|
|
| Re: MassDOT and MBTA funding (Re: Bus Transfer in Secaucus Part of No. 7 Extension Plan?) (239475) | |||
 |
|||
| Home > BusChat | |||
|
[ Read Responses | Post a New Response | Return to the Index ] |
|
||
|
Re: MassDOT and MBTA funding (Re: Bus Transfer in Secaucus Part of No. 7 Extension Plan?) |
|
|
Posted by RailBus63 on Wed Jul 20 16:06:20 2011, in response to MassDOT and MBTA funding (Re: Bus Transfer in Secaucus Part of No. 7 Extension Plan?), posted by RIPTA42HopeTunnel on Wed Jul 20 07:22:25 2011. The accelerated bridge repair program is a step in the right direction, but there will still be almost 350 bridges in the state rated as ‘structurally deficient’ when the program is completed (and more will undoubtedly be added to the list as they age). The condition of the pavement on the Mass Turnpike is getting worse every year as turnpike revenues were diverted (I’ve been traveling this road multiple times every year since 1996 and it has never been as bad as it is right now). The MBTA has a $3 billion unfunded backlog just to return the system to a state of good repair and has no money to replace its fleet of 42-year-old Red Line cars, 30-year-old Orange Line cars or 17-year-old RTS buses.The Big Dig’s cost overruns resulted in the project’s cost ballooning from $2.8 billion in 1982 to $14 billion in 2000. The commonwealth’s inspector general estimated the project’s true cost at $18 billion in 2001 and a 2008 Boston Globe report estimated that it could ultimately reach $22 billion. Given that the Federal government capped its contribution at $9 billion, that resulted in an unplanned liability to the commonwealth of $5 billion to $13 billion. I think one can reach a credible conclusion that both the commonwealth’s highways and the MBTA system would be in better shape had the Central Artery cost overrun been avoided and those billions the state is on the hook for been available for other projects. |
|
(There are no responses to this message.)
|
|