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New from CommonWealth Beacon |
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DIZOGLIO ROLLS ON: State Auditor Diana DiZoglio said the Committee for a Transparent Democracy has gathered more than enough signatures to press forward with a ballot campaign for a law allowing her office to audit the Legislature.
EXITING X: The Massachusetts Senate and Senate President Karen Spilka abandon X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, to protest owner Elon Musk’s endorsement of an anti-semetic conspiracy theory.
OPINION: The chambers of commerce across Massachusetts warn state officials that they are spending too much and not getting enough bang for the buck.”This approach is not sustainable and not responsible,” the business groups saId.
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What commuter rail ridership gains mean for Boston
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November 22, 2023 |
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By Bruce mohl |
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Ridership on the MBTA’s commuter rail system continues to rebound strongly, providing an interesting datapoint in the debate over whether Boston in the post-COVID era will face an office space glut that will make the city feel like a ghost town of empty buildings.
When COVID-19 hit in March 2020, ridership on commuter rail lines plummeted to less than 10 percent of what existed just a month before. As the pandemic dragged on, and remote work became a fixture, many wondered whether downtown Boston would survive.
But since then riders have slowly and steadily returned to the commuter rail system. In October, ridership hit more than 90 percent of pre-COVID levels, making it the most successful travel mode at the MBTA.
MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng said the commuter rail system may be a national leader. “The MBTA’s commuter rail ridership, if not the highest, is one of the highest across the nation,” Eng told the MBTA board last week.
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Ranked-choice voting and rent control will not be on the 2024 ballot in Massachusetts, but supporters are still pushing the policies in the legislature and locally. This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon's Jennifer Smith is joined by Paul Craney and Jennifer Braceras of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance to discuss their opposition to both issues. |
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Eng credited reliable, safe, and fairly frequent service for the turn of events. Those adjectives describing commuter rail service probably wouldn’t have been used seven to eight years ago, when the commuter rail system was struggling with on-time performance and state officials were thinking about rebidding the contract with Keolis Commuter Services, the private operator of the system.
The recent increase in commuter rail ridership is also a reflection of a return to the office – not the way it was before COVID but a new hybrid approach that seems to be centering on three days a week in the office.
Commuter rail officials say the highest ridership days are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The highest ridership on individual days revolves around the work day, with peaks in the morning and evening, but those peaks are not as high and a bit more spread out over the day. There has also been a significant increase in weekend ridership – over 150 percent of pre-COVID levels since April. Overall, weekend ridership now represents 10 percent of the total, up from 5 percent pre-COVID.
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James Aloisi, the former transportation secretary, said he believes the return to office jobs downtown is the key driver of commuter rail ridership.
Brian Kane, the executive director of the MBTA Advisory Board, which represents cities and towns in the T service area, said the rebound in commuter rail ridership is a very positive sign. “A lot of it has to do with employers encouraging workers to return to work and the terrible congestion they face,” he said of the jammed roadways facing those who choose to drive. “Commuter rail represents a good alternative.”
Kane said Boston will survive. “Those who wrote off downtown Boston are wrong,” he said.
Tamara Small, the CEO of NAIOP Massachusetts, which represents the state’s commercial real estate industry, said there’s no question there’s been a return to the office. “It’s safe to say we have seen Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday – people are going into the office,” she said. “People are tired of sitting in traffic. They’re seeing commuter rail as reliable and using it.”
But Small said the vacancy rate in downtown office buildings remains high and the hybrid work schedules will not change that. She said wrenching changes are in store for many buildings downtown and the city will have to adjust. She worries about the future, but acknowledges the situation is not as dire as some had feared. “It’s certainly not a ghost town by any means,” she said.
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In Other News |
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BEACON HILL
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David Gibbons is out as head of the state convention center authority with a year left on his contract. (Boston Globe) Emme Handy, the convention center board chair who oversaw his ouster, in part based on his poor record diversifying leadership and suppliers at the authority, faced similar heat as city CFO under Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. (Boston Herald)
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Executives at Massachusetts-based robotics companies are asking state lawmakers to approve a bill that would ban armed robots. (Boston Business Journal)
MUNICIPAL MATTERS
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The Salem Conservation Commission unanimously approves an offshore wind port being developed by Crowley Wind Services. (Salem News)
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A proposed ban on gas-powered leaf blowers goes nowhere in Gloucester as officials from landscaping companies turn out in force and City Council members refuse to second the proposal. (Gloucester Times)
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Swampscott plans to spend $1.8 million on the King’s Beach cleanup. (Daily Item)
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The Worcester City Council voted to approve apprenticeship requirements for projects that receive tax increment financing and to create a disaster relief fund. (Worcester Telegram)
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL
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Israel and Hamas have reached a deal that will result in the freeing of at least 50 hostages held in Gaza and a four-day pause in fighting. (Washington Post)
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A CNN review of House Speaker Mike Johnson’s interviews, speeches, and commentary shows he supports bans on gay adoption, imprisoning doctors who perform abortions after six weeks, and placing the Ten Commandments in public buildings.
ELECTIONS
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
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Kenn Turner, the CEO of the quasi-public Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, is on leave, though the agency won’t say why. (Boston Business Journal)
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A developer has proposed an eight-building project in South Boston, several blocks southeast of the Boston Convention Center. The plans include life-science space, 205 residential units, and a supermarket. (Universal Hub)
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The Boston Business Journal reports on the ongoing contraction within the state’s cannabis industry, as companies streamline operations, cut workers, or close up shop.
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Boston Market, which has shuttered more than 200 locations since 2017 and is facing a proposed class action lawsuit, might be evicted from its locations in Worcester, Fitchburg, and Springfield. (Worcester Telegram)
EDUCATION
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There are roughly 200,000 students – more than one in five – who are chronically absent from school, according to state education officials who are crafting recommendations for local districts to improve attendance. (GBH News)
ARTS/CULTURE
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Tanglewood in Lenox, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, gets ready for a closeup in the new Bradley Cooper movie “Maestro.” The biopic has Cooper playing conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein. (WBUR)
TRANSPORTATION
ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT
CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS
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Kevin M. Kennedy, the former head of Springfield’s two public golf courses, is set to plead guilty in federal court to tax fraud. Federal agencies raided the golf courses seven years ago as part of a corruption probe. (MassLive)
MEDIA
PASSINGS
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Susan Tucker, a former state lawmaker and housing advocate who represented Andover for decades before retiring in 2011, died on Monday. She was 79. (The Eagle-Tribune) Tucker was the Legislature’s leading opponent of gambling expansion. “I sincerely object to the ‘slots for tots’ approach,” she said in 2005 when there was talk of legalizing casinos and having revenue go to education. “Why doesn’t the state push smoking so the resulting higher cigarette tax collection can fund important services?”
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