LETTER TO THE EDITOR: The Price of Doing Too Little

Many of us are all too familiar with the crisis facing our transportation system: crumbling roads, unsafe bridges, MBTA vehicles decades overdue for replacement, the entire system drowning in debt. Regional transit agencies are unable to provide evening and weekend service, while drivers in Greater Boston spend on average 47 hours each year sitting in traffic.

There is a remarkable level of consensus across the state that this is a problem we must fix: Governor Patrick, House Speaker DeLeo, Senate President Murray, and other legislative leaders have all said that transportation is a top priority this year.

The public is on board as well: a recent MassINC poll found that almost 80% of respondents think investing in transportation would be good for economic growth in Massachusetts, and two-thirds of respondents were willing to chip in $50 per year in new taxes for transportation.

The Patrick Administration’s ten-year transportation plan calls for $1 billion in new revenue for transportation each year. Some have said this plan is too ambitious, yet 90% of this funding would go to fixing what we already have! There is consensus from across the political spectrum that an average of $800 million to $1 billion each year is what we need to fix the system we have, and make strategic investments for the future.  The $500 million transportation package recently released by legislative leadership is simply not enough!

In these tough economic times, our legislative leaders seem reluctant to invest in funding transportation sufficiently, claiming we can’t afford to do so.  The real question is, can we afford not to?

If we fail to find a comprehensive solution to fund our transportation needs, the bills will still come due, and we will all still have to pay. Drivers will pay in time lost in traffic jams and wear and tear from driving on potholed roads. Transit riders will pay with service rollbacks and more fare increases, year after year. We will all pay as Massachusetts falls behind other states in economic competitiveness.

Not doing enough in the past is what got us into this situation today. Inadequate funding for local roads means cities and towns are forced to simply patch over the problems, making them much more expensive to fix when the problem is finally too big to ignore. Keeping transit vehicles in service decades past the end of their useful lives causes breakdowns and delays. Avoiding a real solution for the MassDOT operating deficit by putting salaries on the credit card means that our kids will pay $1.75 for every dollar we spend today.

There is never a good time to raise taxes. Our choice now is whether we’re willing to invest in our future, and solve this crisis for a generation, or settle for a band-aid solution that will bring us right back here in another year, or two, or five.

For Massachusetts to remain economically competitive, we must modernize our transportation system while building for the demands of the 21st century. Other states across the country recognize that the driving force behind economic development and prosperity for all residents is investing in transportation. We can be left behind, or we can choose to invest in our future, and build a transportation system that will bring opportunity to all regions of the Commonwealth. 

Lauren Rosenzweig Morton

Marshall Path