Nothing expresses Boston's role as the "hub" more plainly than its network of transportation resources.  The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) provides service from 175 cities and towns into Boston with 1.2 million boardings daily, the fourth largest mass transit system in the country.  With a deep-water port, international airport, radial highways and rail lines that connect regional cities and towns to national and international destinations and markets, Boston makes the region's growing role in the global economy possible.

OVERVIEW

The past decade in Metro Boston saw major investments in transportation: near-completion of the $14.6 billion Big Dig; expansion of the MBTA's commuter rail lines; new state-of-the-art Amtrak train service north and south; traffic calming; the resurfacing of streets and sidewalks; streetscape improvements; and new bike paths.

But Boston's transportation story is changing fast. The events of 9/11 put new security demands on Logan International Airport and the Port of Boston. Due to post 9/11 traveler reticence and economic  recession, Logan experienced a drop-off in air traffic - one of the greatest declines among all major American airports. Amtrak faces a possible loss of federal subsidies, and the Port of Boston faces intensifying competition from New York, New Jersey and Halifax, Canada.  At the same time, most of the region's public transit systems are reaching or surpassing capacity during periods of peak demand. Buses in Boston are crowded and on schedule less than 65% of the time, leading to charges that the most transit-dependent communities are receiving unequal quality in transportation services. Many of the state's roads and bridges are in need of repair. And car ownership, miles driven and vehicular emissions are increasing rapidly in Boston and the region.

The next few years will tell us how well we are prepared to meet these challenges, and the result may shape the landscape and economic investment in the region for years to come.

The good news is that there are plans and proposals to address each and every transportation challenge - although experts agree that finding resources for implementation will necessitate new thinking.  A truly efficient and seamless transportation system will require integrated planning across complex bureaucracies, high quality design, adequate financing and informed lifestyle choices. Innovation in each of these areas may be the only way to fulfill the region's future transportation needs.

WHAT HAS CHANGED SINCE 2000?

The opening of the Leverett Circle Connector, crowned by the new Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge, the widest cable-stayed asymmetrical suspension bridge in the world, is a promise to the future. The bridge became a symbol of the New Boston in 2002 as a million Boston area residents celebrated by crossing the new bridge on foot.
 
The MBTA purchased 124 forty-foot-long compressed-natural-gas-fuel (CNG) buses. By 2004, the 'T' will ultimately provide 358 alternate-fuel buses in addition to the 160 now in use in areas suffering the health burden of diesel fuel emissions. The T is also adding low-sulfur fuel, retrofitting older buses with diesel particulate filters and replacing about 200 of its oldest buses with new "clean diesel" buses.

In 2002, the MBTA opened the first phase of the new Silver Line with low-floor buses and clean emissions, from Dudley Square to downtown Boston. The new line provides a more direct route, consolidated stops, and large shelters and kiosks. Boardings have increased 50%, from 8,000 to 12,000 per day, in the first six months of operation. Debate continues as to whether the service is an adequate replacement to the Orange Line, relocated from the Southwest Corridor in 1987.