Narrator: Transportation in the Commonwealth is not important for what it is, but rather for what it does—gets people where they need to go, and shapes the economy of communities.
But transportation as we know it is changing through advancements in technology, like ride-sharing programs and autonomous vehicles, shifts in the state's demographics with an aging population, and changes in the environment with more frequent major weather events.
Governor Baker issued an executive order to create the Commission on the Future of Transportation in the Commonwealth to address these challenges and opportunities we'll face in the future. This commission will help Massachusetts better understand how these changes will affect transportation patterns and needs of our constituents.
We've assembled a team of leaders from the public sector, academia, and the not-for-profit world to draft a report to advise the Governor and Lieutenant Governor as we prepare for transportation in 2040.
Steve Kadish: The Governor has asked this commission to do something that is very unusual for state government. It's to look 20 years in the future. It's not looking at today, it's not looking at a year from now, 3 years from now, 5 years from now. Five years from now for most of state government is a long time away. We're doing something that is very unusual and to think about what the world might be 20 years from now.
Stephanie Pollack: It's a fascinating time in transportation. Technology is changing, the demographics of the people we serve are changing, our climate is even changing, and the Commission can really help MassDOT and the MBTA understand how to account for all those changes as we operate our services and as we make investments for the future.
Matthew Beaton: The work of the Transportation Commission will be hugely influential on the future work of Energy and Environmental Affairs because currently transportation accounts for up to 40 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions across the Commonwealth. As we transition into a more electrified transportation fleet, this will be hugely helpful in us trying to meet the terms of our carbon reduction goals. The work will also help us to make the transportation network, the physical structures that exist today, be more resilient and more adapted to the forces of a changing climate.
Eileen McAnneny: Well I think that transportation is really the cornerstone to our economy. You know we have to move people, we have to move goods, we have to just make sure the economy thrives, and transportation is so critical to that. To me the most exciting element of the Commission's work is the fact that we can look to the future and aspire to the transportation system that we all want.
Narrator: We're excited and look forward to Massachusetts leading the way in planning for a bright transportation future. Share your thoughts and suggestions, and learn about our public engagement sessions at Mass.gov/FutureOfTransportation.