Media Statement: Mayor Wu’s MBTA Board Appointment

BOSTON, September 25, 2023 —  Mayor Wu’s selection of Mary Skelton Roberts to serve on the MBTA Board of Directors is welcome news to those who have known Mary and her efforts to advance sustainable mobility in Metro Boston. In Mary, T riders will have a Board Member whose career has been steeped in improving transit and rail, particularly the bus transit system.

TransitMatters congratulates Mary on her appointment and offers thanks to Mayor Wu for her continued leadership in the larger effort to build a better, more reliable, and equitable multi-mobility network for all residents of Metro Boston. We stand ready to work with Mary and the entire MBTA Board to restore every component of the MBTA system to provide high-quality transit for the city and region.

For media inquiries, please e-mail media@transitmatters.org. 

Photo Credit: Jacklyn Thibodeau

Media Statement: TransitMatters’ Reaction to MBTA Safety Reports

BOSTON, September 7, 2023 —  This is a good first step for transparency, and it also highlights the need for more stable MBTA funding. The report clearly demonstrates why the Legislature’s failure to properly fund operations, including maintenance, in a timely manner and before a crisis contributes to safety issues.

What's missing here is real accountability. While the problems may have been systemic, the failure to make staffing changes undermines credibility in the system. The General Manager spoke about rebuilding a number of things, but “trust” was not one of them. However, after the Orange Line failed to provide the promised results, riders’ faith in the effectiveness of upcoming diversions is lacking.

We have seen numerous reports on T safety in the past, riders need to know that this will be different. Having the same staff who oversaw the deterioration of the system escape any meaningful accountability is not going to rebuild trust or move us forward.

For media inquiries, please e-mail media@transitmatters.org. 

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Media Statement: Secretary of Transportation Gina Fiandaca's Resignation

BOSTON, August 28, 2023 —  The role of Secretary of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation is a demanding, challenging, and critical one. TransitMatters thanks outgoing Secretary Fiandaca and wishes her well as she steps down.

TransitMatters congratulates Acting Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt on her new role. Her work as Vice-Chair of the Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB), leading the Healey/Driscoll transportation transition, and her current role as Undersecretary position her well to take on this role at a pivotal time.

Undersecretary Tibbits-Nutt has a proven record of being dedicated to transportation justice. As Vice-Chair of the FMCB, she highlighted the role of the MBTA’s often-downplayed bus system in moving thousands of low-income riders. Her thorough understanding of the transportation system makes her the perfect person to shepherd our transportation system through this rebuilding period in a way that regains trust and ridership.

We look forward to working with her and her team to improve the MBTA as we build a truly equitable transportation system for the people of Massachusetts together.

For media inquiries, please e-mail media@transitmatters.org. 

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