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The case for regional funding of public transit
MassInc’s recent report on new funding strategies for transportation makes the case for overhauling how we fund public transportation.
Written by Ben Forman, Dan Darcy and James Emilio, the report warns that continuing to fund public transportation via sales tax revenues will ensure that the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) will continue to run up large deficits and will continue to get a disproportionate share of state revenues, thereby preventing Regional Transit Authorities from making the necessary investments they need to improve their public transportation systems.
The report proposes that a regional payroll tax or a tax on miles driven would enable the MBTA to close its operating deficit and make necessary improvements while generating increased revenues so that Gateway Cities could invest more funds in public transportation.
Financing transportation regionally gives strong incentives to work to align their regional planning and land use decisions to maximize the economic impact of these investments.
Right now, the report argues, increased spending for transportation is a non-starter because much of the state resents the fact that most of public transit dollars go to Boston. The report says shifting to a regional approach would be better.
The report warns that failing to address how to adequately fund transportation could stunt our economic growth and recovery. The report notes that between 1980 and 2010, per capita income in Greater Boston grew 1.8 times faster than in metro areas nationally. And while Boston is the nation’s 10th largest metro area, the region has the nation’s fifth largest transit system, measured by ridership.
The T was an asset that supported the region’s economic success but it did not benefit from this success in terms of capturing the revenue needed to sustain and grow its operations.
…it is increasingly clear that unsustainable finances imperil the MBTA’s ability to continue to buttress regional economic growth.
With a regional approach to funding, the report argues that the MBTA would have the resources to keep pace with economic growth and Gateway Cities would have the assets to support its own economic growth.
Stronger service in communities like Brockton and Lowell could make the broader regional economy more productive.
An executive summary and the full report can be found on the MassInc web site.