NRDC Unveils Roadmap to Fix Transportation, Cut Pollution, Build Livable Communities in MA and New England
BOSTON (July 19, 2018) ??? With dirty air, decaying roads and an outdated transportation network in Massachusetts and New England, the Natural Resources Defense Council unveiled a report today highlighting local solutions and key health and transportation facts showing how and why the region should fix its troubled transportation system.
Boston-based TransitMatters has one solution, which could help commuters in the Greater Boston area get to their jobs more easily. The nonprofit envisions raising MBTA station platforms to provide step-free, level boarding of commuter trains and switching to electric trains???innovations that could cut travel times by 40 percent, while reducing emissions.
NRDC???s report, “Transportation Reimagined: A Roadmap for Clean and Modern Transportation in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Region,??? also promotes expanding electric cars, trucks and trains as a way to curb unhealthy pollution and climate change. It cites New England as a relatively low-carbon power grid area where driving an EV is equivalent to driving a gas-powered car that gets more than 100 miles per gallon.
On the why-do-it side of the ledger, the report notes that Boston and Stamford, Conn., are two of the five most congested cities in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. The transportation sector is responsible for 45 percent of carbon pollution in both Massachusetts and the New England region as a whole. In addition, making the region???s streets safer???by improving walkways and bikeways??? could lower pedestrian and cyclist deaths, which totaled 220 people across the six New England states in 2016.
Also, cleaning up the air by providing more public transit and electric vehicles could better protect the 3.5 million people in Connecticut who live in areas that fail federal ozone air quality standards, and reduce respiratory illnesses such as asthma.
???Massachusetts and all of New England have a rare opportunity to fix what???s broken and transform the region???s transportation system so it???s healthier, cleaner and works better for everyone,??? said Bruce Ho, senior advocate at NRDC and a co-author of the report. ???That includes making streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists, improving public transit, expanding clean electric vehicles powered by homegrown renewable energy, and ensuring that the transportation system is more equitable and serves low-income residents. ??The time is now to invest in the future.???
NRDC released its report in a state-focused telephone press conference. It calls for a transportation makeover to reduce climate change, congestion, lost economic opportunities and inequity. It may be useful to help guide a bipartisan coalition of seven governors and the mayor of Washington, D.C., who have committed to developing a regional clean transportation plan.
Their goal is to cut climate-altering carbon pollution from the nation???s largest source???the transportation sector???and follows the successful Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative that has slashed carbon pollution from the region???s power plants.
NRDC???s report calls for: substantially expanding electric vehicles (EVs); encouraging more walkable and bike-friendly living areas; upgrading public bus, train and subway transit; reducing congestion; and addressing rural and low-income communities that are particularly disadvantaged today when it comes to their transportation needs.
Following the roadmap will yield enormous health and environmental benefits. They include generating billions of dollars of economic growth, major job expansion, improved safety and mobility, reduced respiratory illnesses and asthma, and a safer climate.
“US News and World Report ranks Massachusetts 42nd out of 50 states in transportation, and the average driver in Greater Boston loses $2,000 a year stuck on congested roads,??? said Chris Dempsey, director, Transportation for Massachusetts (T4MA). ???NRDC’s report lays out important options for reforming and cleaning up our struggling transportation system so it better meets the needs of Massachusetts residents from Pittsfield to Provincetown. The Transportation for Massachusetts coalition urges the Baker Administration and the Legislature to make fixing our system a top priority in the months and years ahead.???
Last fall, governors in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont and the mayor of Washington, D.C. committed to developing a regional clean transportation plan. So far, the states have held several public listening sessions to gather comments and recommendations on that plan; the next one will be on July 24 in New York City.
NRDC???s report focuses on 11 states and D.C.: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont. All are members of the Transportation and Climate Initiative, which has worked to address clean transportation solutions since 2010.
Some regional benefits to developing a cleaner transportation system include:
- Reducing gasoline consumption, saving more than $100 billion by 2035.
- Creating 125,000 new jobs and adding $17.7 billion a year to the region???s economy by 2030.
- Reducing pedestrian and cyclist deaths, which numbered 970 and 115 people respectively killed in 2016.
- Improving air quality and health. Nearly 60 percent???37 million people???in the region live in areas that do not meet national air quality standards for fine particulate matter, ozone pollution, or both.
NRDC???s report offers specific benefits and opportunities for urban, suburban and rural communities:
Rural Communities
- Expanding public transit, providing flexible route bus service and better rapid transit could ease key rural problems. On average rural households spend 7 percent more of their budgets on transportation compared to their urban counterparts. Rural workers travel 38 percent more than urban workers, and rural low-income workers travel 59 percent more.
- Improved mobility options for older Americans can keep them independent, decrease isolation and connect them with medical services.
- Creating walkable, bikeable Main Streets could improve quality of life.
Suburban Communities
- Strategies include improving pedestrian walkways and bike lanes in suburban communities, and linking them to transit corridors.
- Intercity rail should be expanded to help commuters get to their jobs, particularly low-income and service workers. Electrified commuter trains and other infrastructure upgrades could reduce emissions and improve speeds and efficiency.
- Suburban communities should develop more electric vehicle charging stations, which would support transitioning drivers out of gasoline-fueled vehicles to electric vehicles, reducing emissions.
Urban Communities
- Cities should develop more compact, multi-use housing and businesses, walkable and bikeable neighborhoods and improved public transit, all of which could reduce roadway congestion. Today, three of the top 10 most traffic congested cities in the country are in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region: Boston, New York and Washington, DC.
- Cities should ensure development of affordable housing near public transit. This can revitalize vacant parcels, while preventing displacement from gentrification.
- More electric buses and other clean vehicles should be deployed, reducing emissions, making neighborhoods quieter and improving air quality.
- Cities should switch to electric-powered heavy trucks and other equipment at ports, airports, and truck depots to reduce pollution in surrounding neighborhoods, which often are low-income and communities of color.??
NRDC calls on local, state and regional leaders to act boldly in designing a 21st century transportation system. Achieving that vision will require new investment in technologies and infrastructure; new policies and funding; and strong political leadership, along with public engagement.
Additional Resources:
NRDC???s report: Transportation Reimagined: A Roadmap for Clean and Modern Transportation in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Region, and more is here: https://www.nrdc.org/resources/transportation-reimagined-roadmap-clean-and-modern-transportation-northeast-and-mid
A blog on the report by principal author Bruce Ho is here: https://www.nrdc.org/experts/bruce-ho/reimagining-transportation-northeast-and-mid-atlantic
A new NRDC video highlighting the report is here: https://www.facebook.com/nrdc.org/videos/10156431285649454/
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world’s natural resources, public health, and the environment.??NRDC??has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at??www.nrdc.org??and follow us on Twitter??@NRDC.