Patrick Files $19B Transportation Plan
Gov. Deval Patrick on Wednesday proposed a plan to spend $19 billion over the next 10 years on transportation projects. It's a bill that mirrors priorities he has been discussing for months and relies on higher taxes for nearly half of the investments that would long outlive his tenure as governor.
The transportation bond bill filed by Patrick would authorize $13.7 billion in spending over the next decade for what the administration called "a backlog of deferred maintenance" and strategic improvements to roadways and rail service, including $4.6 billion for highway projects such as an improved I-93 and I-95 interchange in Woburn.
Click for the full text of Gov. Patrick's transportation bill
The proposal earmarks $4.4 billion for regional rail projects, including $1.3 billion for the Green Line extension into Medford, $1.8 billion for the South Coast rail project, and $850 million to expand South Station in Boston.
About $8 billion in investments are contingent upon the Legislature approving higher taxes called for by Patrick to generate an additional $1 billion a year in new revenue for transportation. House Speaker Robert DeLeo on Wednesday said he was still interested in a "more limited version" of the governor's plan, but would not put a dollar figure on his preference, saying the House was still looking for the "magic number."
"Over the next ten years, these funds will give our residents the transportation system they want, have asked for and deserve," Patrick wrote in a letter to the Legislature accompanying his bill.
"The transportation investment bill, to be funded by both existing revenues and additional revenues through passage of tax reform, is a reflection of choice. To support the transportation system our residents and the economy need and deserve, we must finance it honestly and sustainably," Patrick continued.
Cities and towns hoping for quick passage of funding for local road projects learned that Patrick has decided to bundle state aid for local projects into the long-term proposal, calling for $3.4 billion for Chapter 90 that would allocate $300 million a year through 2023 for local roads and bridges, up from $200 million.
Transportation Secretary Richard Davey said he knows municipal leaders have been frustrated about delays the past two years in getting authorization for Chapter 90 spending as a result of packing the money with other proposals.
"One of the complaints we've heard in the past is that sometimes these bond bills take a while, and we lose the construction season. We're hopeful the Legislature will take up our plan and move it quickly, but certainly over the next nine years as funded this would give cities and towns an added degree of certainty," Davey told the News Service.
Though major bond bills rarely extend beyond five years, Davey said the 10-year plan was necessary because many of the projects prioritized by the Patrick administration – including the South Station expansion and South Coast rail – are expected to take longer than five years to complete.
"Eighty percent of plan is to invest in what we have. I'm not sure that's as bold or ambitious as some would say," Davey said.
Though $8 billion in spending is tied up in Patrick's plan for new revenue, the rest can be financed through federal reimbursements and existing revenue streams, according to Davey. A smaller new revenue package from the Legislature would require the spending plan to be revisited, he said.
The bill includes $2.4 billion for transportation construction projects that will leverage 82 percent federal reimbursement, costing the state just $432 million over 10 years. It also includes $3.3 billion to modernize MBTA subway and bus systems, $604 million for regional transit, and $146 million for information technology projects, including a statutorily required asset management system.
Davey said projects such as fixing the elevated section of I-91 through Springfield or improving traffic flow on I-93 and I-95 at the Woburn and Canton are not "luxuries" but necessities. "We know for certain the status quo doesn't work," Davey said.
The bill also includes $429 million for pedestrian and bike paths, and $497 million for new passenger rail connections between Springfield and Worcester, Boston and Cape Cod, and Pittsfield and New York City.
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