Draft Memorandum for the Record

Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization
Meeting Minutes

May 21, 2026, Meeting Minutes

10:00 AM–11:45 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:

• Release the Federal Fiscal Years (FFY) 2026–30 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Amendment Five for a 21-day public comment period.

Meeting Agenda

1. Introductions

See attendance on page 5.

2. Chair’s Report

D. Mohler noted that the US House of Representatives has released its transportation reauthorization bill.

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

T. Teich shared that Adriana Jacobsen would be leaving the MPO at the end of May to join the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). She highlighted A. Jacobsen’s contributions to the TIP, project readiness policy development, and data visualization.

T. Teich also shared that the MPO plans to apply for the FFY 2026 Safe Streets for All grants, requesting $5 million for the Safety Ready project.

4. Public Comments

There were none.

5. Committee Chairs’ Reports

Brian Kane, MBTA Advisory Council, noted that the Administration and Finance Committee would be meeting May 28, 9:00 AM.

6. Community Advisory Council Report—Karl Alexander, Vice Chair, Community Advisory Council

K. Alexander shared that two community organizations were highlighted at the last advisory council meeting and Staff presented Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) and TIP developments so the council could share priorities.

7. Action Item: FFY 2026–30 TIP Amendment Five—Ethan Lapointe, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Amendment Five (pdf) (html)

E. Lapointe presented Amendment Five that includes two cost increases and one cost decrease on FFY 2026 Statewide Highway Projects and the programming of a new Vulnerable Road User crosswalk installation project.

Discussion

Lenard Diggins, Town of Arlington, asked about the cost decrease, which E. Lapointe explained were contingencies factored in at an earlier stage that decreased as the project approached final design.

Dennis Giombetti, MetroWest Regional Collaborative, asked what year the projects are in. E. Lapointe responded they are all advertising FFY 2026.

Vote

A motion to release Amendment Five for a 21-day public comment period was made by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins) and seconded by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (Eric Bourassa). The motion carried.

8. Transportation Equity Dashboard—Betsy Harvey Herzfeld, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Equity Dashboard Overview (pdf) (html)

B. Herzfeld shared background about the dashboard, which builds off the 2022 study Identifying Transportation Inequities in the Boston Region. She explained the dashboard’s purpose and content and provided an overview of the metrics.

Discussion

L. Diggins asked what the grid cells represent. B. Herzfeld explained they are how Conveyal (the tool used for the analysis) breaks up demographics. L. Diggins also asked for overlays to be added to the maps and the website to time out after a longer time if possible.

Jen Rowe, City of Boston, asked for exposure to high speed driving or crashes to be an added metric. E. Bourassa seconded the request for a safety metric. B. Herzfeld responded that staff are looking into it.

9. Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) Goals and Metrics—Erin Maguire, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• Destination 2050 Visions Goals and Objectives (pdf) (html)

E. Maguire shared the LRTP’s vision, goals, and objectives, the role of goals in implementation, and updates on performance measure development. She then hosted a Mentimeter activity to assess the board’s opinions on goal and objective development.

10. Congestion Management Program (CMP) Network Viewer—Priyanka Chapekar, MPO Staff

Documents posted to the MPO meeting calendar

• CMP Network Viewer (pdf) (html)

P. Chapekar explained the CMP network and the purpose for the Network Viewer. She demonstrated how the network viewer is used and highlighted important metrics.

Discussion

Steve Olanoff, Three Rivers Interlocal Council, asked how scaling was chosen on the maps. P. Chapekar explained that the hexagonal grid cells are defined by quantiles.

Sandy Johnston, MBTA, asked if it is possible to present different modes on the same scale on the composite network view. P. Chapekar responded staff would look into this.

John Strauss, North Suburban Planning Council, asked how bike statistics are determined. P. Chapekar responded they are taken from Replica, a private data provider that uses a variety of location-based services to create a synthetic model.

J. Rowe asked if transit reliability metrics would be included. P. Chapekar responded they would be part of the next step of the CMP, and the park-and-ride inventory will also be incorporated.

Rebecca Morgan, MPO Staff, shared that Staff have been working to standardize datasets across dashboards to better overlay information on maps.

11. Members’ Items

J. Rowe shared that the Cambridge Street Bridge project held a design public hearing the previous week and the Rutherford Avenue’s 25 percent design will be submitted this afternoon.

S. Johnston shared his appreciation for Staff’s work during an office closure.

12. Adjourn

A motion to adjourn was made by the City of Boston (J. Rowe) and seconded by the Town of Arlington (L. Diggins). The motion carried.

Attendance