Draft Memorandum for the Record
Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization Unified Planning Work Program Committee Meeting Summary
May 16, 2019 Meeting
9:15 AM–9:45 AM, State Transportation Building, Conference
Rooms 2 and 3,
10 Park Plaza, Boston
Bryan Pounds, Chair, representing Stephanie Pollack, Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)
The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (MPO) Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) Committee agreed to the following:
Materials for this meeting included the following:
1. Draft Meeting Summary of the March 28, 2019, meeting
2. Draft FFY 2020 UPWP
The Chair opened the meeting and greeted attendees. Attendees then introduced themselves.
There were none.
The chair asked for a motion and second to approve the meeting summary. The motion was made by Eric Bourassa (Metropolitan Area Planning Council) and seconded by Tegin Teich (Regional Transportation Advisory Council/City of Cambridge). Tom Kadzis (City of Boston) requested a minor modification to the meeting summary, specifying that elevating traffic signals would be a good, low-cost place to start on transportation infrastructure resiliency work regionwide, not just in the City of Boston. The chair asked staff to work with T. Kadzis to make the modification. The motion to approve the meeting summary passed unanimously, with the provision that the modification would be made.
Sandy Johnston (MPO staff/UPWP Manager) presented the document to committee members, showing them the several available copies of the full document and the summary packets available as a handout. S. Johnston repeated the list of discrete studies funded in the UPWP and showed the committee where the full descriptions are found in the document and the packets. B. Pounds asked if the budget numbers in the tables include the local match; S. Johnston responded that they do, but Table 7-11 breaks out the local match for Federal Transit Authority Section 5303 funds only, as that has been requested by FTA. B. Pounds remarked that although the UPWP separates FHWA 3C PL and FTA Section 5303 funds, those are being rolled into one contract, so the separation is no longer necessary. E. Bourassa agreed that this seems like an easier approach. S. Johnston explained that the majority of budget lines in the UPWP are funded by a split between 3C PL and 5303 funds. Only a few projects are funded entirely by one type of money or the other. B. Pounds said he found the explanation of the split useful, but it is no longer required by federal partners.
Daniel Amstutz (Town of Arlington) asked for clarification on the transit study that had dropped out of the list of discrete studies (Universe designation T-1, Using US Census Data as a Proxy for Transit Rider Survey Data). S. Johnston explained that there were some feasibility concerns, and some of the work would be undertaken through the Staff-Generated Research budget line. In response to a question from B. Pounds, S. Johnston explained that Appendix D breaks out UPWP work products by municipality. E. Bourassa asked Annette Demchur (MPO Interim Co-Executive Director and Director of Policy and Planning) if she thought there was sufficient budget for the update to Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) project selection criteria, and she responded affirmatively. B. Pounds asked for a motion and second to send the draft document to the MPO for a vote to release for public comment. The motion was made by E. Bourassa and seconded by T. Teich. The motion passed unanimously. B. Pounds thanked staff for their efforts.
Staff passed out quarterly reports for second quarter FFY 2019. S. Johnston asked members to inform him of any studies relevant to Appendix A of the UPWP, which catalogues non-MPO transportation studies going on around the region. There was some clarifying discussion about the budget tables.
The next meeting was scheduled for June 20, before the MPO meeting, so that the committee would have a chance to approve the final draft UPWP before the MPO votes to endorse it.
A motion to adjourn was made by E. Bourassa and seconded by T. Teich. The motion passed unanimously.
|
Members |
Representatives
and
Alternates |
|
At-Large City (City of Newton) |
David Koses |
|
At-Large Town (Town of Arlington) |
Daniel Amstutz |
|
City of Boston (Boston Transportation
Department) |
Tom Kadzis |
|
Inner Core Committee (City of Somerville) |
Tom Bent |
|
Massachusetts Department of Transportation |
Bryan Pounds |
|
Metropolitan Area Planning Council |
Eric Bourassa |
|
Regional Transportation Advisory Council |
Tegin Teich |
|
Three Rivers Interlocal Council (Town of
Norwood/Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce) |
Tom O’Rourke |
|
Three Rivers Interlocal Council Alternate (Town of Westwood) |
Steve Olanoff |
|
MPO
Staff/Central Transportation Planning Staff |
|
Scott Peterson |
|
Annette Demchur |
|
Mark Abbott |
|
Sandy Johnston |
|
Hiral Gandhi |