Pollack: Big questions loom over future of transportation
Transit authorities likely spared cuts, for now
The 15 regional transit authorities in Massachusetts will likely be able to avoid service cuts or fare increases in the near future thanks to an infusion of federal cash, Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said Wednesday, even as long-term questions persist about the future of transportation.
State officials are still parsing details in the latest federal stimulus package, but the MBTA and RTAs are set to share funding from a pool of roughly $344 million.
MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak said Monday that he believes his agency, by far the largest transit network in Massachusetts, will get between $250 million and $300 million.
How much will remain after the T gets its share is unclear but it should be enough to help the state’s other regional transit authorities to manage their budgets amid periods of lower ridership, Pollack said.
“We’re all very grateful for both the state and federal funding, which should put you all in a position where things like service cuts or fare increases don’t need to be on the table at this point in time because we can finish out fiscal year 21 and start fiscal year 22 in a pretty good situation,” Pollack said at a Regional Transit Authority Council meeting.
That stands in contrast to the T, which will keep most of its planned service cuts in place for at least the next few months despite the injection of federal funding.
Ten months into the new COVIDafflicted world, commuting patterns still look almost nothing like they did before the pandemic. Ridership on public transit remains down dramatically, peak roadway traffic has not fully returned, and predicting their arcs in the coming months is tricky.
The Baker administration has been hesitant to keep the MBTA running at its full pre-pandemic capacity during a stretch of significantly lower demand. Buses and the Blue Line peaked at slightly above 40% of February ridership early in the fall and have since trended back downward.
By the end of 2020, system-wide ridership was just more than a quarter of its average before COVID hit.
The MBTA’s approach has drawn criticism from lawmakers and activists, who argue the push to realign service models focuses too much on professional and office workers who have flexibility at the expense of essential employees and lower-income residents who, despite the pandemic, have continued to rely on transit to get to jobs, appointments and other needs.
The year ahead will be “transitional,” in Pollack’s estimation, and she forecast again on Wednesday that the state’s transportation landscape might never rebound to what it once was.
“I don’t think 2021 is going to look like 2019, and I’m not sure on the transportation side it’s ever going to look like 2019,” she said.
“Things have happened in the past year that will linger, even after the pandemic is over, so part of our job and our challenge is to understand what’s changed, what is changing, and how we can continue to provide the service our customers need,” Pollack said.