Candidate Statements for the October 2019 Regional
Transportation Advisory Council Election
Candidate
Statement: Schuyler Larrabee, running for Chair of the Advisory Council
Who I am
I
graduated from Syracuse University with both a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Architecture and have been practicing
architecture for close to 50 years. A
great deal of my experience in both the private sector, where I had my own firm
for 18 years, and in the public sector working for the Commonwealth as a Senior
Program Manager with the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance
(DCAMM) has been in master planning large developments, and the vehicle and
transit access to them.
Throughout
my entire career, transportation, and how it shapes cities, towns and the
development of individual projects has been of great, often the primary,
interest for me in designing and managing the development of private and public
projects. Because of my avocational
interest, I have accumulated substantial technical knowledge about how
transportation systems are created and managed.
I
have represented the Boston Society of Architects on the RTAC since January
2008. I chaired the development of a
prior edition of the LRTP, and have taken active participation in the
development of the TIP and the UPWP. I
am currently working with CTPS staff to revive and extend the membership of
several towns and interest groups.
I
have lived in Cambridge and Newton since 1976, observing the evolution of the
transportation systems in eastern Massachusetts ever since. I joined RTAC in January 2008. I served one term as Vice Chair with Laura
Wiener as Chair.
What I believe
Boston,
and the region, are on the cusp of enormous developments in all forms of
transportation. Extending and improving
the frequency of commuter rail, the expanded and improved Green Line,
reconstruction of the Turnpike through the “throat” in Allston, even connecting
North and South Stations are enormous undertakings. At the other end of the scale, we see
electric scooters and ebikes. How will all this be accommodated and even
better, integrated?
The
state has plans: the MBTA’s Focus 40, and the State Rail Plan, the MBTA’s
Program for Mass Transportation, among others.
MassPort has expansion plans concerning access.
I
believe that Regional Transportation Advisory Council must be fully
informed about all these developments to be in a position to render advice
to the MPO. To that end, I will work to
have presentations to the Council on all of these topics well in advance
of the decisions being finalized by the various agencies making them.
Only
then, I believe, can the Council serve its purpose, to advise the MPO on
the opinions of the various cities, towns and interest groups.
Contact information
617-864-3870
Cell
(If
I hang up on you, please call again. Due
to spam, I tend to hang up on unrecognized numbers.)
Candidate Statement: Len Diggins, running for Chair
of the Advisory Council
Background
I currently reside in Arlington, and
I’ve lived in the Boston area continuously since 1981. I majored in biology,
and I've done extensive research in population & evolution genetics as well
as neurodegenerative diseases, specifically Alzheimer's Disease
and Huntington's Disease (1, 2, 3). My experience relating to transit and
transportation began in 2004 when I became one of the initial members of the
MBTA Rider Oversight Committee. Since then, I've acquired much knowledge
regarding the MBTA. general transit issues across
properties, and the overall transportation network of which transit is a
part. Though much of my knowledge has come from reading various reports
and draft proposals, more important and detailed knowledge has come from those
who work within the MBTA, MassDOT, CTPS, and other groups as well as many individuals
with which I have formed trusting relationships (4, 5).
Though I didn’t set out to become
the Chair of RTAC this year, bolstered by some unexpected encouragement, I find
myself excited and energized by the prospect of becoming the Chair of RTAC, a
group that has accelerated my understanding of the complexity and importance of
our transportation network. By becoming Chair, my hope is that my
knowledge and understanding not only will increase through closer interaction
with members of RTAC, but also that I will be able to apply what I’ve learned
and will continue to learn to serving the goals of RTAC more effectively from a
leadership position (6).
Goals
With a group like RTAC, I feel that
the notion of "leading from behind" should be seen in a positive
light. I think that the Chair should make sure that the voice of every member
is heard, publicly and/or privately, and then the Chair should take steps to
address the issues and concerns of the membership. Of course, as a member,
I have some ideas to contribute, too. Below, is a list of what I see as
some goals for RTAC along with some ideas that I intend to propose to the group:
* Work with the MPO to transform the
RTAC's comments on the current Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) into
action items. This includes: (A) the development of performance metrics
that are more relevant to the MPOs goals; (B) scenario planning exercises in
order to better appreciate the benefits of sufficient funding for the
transportation network and the consequences of continued underfunding; and (C)
working with cities and towns to identify or create local entities that can
propose needed projects to the MPO and that can also function as resources for input
and feedback to RTAC. This will involve a thorough review of the Needs
Assessment document associated with most recent LRTP.
* Work with the MPO to make the
MBTA’s Capital Investment Planning process more transparent. This includes revealing
how projects are scored and the rationale for project selection.
* Participate in the Unified Planning
Work Program (UPWP) working group.
* Interact more closely with the
Metropolitan Area Planning Council and keep abreast of the development of MetroCommon 2050. Though it is not in our scope to comment
on MetroCommon 2050, we can take measures to make
sure that we are well-informed and in a better position to comment on the 2050
plan as individuals and/or through the groups that we represent.
* Review the Future of
Transportation Report and determine how to use the information provided in the
near-term and long-term in order to foster better regional planning and
cooperation.
* Devote some time at each meeting
(and possibly extending the meetings by 15 minutes) to hearing from one or two
members of RTAC on issues that concern them personally and/or the organizations
that they represent.
* Engage non-executive RTAC members to
a greater extent in creating the monthly meeting agenda.
* Reach out to other established
groups that deal with transportation or transportation-related issues for ideas
and comments regarding the RTAC, the BostonMPO, and
salient issues of the day
Conclusion
I generally think of myself as an incrementalist. Yes, major changes do happen, such as
the internet and possibly autonomous vehicles, but year in and year out, we
strive to improve the system that we have rather than rebuild it. The key is to
find the small changes that will have
the biggest impact while also being watchful of innovations that
can affect not only the transportation system but also how people use
it. This requires attention to details and the ability to interact
effectively with other groups and individuals. I have the necessary aptitudes
and skills! I am very enthusiastic about using my abilities in any role on the
RTAC as we work to accomplish our primary goal of making the transportation
network function better for everyone.
Contact information
508-364-2382
References
To the extent that I know anything,
it is because I have learned from the words, written or spoken, of more
knowledgeable people. I have tremendous respect for the people that I have met
and worked with on transportation and transit issues over the last 15 years,
and my heart has been warmed by the positive responses that I received when I
asked the people listed below to
serve as references. I made it clear to them and I make it
clear to you that these are not endorsements. This is a listing of people
that you can contact for more input on what it's like to work with me and/or my
knowledge of transportation and transit issues. More importantly, though,
they are people to whom I do and will continue to refer when I want feedback,
comments, advice, and new ideas.
* Daniel Amstutz,
Senior Transportation Planner, Arlington, damstutz@town.arlington.ma.us
* Eric Bourassa, Transportation
Director, Metropolitan Area Planning Council, ebourassa@mapc.org
* Ali Carter, Economic Developer
Coordinator, Arlington, acarter@town.arlington.ma.us
* Adam Chapdelaine,
Town Manager, Arlington, AChapdelaine@town.arlington.ma.us
* Joe Curro,
Select Board Member, Arlington, jcurro@alumni.tufts.edu
* Chris Dempsey, Director,
Transportation for Massachusetts, cdempsey@t4ma.org
* Melissa Dullea,
Senior Director of Service Planning, MBTA, MDullea@mbta.com
* Linda Dillon, Director of Customer
Service, Keolis, Linda.dillon@keoliscs.com
* Dan Dunn, Select Board Member,
Arlington, dunster@dandunn.org
* Alison Felix, Senior
Transportation Planner & Emerging Technologies Specialist, Metropolitan
Area Planning Council, afelix@mapc.org
* Robert Guptill,
Manager of Service Planning, MBTA, rguptill@mbta.com
* Scott Hamwey, Manager of Transit
Planning, Office of Transportation Planning, MassDOT, scott.hamwey@state.ma.us
* Brian Langevin,
Co-Chair, Capital Investment & Finance Subcommittee, MBTA Rider Oversight
Committee, bplangevin@gmail.com
* John Lozada,
former, Director, Office of Civil Rights, MassDOT, john.lozada@state.ma.us
* Liz Moore, former Director of
Policy and Planning, CTPS, emmoore@icloud.com
* Howard Muise,
Chair, Arlington Transportation Advisory Committee, hmuise@verizon.net
* Josh Ostroff,
Partnerships Director, Transportation for Massachusetts, jostroff@t4ma.org
* Laurel Paget-Seekins,
Assistant General Manager for Policy, MBTA, lpagetseekins@mbta.com
* Jenny Raitt,
Director, Department of Planning & Community Development, Arlington, jraitt@town.arlington.ma.us
* Jen Rowe, Transportation Planner,
Boston Transportation Department, (formerly Participation Program Manager,
CTPS), jenrowemail@gmail.com
* Paul Regan, Executive Director,
MBTA Advisory Board, pregan@mbtaadvisoryboard.org
* Scott Smith, Operations Research
Analyst, Volpe National Transportation Center, USDOT, scottsmith@alum.mit.edu
* Charlie Ticotsky,
Policy Director, Transportation for Massachusetts, cticotsky@t4ma.org
* Robert Vivona,
Principal Autonomy Engineer, Aurora Flight Sciences, ravivona@verizon.net
* There are at least 9 current
members of the CTPS that I feel that I can call anytime, but I didn’t think
that it was appropriate for me to ask them to serve as references.
Footnotes
(1) Increased Selection
Response in Larger Populations: Selection for Ethanol Vapor Resistance in
Drosophila melanogaster at Two Population Sizes
Weber KE and Diggins LT, Genetics, 125: 585-597 (July, 1990)
(2) Genomic analysis
reveals that Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence is combinatorial
Lee DG, Urbach JM, Wu
G, Liberati NT, Feinbaum
RI, Myata S, Diggins LT, He J,
Saucier M, Deziel E,
Friedman L, Li L, Grills G, Montgomery K, Kucherlapati
R,
Rahme LG, Ausubel FM, Genome Biology, 2006; 7 (10): R90
(3) Optimization
of treatment regimens for high-throughput screening of transgenic fruit flies.
L Diggins, MB Mahoney, D Keefe, W Lee, E Lund, J
Symonds, CM Singh, Society for Neuroscience Conference 2009 (Poster)
(4) Central Transportation Planning
Staff
(5) I have worked with the MBTA and
the MPO on separate occasions to give extensive input on developing their
respective equity (Disparate Impact and Disproportionate Burden) policies.
(6) I have also attended at least ten
MPO and UPWP working group meetings over the last three years, and there are
many faces that I recognize in the room. I know them, and they know me; so, I would
come to the table with a sense of comfort and confidence that would allow me to
interact at the meetings with greater ease from the beginning of my term as
Chair.
Candidate Statement: Scott Zadakis, running for
Vice Chair of the Advisory Council
Over the past four years that I have
been attending RTAC meetings I have become well-acquainted with the functions
of the Boston MPO and I have enjoyed learning more over time about the important
role the MPO plays in sustaining, expanding, and evolving our regional
transportation systems. During this time I have also found that within RTAC the
varied disciplines, sub-sectors, and voices that are represented – whether
members, presenters, staff, or attendees – create great value in our meetings
and ultimately our input to the MPO. I
look forward to the opportunity as Vice Chair to help facilitate informative
meetings with dynamic presentations that continue this dialogue and keep RTAC
both interesting and effective as an advisory body.
As Vice Chair I will leverage my
background in transportation policy and planning as well as my knowledge about
the needs of the region to effectively communicate the vision of our members
and I will assist the Chair in any way I can so that they may be as effective
as possible at doing the same. I will also strive in the exemplary footsteps of
recent leadership to keep meetings efficient and keep the Council on-task to
improve transportation assets in our region.
Lastly, I look forward to the
opportunity of working more closely with CTPS and MPO staff to help them carry
out their mandate, as well as with RTAC committees, guest speakers, and all of
you.