Draft Memorandum for the Record

Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization
Meeting Minutes

May 7, 2026, Meeting

10:00 AM–12:10 AM, Zoom Video Conferencing Platform

David Mohler, Chair, representing Phillip Eng, Interim Secretary of Transportation and Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)

Decisions

The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) agreed to the following:

• Approve the minutes of March 19, 2026
• Approve the minutes of April 6, 2026
• Approve the minutes of April 16, 2026
• Approve the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Parking Lot Counts Work Scope
• Release the Federal Fiscal Years (FFY) 2026–30 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Amendment Four
• Release the Draft FFYs 2027–31 TIP for a 21-day public comment period
• Release the Draft FFY 2027 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) for a 21-day public comment period
• Endorse the Critical Urban Freight Corridors Update

Meeting Agenda

1. Introductions

Click here to see attendance below.

2. Chair’s Report—David Mohler, MassDOT

There was none.

3. Executive Director’s Report—Tegin Teich, Executive Director, Central Transportation Planning Staff

T. Teich announced a Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) development process update, introduced Richard Barad, Transportation Planner, and previewed the agenda.

4. Public Comments  

Steven Olanoff, Three Rivers Interlocal Council (TRIC), stated that a Costco with 927 parking spaces is going to be built near project 605857, the Route 1 University Avenue Everett Street intersection in Norwood and may impact the project design.

Jim Nee, MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA), asked if staff and MassDOT could correct the MWRTA heavy-duty maintenance facility on the TIP to clarify that $25 million was identified as the federal funding need for the current phase, not the fully realized project cost.

Dennis Giombetti, City of Framingham, supported J. Nee’s request.

5. Committee Chairs’ Reports

Sam Taylor, MassDOT, shared that the UPWP committee met and voted to recommend the MPO release the draft FFY 2027 UPWP for a 21-day public comment period.

Brian Kane, MBTA Advisory Board, shared that the Administration and Finance committee will meet on May 28 at 9:00 AM and discuss State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2026 budget updates.

6. Community Advisory Council Report—Caitlin Allen-Connelly, Chair, Community Advisory Council

C. Allen-Connelly shared that the Community Advisory Council will be meeting May 11, and thanked staff for their support in fulfilling the council’s mandate to bring broader voices into the decision-making process.

7. Action Item: Approval of March 19, 2026, Minutes

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• March 19 Minutes (pdf ) (html )

Vote

A motion to approve the minutes of March 19, 2026, was made by the City of Somerville (Tom Bent) and seconded by the TRIC (S. Olanoff). The motion carried.

8. Action Item: Approval of April 6, 2026, Minutes

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• April 6 Minutes (pdf) (html)

Vote

A motion to approve the minutes of April 6, 2026, was made by the City of Somerville (T. Bent) and seconded by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane). The motion carried. The Community Advisory Council abstained.

9. Action Item: Approval of April 16, 2026, Minutes

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• April 16 Minutes (pdf) (html)

Vote

A motion to approve the minutes of April 16, 2026, with a minor adjustment to the attendance table, was made by the City of Somerville (T. Bent) and seconded by the TRIC (S. Olanoff). The motion carried.

10. Action Item: Work Scope: MBTA Parking Lot Counts—Bradley Putnam, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• MBTA Parking Lot Counts Work Scope (pdf) (html)

B. Putnam presented the MBTA parking lot counts work scope that has a 12-month schedule and a budget of $30,000 paid for by 5303 transit planning funds.

Discussion

Lenard Diggins, Town of Arlington, asked if the park-and-ride dashboard would be updated. B. Putnam responded the final product format has not been determined but would be at the discretion of the MBTA.

D. Mohler asked for clarification on the funding source. Sandy Johnston, MBTA, stated it is MassDOT directed 5303 funding.

C. Allen-Connelly shared the council’s support for the project and asked if the park-and-ride dashboard could be updated as it is a useful resource for the public.

B. Kane asked for an explanation on 5303 and 5307 funding. D. Mohler explained that 5307 are urbanized area formula funds that flow directly to regional transit authorities, while 5303 funds go to the state and the region and are planning funds not capital.

B. Kane also requested the project include broad data collection such as solar panels, charging stations, signage, and others.

Lydia Hausle, City of Boston, also requested broad data collection, including bike parking.

S. Olanoff stated the study should only examine available parking, as some lots near stations are not open to commuters.

Erin Schaffer, City of Beverly, asked for a standardized form for municipal staff to collect data for the project.

Rob Guptill, Town of Brookline, asked for coordination with municipal staff on changes to parking availability.

D. Mohler asked how staff would determine what lots to include. B. Putnam explained they would begin with the 2018 Congestion Management Process counts and build off that dataset. He also asked if on-street parking would be counted, which B. Putnam stated they would not be due to the small volume. He then asked if this was a utilization count, which B. Putnam stated it is.

S. Johnston explained that this is a pilot for this type of work and they are excited to work with the MPO and municipalities to regularly update the parking dashboard.

Vote

A motion to approve the MBTA Parking Lot Counts Work Scope was made by the MBTA (S. Johnston) and seconded by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins). The motion carried.

11. MBTA Capital Investment Plan (CIP) Update Part Two—Mike Malia and Josh Klingenstein, MBTA

J. Klingenstein presented the MBTA’s proposed amendment to the FFYs 2026–30 TIP and their proposed element of the FFYs 2027–31 TIP. He reviewed all their federally funded items in their CIP and thus in the MPO’s TIP.

The FFYs 2026–30 TIP amendment includes $2.4 billion of Federal Transit Authority (FTA) formula funding, $2 billion in potential Capital Investment Grants core capacity funding, and $521 million in other federal funding such as discretionary grants.

The MBTA’s portion of the FFYs 2027–31 TIP includes $1.918 billion in FTA formula funding. He explained that TIP projections decrease significantly after FFY26 due to expediated discretionary funding obligations and Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing for Positive Train Control/Automatic Train Control/Fiber assumed to be in FFY26 only.

12. Action Item: FFYs 2026–30 TIP Amendment Four—Ethan Lapointe, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Amendment Four (pdf) (html)

E. Lapointe presented the amendment that updates the MBTA Transit Program element of the TIP to reflect changes to MBTA projects funded by federal grants and MPO Regional Target funds consistent with the MBTA FY 2027–31 CIP and FFYs 2026–30 TIP Amendment Three.

Discussion

D. Mohler asked about the two Regional Target Program projects that E. Lapointe clarified do not have any change and are appearing on both sides of the TIPs so the MBTA can access the funding now.

Travis Pollack, Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), asked for clarification on the Mobilized Shield Collison Avoidance Phase 2 project. S. Johnston explained it is a bus camera technology.

Vote

A motion to approve the FFYs 2026–30 TIP Amendment Four, was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the City of Somerville (T. Bent). The motion carried.

13. Action Item: Draft FFYs 2027–31 TIP—Ethan Lapointe, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Draft TIP (pdf) (html)
• Draft TIP Executive Summary (pdf) (html)
• Draft TIP Appendices (pdf)

E. Lapointe presented the Draft FFYs 2027–31 TIP, providing a program overview, changes to the document, engagement during the comment period, and requested a vote to release the draft.

Discussion

C. Allen-Connelly asked if there was a website to provide comments and how much public comments would influence decisions already made throughout the TIP development process. E. Lapointe directed comments to TIP@ctps.org and stated that comments are included in appendix C of the document and it is up to the board to consider changes before endorsement.

Vote

A motion to release the Draft FFYs 2027–31 TIP for a 21-day public comment period was made by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins) and seconded by the MBTA Advisory Council (B. Kane). The motion carried.

14. Action Item: Draft FFY 2027 UPWP—Olivia Saccocia, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Draft UPWP (pdf) (html)
• Draft UPWP Executive Summary (html)

O. Saccocia presented the Draft FFY 2027 UPWP that established planning priorities for the upcoming year and describes the anticipated deliverables, timeframe, and budget for MPO’s planning activities. She then explained the development cycle and shared highlights from the program before requesting the board release the draft document for a public comment period.

Discussion

B. Kane asked how Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 3C planning funding is distributed. T. Teich explained 40 percent is distributed as a baseline to all MPOs then 30 percent allocated based on population and 30 percent allocated based on urban population. He then asked how the split between MPO and MAPC funds is determined. D. Mohler responded the 19 percent allocated to MAPC has essentially been unchanged since the creation of the agencies. B. Kane stated he would like to examine this split at the appropriate time such as an Administration and Finance committee meeting.

Vote

A motion to release the Draft FFY 2027 UPWP for a 21-day public comment period was made by the City of Somerville (T. Bent) and seconded by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane). The motion carried.

15. Action Item: Critical Urban Freight Corridors Update—Shravanthi Gopalan Narayanan, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Critical Urban Freight Corridors Update (pdf) (html)
• Medford Letter (pdf) (html)
• FNPA Letter (pdf) (html)
• South Boston Letter (pdf) (html)

S. Gopalan Narayanan explained that the National Highway Freight Network includes the interstate system and critical freight corridors designated by States and MPOs. She stated roadways identified as critical freight corridors are eligible for funding under the National Highway Freight Program, and the Boston Region MPO can identify up to 48.86 miles of Critical Urban Freight Corridors.

S. Gopalan Narayanan summarized comments received since the March 19 board meeting regarding the City of Malden and South Boston’s proposed updates and adjustments made to the designations since.

Discussion

S. Olanoff asked if trucks will still use the streets that are proposed to be removed. S. Gopalan Narayanan explained that the designations are meant to reflect current freight needs and the removed streets are not highly used.

L. Hausle, City of Boston, thanked staff for the modifications to the corridors in South Boston.

Vote

A motion to approve the Critical Urban Freight Corridors Update, was made by Massport (Sarah Lee) and seconded by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins). The motion carried.

16. Engagement Update—Erin Maguire and Jia Huang, MPO Staff

J. Huang summarized engagement activities over the last six months, and reviewed themes that have emerged from public comments. She also shared discussion questions for the board to consider as the LRTP planning process progresses. Finally, she presented the public engagement dashboard and recent engagement updates.

E. Maguire summarized the geographic and topic distribution of comments.

Discussion

D. Mohler and C. Allen-Connelly complimented staff on their engagement work.

17. Members’ Items

S. Johnston shared that the MBTA is continuing public engagement for Focus 2050, its long-range plan, and has a public meeting from 5:30 to 6:30 PM at Action for Boston Community Development.

J. Nee shared that the MWRTA is in its third round of public comment for its network redesign.

18. Adjourn

A motion to adjourn was made by the MBTA Advisory Board (B. Kane) and seconded by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins). The motion carried.

Attendance

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