Statement of MASSPIRG Transportation
Associate Hathaway Fiocchi
The approaching end of the
Big Dig highway work has been thoroughly discussed in recent months. But today's
lawsuit announced by the Conservation Law Foundation and the cities of Somerville
and Medford underscores a critical fact: the Big Dig is not done until the state
completes the public transportation improvements that are an integral part of
the project.
Officials knew when they
started the Big Dig that increasing the number of cars and trucks coming into
the region would put the Commonwealth at risk of violating federal clean air
standards. In order to offset the additional air pollution from increasing highway
capacity, state officials made commitments to expand public transit in the region.
The promised public transit projects are expected to take cars off the road
by providing more people with a reliable alternative to driving. Because of
the need to meet federal clean air standards, the state is legally bound to
build these important transit projects. Unfortunately, now that the highway
component of the CA/T project is nearly completed, state officials appear to
be trying to back out of the public transit commitments to which they are legally
bound.
Failing to build the transit
commitments would leave the Boston metro area in violation of the federal Clean
Air Act, and would put the public health and environment of Massachusetts at
risk.
With the completion of the
highway part of the Big Dig this year, the central artery can now accommodate
245,000 cars and trucks a day—30 percent more than it could in 2000. Over
one-third of the air pollution in Massachusetts comes from the transportation
sector. Air pollution from cars and trucks is the leading contributor to Massachusetts'
rising rates of child and adult asthma, as well as heart disease, and ultimately
cuts short the lives of thousands of Massachusetts residents each year. Increasing
the number of cars and trucks entering and leaving Boston everyday increases
the amount of air pollution proportionally. Levels of air pollution in areas
like Somerville and Chelsea have far exceeded federal clean air standards since
the Big Dig began.
The state found money to
complete the highway portion of the Big Dig, and now it needs to find money
to complete the rest of its commitments, to protect public health and environment
of Massachusetts. We look forward to a swift resolution of this matter so the
state can start construction on these important projects.
