the way transportation is run in Massachusetts, I'd be homeless," he said.
But all hope is not lost for the 290/495 project. Adam Hurtubise, a spokesman for MassHighway, said that his department will "continue to support the project."
And it could get back on the regional transportation list.
"We've been assured the project will be considered in 2011," Matthews said. "While that's very encouraging, we want to make sure this project advances."
We're planning a more in-depth piece on this topic for our next print edition. If you have any stories to tell about sitting in traffic at the 290/495 intersection, please let us know!
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