Draft Memorandum for the Record
Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization
Unified Planning Work Program Committee Meeting Minutes
February 26, 2026, Meeting
1:00 PM–2:30 PM, Zoom Video Conferencing Platform
Sam Taylor, Chair, representing Phillip Eng, Interim Secretary of Transportation and Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)
The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (MPO) Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) Committee agreed to the following:
· Recommend Scenario 3 for funding in the Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2027 UPWP including the following studies:
Materials for this meeting included the following:
1. Minutes of the January 8, 2026, UPWP Committee Meeting (PDF)(HTML)
2. Draft FFY 2027 Studies for Discussion (PDF)(HTML)
3. UPWP Discrete Study Scenarios (PDF)(HTML)
Please see the attendance list beginning on page 6.
There were none.
A motion to approve the minutes of the meeting of January 8, 2026, was made by the City of Boston (Jen Rowe) and seconded by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (Travis Pollack). The motion carried.
O. Saccocia presented the following scenarios to the committee:
· Scenario
1
o M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II ($100,000)
o L-2: Impact of Parking Supply on Property Values ($50,000)
· Scenario
2
o M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II ($75,000)
o L-2: Impact of Parking Supply on Property Values ($50,000)
o Q-4: Representing the Experience of Limited Mobility Individuals Phase II ($25,000)
· Scenario
3
o M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II ($75,000)
o L-2: Impact of Parking Supply on Property Values ($40,000)
o L-5: Opportunities for the Boston Region MPO to Support Transit-Oriented Development ($35,000)
· Scenario
4
o M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II ($150,000)
O. Saccocia explained the funding levels for study M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II and how the anticipated work will change accordingly. (See the UPWP Discrete Study Scenarios attachment for more detail.) She also explained that study M-2: Transportation Network Company (TNC) Trip Patterns in the Boston Region was not included in the four scenarios because the TNC data pipeline is still being established, and the study cannot be scoped until then.
Caitlin Allen-Connelly (Community Advisory Council) stated that the Advisory Council had a robust conversation about study M-18 at the latest Advisory Council meeting. Based on that discussion, C. Allen-Connelly expressed support for allocating most of the funding to study M-18. C. Allen-Connelly also asked if MPO staff considered funding a new scenario with studies M-18 ($100,000) and L-5 ($50,000). Rebecca Morgan (MPO staff) responded that staff wanted to provide scenarios that included combinations of two and three studies. Since study L-5 could be conducted at a lower cost level, it fit well within a scenario that included three studies. R. Morgan stated that the committee can choose to recommend this new scenario if the group has interest in studying M-18 and L-5.
Len Diggins (Town of Arlington) asked if MPO staff are planning to conduct phase III of a roadway pricing study in the future. R. Morgan explained that the board has expressed interest in the MPO continuing roadway pricing work, so the agency will plan to continue studying this topic whether through discrete studies or program work. L. Diggins asked if study M-18 could be conducted for the cost of $50,000 so the committee could consider a scenario with four studies. R. Morgan stated that it would be difficult to conduct the study at a price point lower than $75,000.
Rachel Benson (Southwest Advisory Planning Committee) stated how it is important to study the experience of limited mobility individuals and favored Scenario 2.
Tom O’Rourke (Three Rivers Interlocal Council) expressed support for funding three studies and favored Scenarios 2 and 3. Jenn Martin (Town of Newton) agreed.
C. Allen-Connelly reiterated that the Advisory Council believes study M-18 is important to study and prefers allocating more funding to one study over funding the most studies possible for $150,000.
J. Rowe asked staff to clarify if the rail frequency modeling work included in study M-18 would show how rail frequency could increase with the money generated out of a hypothetical roadway pricing scheme. Rose McCarron (MPO staff) clarified that staff would model how the MBTA system would realistically function in five to ten years, given the improvements being made to the system now. R. McCarron stated that this study would not suggest what investments should be made with funding from a roadway pricing scheme. R. McCarron also mentioned that study M-18 priced at $150,000 would be able to investigate where transit demand would be the highest, which could help inform where capacity improvements are needed in the regional transit system.
L. Diggins suggested the committee consider a new scenario, including studies M-18 ($90,000), L-5 ($35,000), and Q-4 ($25,000). He asked if staff could conduct study M-18 in two phases in order to fund a scenario with three studies. R. Morgan stated that funding M-18 at a cost of $90,000 would be possible but would limit the analysis by evaluating just one additional cordon zone, instead of two.
Tegin Teich (Executive Director) provided more information about how discrete studies are conducted at the MPO. A portion of all discrete study budgets fund staff time to produce the study scope, prepare materials, conduct presentations to the board, and write a final report. She explained that the time and budget for those required activities cannot be reduced and asked the committee to consider this when discussing the price levels of these potential discrete studies.
C. Allen-Connelly stated that the Advisory Council believes roadway pricing is an important and timely topic to study. She explained that reducing the scope of study M-18 would lead to a less-actionable study. L. Diggins stated that it will likely take several years for a roadway pricing scheme to be implemented in Massachusetts. He stated that the MPO can provide data to help inform policy decisions about roadway pricing, however, successfully implementing a roadway pricing scheme will ultimately depend on political will.
C. Allen-Connelly proposed an additional scenario for the committee to consider, including studies M-18 ($115,000) and L-5 ($35,000).
T. O’Rourke stated that study L-2 is important to consider, and the results of would be particularly helpful to municipalities in the region. Tom Bent (Inner Core Committee) agreed and expressed support for Scenarios 1 and 3. J. Rowe also expressed support for study L-2 and thought it would be an important opportunity for the MPO to work with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC). J. Rowe asked if this type of work could be funded next year using other PL funding. T. Pollack could not provide a definitive answer and stated that he would have to discuss that possibility with Eric Bourassa (MAPC) and MPO staff.
R. Benson stated that study L-2 may have a bigger impact on suburban communities in the Boston region, compared to study L-5.
R. Morgan mentioned that if the board is interested in study Q-4, the MPO may be able to fund it through the Data Program. L. Diggins stated that he was interested in the MPO conducting this work through the Data Program and then expressed support for Scenario 3. He also stated that the MPO has time to continue roadway pricing work in the future. C. Allen-Connelly disagreed, stating that the MBTA is facing a financial cliff and reiterated the importance of studying roadway pricing now.
A motion to recommend Scenario 1 (M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II at a cost of $100,000 and L-2: Impact of Parking Supply on Property Values at a cost of $50,000) was made by the Three Rivers Interlocal Council (Tom O’Rourke) and seconded by the Community Advisory Council (Caitlin Allen-Connelly). The motion did not carry.
A motion to recommend Scenario 3 (M-18: Roadway Pricing Technical Evaluation Phase II at a cost of $75,000, L-2: Impact of Parking Supply on Property Values at a cost of $40,000, and L-5: Opportunities for the Boston Region MPO to Support Transit-Oriented Development at a cost of $35,000) was made by the Inner Core Committee (Tom Bent) and seconded by the Southwest Advisory Planning Committee (Rachel Benson). The motion carried.
There were none.
O. Saccocia stated that the UPWP Committee will meet next on April 30, 2026, at 1:00 PM to review the draft FFY 2027 UPWP.
A motion to adjourn was made by the Inner Core Committee (Tom Bent) and seconded by the Town of Arlington (Len Diggins). The motion carried.
|
Members |
Representatives
and
Alternates |
|
Massachusetts Department of Transportation (Office of Transportation
Planning) |
Sam Taylor |
|
Metropolitan Area Planning Council |
Travis Pollack |
|
Community Advisory Council |
Caitlin Allen-Connelly |
|
At-Large City (City of Newton) |
Jenn Martin |
|
At-Large Town (Town of Arlington) |
Len Diggins |
|
City of Boston (Boston Transportation
Department) |
Jen Rowe |
|
Inner Core Committee (City of Somerville) |
Tom Bent |
|
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 |
|
Town of Wrentham (Southwest Advisory Planning Committee) |
Rachel Benson |
|
Other
Attendees |
Affiliation |
|
Allison Lenk |
|
|
Benjamin Muller |
MassDOT |
|
Jon Seward |
|
|
MPO
Staff/Central Transportation Planning Staff |
|
Tegin Teich, Executive Director |
|
Joe Delorto Annette Demchur Dave Hong Elena Ion Ethan Lapointe Lauren Magee Rose McCarron Marty Milkovits Rebecca Morgan Ibbu Quraishi Sean Rourke Olivia Saccocia |
|
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