PRESS RELEASE ‐ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

 

SRPEDD Announces a 21‐day Public Comment Period and a Remote Public Meeting to hear comments for the draft Regional Pedestrian Plan.

September 18, 2024 – Southeastern Massachusetts’ draft 2024 Regional Pedestrian Plan (RPP) is being released for public comment. The RPP documents current pedestrian needs, existing conditions, priority areas for walkability improvements, and action steps for achieving more walkable communities in Southeastern MA. The updated RPP presents a comprehensive vision for improving walkability across Southeastern Massachusetts, recognizing that pedestrian improvements are key to fostering vibrant, healthy, inclusive, and economically thriving communities.

SMMPO staff engaged the public through various activities, including a public survey, tabling at various community events, canvassing in neighborhoods, focus groups, social media posts, and meetings with vulnerable road user advocacy groups and community organizations. The plan’s public survey was one of the agency’s best performing to date, with over 1400 survey responses from across the region. Public input received informed staff about public priorities for walkability, diverse pedestrian issues and goals across the SMMPO region’s distinct communities and helped ensure that this Plan’s action items reflect the needs of the region’s diverse populations and landscapes. Core themes of public input included the need for improved safety, connectivity, and travel experience. Residents raised concerns about lack of well-maintained sidewalks and safe crossings, debris, and crime limiting walkability, and voiced a desire for pedestrian access to shopping centers, schools, recreational/green space areas, transit , and on state roads such as Route 1, 6, 18, 44, 58, 123. Many respondents across the region’s urban, suburban, and rural communities identify that a town center is a major asset yet feel unsafe and unable to access their city or town center from where they live as pedestrians.

The Plan highlights 15 action items in response to public input and dialogue with municipal and state partners that SMMPO staff will work towards to help improve walkability in the region including: build a queue of Vulnerable Road User (VRU) safety projects for the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Supplemental Project List, identify and fill high priority gaps in the regional sidewalk and path network, align land use and transit planning activities to emphasize more walkable community design standards and improved connectivity to transit routes and stations, continue to improve and expand the SRPEDD Trails Program, and collaborate with MassDOT and municipalities to address a backlog of pedestrian facility maintenance needs.

A public meeting to hear comments on the draft RPP plan will be held remotely on Wednesday October 9 at 4:00 PM via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer feedback. This link https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697 provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone. This is the direct link to the meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82654827403?pwd=Go7Ea0qRcGKPTzubH6vZ0qKpadUFl3.1 

The draft RPP plan will become final on October 15, 2024, at the next Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) meeting. The draft plan can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org/rpp for review. Link here: DRAFT Regional Pedestrian Plan.

Comments are encouraged and, if attendance at the above‐mentioned public meeting is not possible, may be offered by a variety of methods including:

E‐mail jgray@srpedd.org for Regional Pedestrian Plan-related questions;

Direct message or comment on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SRPEDD; or

Direct message or Tweet to Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS?lang=en

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PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

 

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Virtual Public Meeting on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on proposed Amendment #8 of the FFY2024-2028 TIP that includes funding for public transportation vehicles, cost changes for GATRA and SRTA projects, addition of a Fairhaven Steamship Authority project, and cost increase for Taunton Route 138 project.

June 18, 2024 – The FFY2024-2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern Massachusetts is being amended to include funding for public transportation vehicles, cost changes for GATRA and SRTA projects, addition of a Fairhaven Steamship Authority project, and cost increase for Taunton’s Broadway Route 138 Project 608753. Several programs and municipalities in the Southeastern MA region were awarded funding from the state’s Community Transit Grant Program in May 2024 to purchase vehicles for public transportation needs. They include The City of Fall River, Town of Dartmouth, Family Service Association of Greater Fall River, M.O.L.I.F.E, Inc, Town of Rochester, the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA) and Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA).  New Bedford’s Steamship Authority Project S12999 SSA totaling $1,482,563, will be programmed in year 2024 of the FFY24-28 TIP for the purchase of support vehicles and equipment for the Fairhaven Maintenance Department. Taunton’s Corridor Improvements and Related Work on Broadway (Route 138) Project 608753 from Purchase Street to Jackson Street Phase 2 will have a $4.9 million cost increase due to the increasing costs of materials.

The TIP is the programming document listing all federally funded road and bridge projects in the region and all transit projects for both the Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA) and the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA) over five years. Each year, the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) decides how to allocate about $26 million in federal funding for the region, which supplements state and local transportation infrastructure investments in Southeastern Massachusetts. The SMMPO conducts the federally required metropolitan transportation planning process for 27 Southeastern Massachusetts communities and is one of Massachusetts’ thirteen Metropolitan Planning Organizations. Its work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more equitable, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

A virtual public meeting on the proposed amendment will be held on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at 4:00 pm. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments, but attendance is not necessary to offer input or comment. More options to offer comments can be found below.

The meeting will be conducted through the ZOOM app. This link provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697.

The direct link to the public meeting is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82319981101?pwd=zBGJAwAa6Y9AiBlIaL1DBkPkT2b8Y3.1

Draft FFY2024-28 TIP Amendment #8 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for July 16th. For more information about the proposed amendment, visit SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link: FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #8.

Comments are encouraged and may be offered by a variety of methods including: via e-mail at lestrela@srpedd.org; our website at https://srpedd.org/contact-us/; our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SRPEDD/ or Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS at https:// https://x.com/SRPEDD_NEWS.

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PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

 

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Virtual Public Meeting on Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of the Draft FFY2025-2029 Transportation Improvement Program and Amendment #6 of the FFY2024-2028 TIP that includes a project cost increase.

April 17, 2024 – The Draft FFY2025-2029 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern Massachusetts is being released to a 21-day public comment period. The TIP is the programming document listing all federally funded road and bridge projects in the region and all transit projects for both the Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA) and the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA) over five years. Each year, the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) decides how to allocate about $26 million in regional target funding, which supplements state and local transportation infrastructure investments in Southeastern Massachusetts. Several of the 17 regional target funded-projects in this five-year period were shifted to be programmed for construction in a later year due to delays in design plan readiness and/or cost increases. Westport’s 177 at Tickle Road/Roberts Road roundabout project was the only one of these projects to shift to an earlier year. A large portion of the Taunton River Rail Trail –a proposed 22+ mile continuous network of offroad multi-use paths and on- road bike lanes that will connect Taunton, Dighton, and Somerset along the Taunton River— was previously programmed with regional target funds for FFY2029 and is now being programmed with MassDOT’s statewide funds for FFY2028. This frees up some regional funds for another project in that year.

Additionally, the FFY2024-2028 TIP is being amended due to a cost increase and change in project description. Project 605311 in Marion and Wareham, programmed for construction in Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2024 will increase in cost from $40,969,390 to $49,958,261. This project is a bridge replacement in Marion and Wareham on Route 6 at Marion Road and Wareham Road over the Weweantic River. The project description changed to correct the road name from Wareham Street to Marion Road/Wareham Road.

A virtual public meeting on this amendment will be held remotely on Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 4:00 pm. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments, but attendance is not necessary to offer input or comment. More options to offer comments can be found below.

The meeting will be conducted through the ZOOM app. This link provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697.

The direct link to the public meeting:     https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87807876937?pwd=WTBCdE8xRVVYVWszOEpUMytsa3FZdz09

The Draft FFY25-29 TIP and FFY24-28 TIP Amendment #6 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for May 21st. More detailed information on the Draft FFY2025-2029 TIP and FFY2024-28 TIP Amendment #6 can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following links: Draft FFY2025-2029 TIP and FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #6.

Comments are encouraged and may be offered by a variety of methods including: via e-mail at lestrela@srpedd.org; our website at https://srpedd.org/contact-us/; our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SRPEDD/; or Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS at https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS

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PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

 

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Virtual Public Meeting on Tuesday, February 13, 2024, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Amendment #3 of the FFY2024-2028 TIP that includes project cost adjustments and inclusion of new projects.

January 17, 2024 – The FFY2024-2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern Massachusetts is being amended due to project cost adjustments and inclusion of new projects. The Transit element of Amendment #3 (Part A) in FFY2024 includes the addition of four Community Transit Grant awards as well as cost and project changes for GATRA. The Community Access to Rides program, MedWheels, Town of North Attleborough, and TPP received Community Transit Grant funding to provide transportation options for seniors and other vulnerable residents who are unable to use other transit options to access critically needed services.

The Highway element (Part B of Amendment #3) in FFY2024 includes a cost reduction for Project 608049 in Fall River, Corridor Improvements on Route 79/Davol Street. It also includes a cost increase for Project 606527 in New Bedford, Superstructure Replacement, I-195 (EB & WB) Ramp C & F over ST 18, County Street, State Street, Mass Coastal Railroad, Purchase Street, Weld Street, and replacing I-195 (EB) Ramp F over Weld Street – which yields funding changes (reductions and inclusion) across FFYs 2024 through 2026.  In addition, Project S12880 (Part C of Amendment #3), Airport Bus Service from the Mansfield MBTA Station to Logan Airport, is being proposed for inclusion in FFY2024 of the TIP with flexing of regional Congestion Mitigation Air Quality target funds to the Federal Transit Administration.

A virtual public meeting on this amendment will be held remotely on Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at 4:00 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments, but attendance is not necessary to offer input or comment. More options to offer comments can be found below.

The meeting will be conducted through the ZOOM app. This link provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697.

The direct link to the public meeting:  
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87354055513?pwd=VlpWNVJtZTEyM0NETVBrU2N5RG0zQT09

This amendment will become final at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for February 20, 2024. More detailed information on all the components of Amendment #3 can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org at the following links: FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #3 A, FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #3 B, FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #3 C.

Comments are encouraged and may be offered by a variety of methods including: via e-mail at lestrela@srpedd.org; our website at https://srpedd.org/contact-us/; our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SRPEDD/; or Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS at https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS

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PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Virtual Public Meeting on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Amendment #2 of the FFY2024-2028 TIP that includes a project cost decrease and inclusion of a new project.

December 19, 2023 – The FFY2024-2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern  Massachusetts is being amended due to a project cost decrease and inclusion of a new project. Project 13194, which funds guide and traffic sign replacement on a section of Interstate 495 from Wareham to Raynham, will decrease in cost from $8,023,070 to $6,066,394 due to adjusted project limit, change in materials and adjustments in unit prices. Additionally, District 5 Project 613142 will now be included in the FFY2024-2028 TIP. It funds ITS roadway equipment for highway operations for the towns of Dartmouth, Lakeville, Middleborough, New Bedford, North Attleborough, Norton, Swansea, and Taunton.

A virtual public meeting on this amendment will be held remotely on Tuesday, January 9, 2023 at 4:00 PM. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments, but attendance is not necessary to offer input or comment. More options to offer comments can be found below.

The meeting will be conducted through the ZOOM app. This link provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697.

The direct link to the public meeting:  
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82045547941?pwd=YUVoV0MzYWRiUUlPWWEwUTN6a1Bxdz09

This amendment will become final at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for January 16, 2023. The proposed amendment can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org for review.

Page link here: FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #2

Comments are encouraged and may be offered by a variety of methods including: via e-mail at lestrela@srpedd.org; via our website at https://srpedd.org/contact-us/; our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SRPEDD/; or Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS at https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS

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PRESS RELEASE ‐ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21‐day Public Comment Period and a Remote Public Meeting to hear comments on the release of Amendment #1 of the FFY2024-2028 TIP which will program New Bedford’s federal RAISE Grant into the document and FFY2024 UPWP Amendment #1 which will incorporate a contract with GATRA.

October 17, 2023 – Southeastern Massachusetts’ FFY2024-2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is being amended to include a federal RAISE grant of $1.7 million awarded to the City of New Bedford in FFY2024. This planning grant will support the design, permitting, and ongoing public outreach for New Bedford’s Blue Lane Working Waterfront Connector Project. The region’s FFY2024 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) is also being amended to include an extended contract and scope of services with the Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA). The TIP is the programming document listing all federally funded road and bridge projects in the region and all transit projects for both GATRA and the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA). The UPWP identifies all of the transportation planning activities to be undertaken by the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) in the SRPEDD region over the next federal fiscal year, from October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2024. Planning activities include transportation studies, data collection, technical assistance to communities and other projects.

A public meeting to hear comments on the amendments will be held remotely on Monday, November 13 at 4:00 PM via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments. This link https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697 provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone. This is the direct link to the meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88931511399?pwd=dmE2dW43bVJKUWRldmlZRGNwWGtVdz09

These amendments will become final on November 21, 2023 at the next SMMPO meeting. The proposed amendments can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org for review. Page links here: FFY2024-2028 TIP Amendment #1 and FFY2024 UPWP Amendment #1.

Comments are encouraged and may be offered by a variety of methods including:

via e-mail at lestrela@srpedd.org; via our website at https://srpedd.org/contact-us/; our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SRPEDD/; or Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS at https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS

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PRESS RELEASE ‐ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Jackie Jones at jjones@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21‐day Public Comment Period and a Remote Public Meeting to hear comments for the draft Regional Transportation Plan: Moving Forward 2050 and the draft 2024 Regional Bicycle Plan.

 

August 15, 2023 – The draft 2024 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), Moving Forward 2050, and draft 2024 Regional Bicycle Plan (RBP) are being released for public comment. The Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) thoroughly details and assesses the transportation needs of SRPEDD’s 27 Southeastern Massachusetts communities and identifies improvements in areas including roads, bridges, travel patterns, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, airports, freight, congestion management, and safety. This RTP also includes a needs assessment of zero emission vehicle infrastructure and alternative transportation needs relating to mixed use and multifamily housing development. The RTP acts as a blueprint of the region’s existing and future transportation system to the year 2050 and is a framework for future investment as the region experiences population, housing, and climate-related changes. The plan was developed with input from meetings with municipal officials across Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) region municipalities, a widely distributed public survey, drop-in style public listening sessions, stakeholder meetings with diverse community-based organizations in conjunction with the SMMPO’s Coordinated Human Services Transportation Planning, and ongoing collaboration with MassDOT, SRTA, and GATRA officials.

The 2024 Regional Bicycle Plan (RBP) identifies why bicycle transportation is a sound investment for Southeastern Massachusetts, existing bicycling infrastructure and needs, and strategies recommended to equitably increase bicycling opportunities in the region. The Plan provides updates on recent developments in the regional bike network, including regionally significant routes such as the South Coast Bikeway, Taunton River Trail, WWII Veterans Memorial Trail, Ten Mile River Trail, and Mount Hope Bay Greenway. It discusses the public health, environmental, equity, and economic benefits of investing in expanded bicycle infrastructure in the region. The Plan emphasizes the need for greater intermodal coordination between bikeway and transit planning efforts. A series of action steps are identified pertaining to safety, equity, transit connections, data and monitoring, outreach, economic benefits, connectivity, land use, funding, and route planning.

A public meeting to hear comments and concerns on the draft RTP and draft RBP plans will be held remotely on Tuesday, September 12 at 4:00 PM via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend, ask questions and offer comments. This link https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697 provides the information to allow participants to connect to the meeting through a computer, smart phone or regular telephone. This is the direct link to the meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89594375262?pwd=T0MxUEg3MytaSkt2c3Fic3FnTkxQdz09

The draft RTP and draft RBP plans will become final on September 19, 2023 at the next SMMPO meeting. The draft plans can be found on SRPEDD’s website at www.srpedd.org for review. Links here: DRAFT Regional Transportation Plan and DRAFT Regional Bicycle Plan.

Comments are encouraged and, if attendance at the above‐mentioned public meeting is not possible, may be offered by a variety of methods including: E‐mail jjones@srpedd.org for RTP-related questions and jgray@srpedd.org for Regional Bicycle Plan-related questions; Direct message or comment on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SRPEDD; or Direct message or Tweet to Twitter @SRPEDD_NEWS https://twitter.com/SRPEDD_NEWS?lang=en

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Join us for an open-house style listening session in Taunton to tell SRPEDD about your transportation needs, concerns and how you would like the agency to prioritize the resources and funding it receives for transportation projects. Community feedback will help inform SRPEDD’s update of the long-range Regional Transportation Plan, Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan (CHST) and guide the agency’s transportation planning work. 

Join us for an open-house style listening session in Fall River to tell SRPEDD about your transportation needs, concerns and how you would like the agency to prioritize the resources and funding it receives for transportation projects. Community feedback will help inform SRPEDD’s update of the long-range Regional Transportation Plan, Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan (CHST) and guide the agency’s transportation planning work.