Join us for a virtual public meeting to help shape the future of walking and biking in Mansfield. This meeting will introduce the Mansfield Bicycle and Pedestrian Network Plan, a joint planning effort by the Town of Mansfield and your regional planning agency SRPEDD, to gather initial feedback from residents on priorities, challenges, and opportunities for improving sidewalks, trails, crossings, and bike routes across the community.

Your input will help identify key areas for improvement and guide the development of a safer, more connected, and more accessible transportation network for people of all ages and abilities.

All are welcome to attend. Participants will have the opportunity to share feedback and ask questions.

Register for the Zoom meeting here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_V-PBh_SgR1KxN-trxG0Yew

Meeting ID: 876 5697 6366
Passcode: 640995

Learn more about the plan here: https://srpedd.org/transportation/active-transportation-planning/mansfield-bike-ped-plan/

Mansfield Bicycle & Pedestrian Network Plan

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period with a Virtual Public Meeting on Thursday, April 2, 2026, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on addition of Rehoboth bridge project and Steamship Authority projects and earlier construction year for Norton intersection project on the region’s 2026-2030 TIP.

March 17, 2026 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is being amended to program two additional projects and move up one project’s construction year. These proposed changes are being released for a 21-day public comment period and are not yet being endorsed, allowing time for review and feedback before any final decisions are made. FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #4 proposes the following changes:

More detailed information on the amendment can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link:  FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #4. 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 SMMPO decides how to allocate about $30 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.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

Proposed FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #4 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting on April 21st. A public meeting to discuss these topics will be held virtually on Thursday, April 2, 2026, 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.                                                     

Register in advance for the virtual meeting at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cPnCCh9hSJyC-HkOsQQtRQ

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

  • By phone call to 508-824-1367;

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

         # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Daniel Brogan at dbrogan@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period with a Virtual Public Meeting on December 4, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Proposed Amendment #2 of the FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) that includes cost changes for various GATRA and SRTA Regional Transit Authority items.

November 20, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is being amended to program cost changes for various Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA) and Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA) expenses. The Amendment includes one GATRA item and several SRTA items. GATRA’s Wareham East Maintenance Facility previously had $3.9 million in 5307 funds in Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2026, but this has been reduced to $0 due to shifting construction timelines. Approximately $5.6 million in RTA capital funds remains committed to this project, which recently broke ground. For SRTA, the replacement of two vans is being shifted from FFY 2026 to 2027 because the match source has changed from RTA capital funds to statewide toll credits. Other SRTA items involve large cost variances related to the planned Fall River maintenance facility. These changes are primarily caused by delays associated with securing and obtaining approval for an environmentally resilient site that will support growing ridership driven by South Coast Rail, the Gateway Link, and fare-free bus service. The new facility is needed to serve Fall River and surrounding communities and to accommodate SRTA’s continued system growth.

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) over five years. Each year, the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) decides how to allocate about $30 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.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

The public meeting for FFY26-30 TIP Amendment #2 will be held virtually on Thursday, December 4th, 2025, 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.                                                     

Register in advance for the virtual meeting at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87524982447?pwd=tfclbKbSnzmN00xU5hss1kbbZbAMtb.1

FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #2 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting on December 16th. More detailed information on the document can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link:  FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #2.

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

  • By phone call to 508-824-1367;
  • Attending the monthly Joint Transportation Planning Group meeting on December 10. For more info visit: srpedd.org/transportation/jtpg.

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

         # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period with a Virtual Public Meeting on November 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Proposed Amendment #1 of the FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) that includes cost increases and funding category changes for a New Bedford Project and funding for Blue Apple Bus Service continuation.

October 22, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is being amended in federal fiscal years (FFYs) 2026 and 2028 to program a cost change and funding reallocation for two projects. $660,000 of Federal Highway Administration funds are being reallocated to Federal Transit Administration in FFY2026 to program year four of funding for the Mansfield to Logan Shuttle (Blue Apple Bus) service. In FFY2028, New Bedford’s Project 610798 Intersection Improvements at Mount Pleasant Street and Nash Road is increasing in cost from $6,165,230 to $7,062,276. The project’s funding source is also changing from Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funds to include $1,214,132 in statewide earmark discretionary funds.

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) over five years. Each year, the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) decides how to allocate about $30 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.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

The public meeting for FFY26-30 TIP Amendment #1 will be held virtually on Thursday November 6, 2025, 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.                                                  

Register in advance for the virtual meeting at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_NEnz0frJSFCYISq6p2f7Fw

The FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting on November 18th. More detailed information on the document can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link:  FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #1.

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

  • By phone call to 508-824-1367;

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

 # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period with a Virtual Public Meeting on November 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Proposed Amendment #1 of the FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) that includes cost increases and funding category changes for a New Bedford Project and funding for Blue Apple Bus Service continuation.

October 22, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s FFY2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is being amended in federal fiscal years (FFYs) 2026 and 2028 to program a cost change and funding reallocation for two projects. $660,000 of Federal Highway Administration funds are being reallocated to Federal Transit Administration in FFY2026 to program year four of funding for the Mansfield to Logan Shuttle (Blue Apple Bus) service. In FFY2028, New Bedford’s Project 610798 Intersection Improvements at Mount Pleasant Street and Nash Road is increasing in cost from $6,165,230 to $7,062,276. The project’s funding source is also changing from Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funds to include $1,214,132 in statewide earmark discretionary funds.

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) over five years. Each year, the Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO) decides how to allocate about $30 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.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

The public meeting for FFY26-30 TIP Amendment #1 will be held virtually on Thursday November 6, 2025, 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.                                                  

Register in advance for the virtual meeting at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_NEnz0frJSFCYISq6p2f7Fw

The FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting on November 18th. More detailed information on the document can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link:  FFY2026-2030 TIP Amendment #1.

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

  • By phone call to 508-824-1367;

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

 # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org or Jackie Jones at jjones@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Two Virtual Public Meeting Options – Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 2:00 pm or Monday October 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of the Draft Regional Evacuation Plan for Southeastern Massachusetts.

September 17, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s draft Regional Evacuation Plan is being released to a 21-day public comment period. The Southeastern Massachusetts region is at risk from a variety of natural and man-made disasters that can result in the need for evacuation. While individual communities in the region have done significant work to be prepared for disasters, there is a significant planning gap at the regional level. Most community level planning does not provide instruction for evacuation outside community borders, leading to conflicting routing between communities.  In order to provide and improve regional coordination, SRPEDD staff from the Homeland Security, Transportation, and Environmental departments completed a regional evacuation plan.

The study was largely informed by meetings with representatives from every municipality in the SRPEDD region, small, targeted focus groups, and meetings with statewide partners. To gain a comprehensive understanding of municipal resources for emergency situations and potential challenges, SRPEDD staff met with representatives from town administrator offices, police and fire departments, councils on aging, school departments, departments of public works, health departments, conservation agents, and other emergency management or human services staff.

This study examines the potential triggers for evacuation, clearly defines regional evacuation routes, and provides a plan to coordinate regional resources. The study also contains recommendations for improving routing and coordination and a resource list of best practices, which include:

  • Re-entry Permitting: Controlling the flow of residents back into disaster impacted areas through a permitting system administered away from the disaster area in order to make for an orderly re-entry only for those with homes in impacted areas.
  • Regional CERT: There has been a decrease in the number of active Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) after Communities may not be able to maintain a CERT if only one or two individuals are interested. However, if several municipalities band together with interested individuals, regional teams may be formed. Regionalization lets municipalities pool their budgets and share assets, and in some cases, can open grant opportunities not available to single municipalities.
  • Regional Public Info and Warning: It has been said that for a message to get across to the public they need to see it three times, e.g., on the municipal Facebook page, on a variable traffic message board, and a text from their local alert system. Building a robust database of people opted into emergency alerts, and wide-scale, unified messaging from municipal websites, leaders, and community groups to get individuals opting into this system, will be crucial to spreading the word in an emergency.
  • Regional Sheltering: For some municipalities, capacity for resourcing, staffing, and operating an emergency shelter for 72 hours before help arrives is now more limited. Regionalizing shelters spreads the burden of resourcing and operating across regional partners and makes it easier to send one-two personnel every other shift than fully staff a shelter with just one municipality’s resources. Centralizing clients in one shelter also facilitates provision of wraparound services.

The Plan will help tie identified needs to potential funding sources and proposes next steps. SRPEDD staff will be doing tabletop exercises with community stakeholders to test evacuation scenarios and will distribute best practice information to local stakeholders and the public, which will include updated routing and TIP project evaluation criteria that prioritizes TIP funding towards projects that help strengthen evacuation routing.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

Two virtual public meetings on the draft Regional Evacuation Plan will be held remotely, one on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 2:00 pm and one on Monday October 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm. The same information will be presented at both meetings; there is no need to attend both. 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.

Register in advance for the September 30, 2025 (2 pm) webinar at this link:                                              https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_z3Jomt7rS2OaynGMll0KYw                                     

Register in advance for the October 6, 2025 (4 pm) webinar at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ZjlZlfT6RDaTVDmpp9WQgg

The Draft Evacuation Plan will have a 21-day public comment period, and a final version will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for October 21st. More detailed information on the document can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link: Draft Regional Evacuation Plan.

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

 The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

         # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org or Jackie Jones at jjones@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Two Virtual Public Meeting Options – Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 2:00 pm or Monday October 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of the Draft Regional Evacuation Plan for Southeastern Massachusetts.

September 17, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s draft Regional Evacuation Plan is being released to a 21-day public comment period. The Southeastern Massachusetts region is at risk from a variety of natural and man-made disasters that can result in the need for evacuation. While individual communities in the region have done significant work to be prepared for disasters, there is a significant planning gap at the regional level. Most community level planning does not provide instruction for evacuation outside community borders, leading to conflicting routing between communities.  In order to provide and improve regional coordination, SRPEDD staff from the Homeland Security, Transportation, and Environmental departments completed a regional evacuation plan.

The study was largely informed by meetings with representatives from every municipality in the SRPEDD region, small, targeted focus groups, and meetings with statewide partners. To gain a comprehensive understanding of municipal resources for emergency situations and potential challenges, SRPEDD staff met with representatives from town administrator offices, police and fire departments, councils on aging, school departments, departments of public works, health departments, conservation agents, and other emergency management or human services staff.

This study examines the potential triggers for evacuation, clearly defines regional evacuation routes, and provides a plan to coordinate regional resources. The study also contains recommendations for improving routing and coordination and a resource list of best practices, which include:

  • Re-entry Permitting: Controlling the flow of residents back into disaster impacted areas through a permitting system administered away from the disaster area in order to make for an orderly re-entry only for those with homes in impacted areas.
  • Regional CERT: There has been a decrease in the number of active Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) after Communities may not be able to maintain a CERT if only one or two individuals are interested. However, if several municipalities band together with interested individuals, regional teams may be formed. Regionalization lets municipalities pool their budgets and share assets, and in some cases, can open grant opportunities not available to single municipalities.
  • Regional Public Info and Warning: It has been said that for a message to get across to the public they need to see it three times, e.g., on the municipal Facebook page, on a variable traffic message board, and a text from their local alert system. Building a robust database of people opted into emergency alerts, and wide-scale, unified messaging from municipal websites, leaders, and community groups to get individuals opting into this system, will be crucial to spreading the word in an emergency.
  • Regional Sheltering: For some municipalities, capacity for resourcing, staffing, and operating an emergency shelter for 72 hours before help arrives is now more limited. Regionalizing shelters spreads the burden of resourcing and operating across regional partners and makes it easier to send one-two personnel every other shift than fully staff a shelter with just one municipality’s resources. Centralizing clients in one shelter also facilitates provision of wraparound services.

The Plan will help tie identified needs to potential funding sources and proposes next steps. SRPEDD staff will be doing tabletop exercises with community stakeholders to test evacuation scenarios and will distribute best practice information to local stakeholders and the public, which will include updated routing and TIP project evaluation criteria that prioritizes TIP funding towards projects that help strengthen evacuation routing.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

Two virtual public meetings on the draft Regional Evacuation Plan will be held remotely, one on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 2:00 pm and one on Monday October 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm. The same information will be presented at both meetings; there is no need to attend both. 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 meetings will be conducted through ZOOM. 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.

Register in advance for the September 30, 2025 (2 pm) webinar at this link:                                                   https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_z3Jomt7rS2OaynGMll0KYw                                   

Register in advance for the October 6, 2025 (4 pm) webinar at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ZjlZlfT6RDaTVDmpp9WQgg

The Draft Evacuation Plan will have a 21-day public comment period, and a final version will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for October 21st. More detailed information on the document can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link: Draft Regional Evacuation Plan.

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

 The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

         # # #

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Lisa Estrela-Pedro at lestrela@srpedd.org or Jackie Jones at jjones@srpedd.org for more info.

SRPEDD Announces a 21-day Public Comment Period and Virtual Public Meeting on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of the Draft FFY2026 UPWP staff work plan and Draft Safe Streets for All – Regional Safety Action Plan.

May 21, 2025 – The Southeastern Massachusetts Metropolitan Planning Organization (SMMPO)’s draft FFY2026 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) is being released to a 21-day public comment period. The UPWP is the planning document listing the transportation-related projects, technical assistance, and other activities that SMMPO staff at the Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD) will undertake during the upcoming federal fiscal year to support the goals and actions established in the Regional Transportation Plan, Moving Forward 2050.  Ongoing planning activities include traffic data collection and analysis, pavement management analysis, community technical assistance, transit and active transportation project planning, public engagement, and development of the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Special projects outlined in the draft UPWP to be undertaken in the October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026 period include:

  • a Food Access and Security in Transportation Plan that will collect and map data on grocery stores, bodegas, food pantries, farmers markets, and other food security infrastructure locations in Southeastern Massachusetts to assess gaps in transit and active transportation access to food;
  • an Age-Friendly Mobility Plan that will identify needs, set priorities, and recommendations for future SRPEDD technical assistance work in transportation-related improvements that encourage healthy aging in Southeastern Massachusetts communities;
  • an Economic Impact Analysis of the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority’s fare free program;
  • a Corridor Study of Pleasant Street in Fall River;
  • development of a database to prioritize flood-prone roadways and culvert replacements;
  • Evacuation planning tabletop exercises;
  • an update of the region’s Congestion Management Plan; and
  • a Parking Lot Utilization Plan that will collect and map parking usage rate data to help communities make informed, sustainable, and cost-effective parking policies and land use decisions.

Additionally, the SMMPO’s draft Regional Safety Action Plan (RSAP), developed through a federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant, is being released to a 21-day public comment period.  From 2019–2023, Southeastern Massachusetts experienced 1,828 serious vehicle-involved crashes resulting in 245 deaths and 1,623 severe injuries. To address this, the SMMPO led by SRPEDD, together with consulting firms Toole and VHB and an interdisciplinary Task Force, developed a Vision Zero-aligned Regional Safety Action Plan. The plan aims to reduce fatal and serious injury crashes by 35% by 2040—and ultimately reach zero—using a Safe Systems Approach that emphasizes safer road design, speed management, and protection for vulnerable users like pedestrians, cyclists, and transit riders.

The Plan was informed by crash data analysis and public engagement, including 300+ survey responses, community event tabling, and focus groups which targeted youth, low-income, and Limited English Proficient road users. It identifies high-risk corridors and common crash factors in the region such as speeding and distracted driving and presents a comprehensive toolkit of various engineering and safety solutions—including short to long term and low to higher cost options—to address these high crash-risk and high-injury areas. Low-cost, short-term solutions include high-visibility crosswalks, pavement markings, signage, signal timing changes, and trimming vegetation that blocks sight lines. The Plan also proposes non-engineering solutions such as educational campaigns and enforcement strategies.

New Bedford, Fall River, and Taunton were identified as having the highest number of serious crashes, with Middleborough and Dartmouth showing higher crash severity rates per capita. The RSAP ranks and prioritizes potential safety projects at both the regional and municipal levels to ensure a wide array of opportunities for funding for all 27 communities. This Action Plan identifies locations within each community in the SMMPO region that are eligible to apply for implementation or demonstration project federal SS4A funding to make streets safer. The current grant round closes on June 26, 2025 and communities are encouraged to reach out to SMMPO staff for guidance. The RSAP is being released for public review to gather local feedback and ensure alignment with municipal needs.

The RSAP was developed in collaboration with a diverse Regional Task Force of municipal officials, community leaders, transit professionals, and public health advocates. Their role continues into implementation of the Plan as stewards of safer streets across Southeastern Massachusetts.

All of this work helps support the region’s 27 communities toward building a safer, and more accessible, connected, reliable, and resilient transportation system for all mode users.

A virtual public meeting on the draft UPWP and RSAP will be held remotely on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 , 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  ZOOM. 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/81435133182?pwd=qPegiVuEDNBD20UpaieCqhXWUxSaoT.1
Meeting ID: 814 3513 3182
Meeting Password: 372831

The Draft FFY2026 UPWP and Draft Safety Action Plan will have a 21-day public comment period and final versions will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for June 17th. More detailed information on the two documents can be found on SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following links: Draft FFY2026 UPWP and Draft Regional Safety Action Plan.

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

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

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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, March 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Amendment #2 of the FFY2025-2029 TIP that includes various transit project fund reallocations and Amendment #1 of the FY2025 UPWP that will add development of a Regional Age- and Dementia-Friendly Plan.

February 19, 2025 – The FFY2025-2029 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern Massachusetts is being amended in federal fiscal years (FFYs) 2025 and 2026 to program cost and timeline changes for various Greater Attleboro-Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA) projects. A bus purchase project will be added to FFY2025 and construction of the Wareham East Maintenance Facility is being pushed out to FFY2026. These modifications will lead to the proposed fund reallocation or downsizing of several projects, including GATRA’s parcel 6A solar project, purchase of support vehicles, rehabilitation of bus facilities, miscellaneous support equipment, and other vehicle replacements.

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) 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.

The region’s FFY2025 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) is also being amended to include tasks for the development of a Regional Age- and Dementia-Friendly Plan. In the coming decades, no population in the Southeastern Massachusetts region is projected to experience as much growth as older adults over 65 years of age. SMMPO staff are responding to older adult needs identified in previous work and collaborating with various local partners to create a work plan of action items staff will take to support SMMPO communities toward creating physical and social environments that are inclusive and accessible for people of all ages, with a focus on helping older people live well. The focus will be on highlighting deficiencies and recommendations relating to older adult transportation and mobility infrastructure and will also draw connections to housing, food access, and open spaces. The UPWP identifies all the transportation planning activities to be undertaken by SMMPO staff in the SRPEDD region over the federal fiscal year. Planning activities include transportation studies, data collection, technical assistance to communities and other projects.

All of this 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 Thursday, March 6, 2025, 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 ZOOM. 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.

To register for the public meeting visit:          https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hx91n0GwSxiXAqHDUYZOyg

Meeting ID: 886 3799 3326

Meeting Password: 083246

Proposed FFY25-29 TIP Amendment #2 and FFY2025 UPWP Amendment #1 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for March 18th. For more information about the proposed amendment, visit SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link: FFY2025-2029 TIP Amendment #1 and FFY2026 UPWP Amendment #2.

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.

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

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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, February 6, 2025, at 4:00 pm to hear comments on the release of Amendment #1 of the FFY2025-2029 TIP that includes a Swansea project cost increase and addition of a New Bedford project.

January 21, 2025 – The FFY2025-2029 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for Southeastern Massachusetts is being amended in FFY2025 to program a cost increase and a new project. Project #608759 for traffic signal and safety improvements at three intersections on Swansea’s Route 6 will have a cost increase of $3,092,506, from $12,663,827 to $15,756,333 due to the extension of project limits (~400’), updated unit prices and higher utility relocation costs. Work on this project consists of intersection improvements at the following three intersections: Route 6/Route 118 (Swansea Mall Drive), Route 6/Maple Avenue, and Route 6/Route 136 (Market Street). Work includes traffic signal upgrades, geometric improvements, improved bicycle and pedestrian accessibility, signs, pavement markings, and/or geometric modifications. The intent of the project is to address safety at these three high crash locations. The FFY2025-2029 TIP will also program Project S13168 in FFY2025 which will include two demonstration projects in the city of New Bedford funded by a Safe Streets for All Discretionary grant of $237,266.

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.

All of this 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 Thursday, February 6, 2025, 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.

To register for the public meeting visit:      https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_b9V5xEuwRfCa-fj0aJ2xMA

Meeting ID: 814 7544 8552

Meeting Password: 420223

Proposed FFY25-29 TIP Amendment #1 will have a 21-day public comment period and will be endorsed at the next SMMPO meeting which is scheduled for February 18th. For more information about the proposed amendment, visit SRPEDD’s website www.srpedd.org at the following link: FFY2025-2029 TIP Amendment #1.

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.

The SMMPO, through SRPEDD, provides reasonable accommodations, including language assistance and/or auxiliary aids and services free of charge, upon request and as available. For accommodation or language assistance, please contact SRPEDD’s Title VI Coordinator by phone (508 824-1367), dial 711 to use MassRelay, or by email at aduarte@srpedd.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible prior to the meeting.

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