Community Meeting on South Station and USPS Redevelopment/Expansion
5:30 PM
Made in Fort Point, 12 Farnsworth Street.
5:30 PM
Made in Fort Point, 12 Farnsworth Street.
All are welcome. Co-hosted by FPAC and FPNA. With Kate Fichter of MassDOT presenting/leading the discussion.
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South
Station
Expansion
Project
Massachusetts
Department of Transportation
Informational
Briefing
– March
2012
Background
Boston
South
Station
is
the
premier
passenger
rail
hub
in
New
England,
serving
rail
passengers
from
the
Northeast
Corridor
and
beyond
and
connecting
them
to
local
and
intercity
destinations.
It
is
one
of
the
most
significant
architectural
structures
in
the
City
of
Boston,
and
one
of
its
most
important
transportation
assets.
It
is
also
important
neighbor
to
the
Chinatown,
Fort
Point,
South
Boston,
and
Seaport
communities.
South
Station
offers
commuters
and
travelers
not
only
Amtrak
and
MBTA
Commuter
Rail
service,
but
also
intercity
bus,
MBTA
rapid
transit,
and
MBTA
bus
rapid
transit
services.
At
present,
however,
South
Station
operates
above
its
design
capacity
for
efficient
train
operations
and
orderly
passenger
queueing.
A
recent
award
of
$32.5
million1
in
High-Speed
and
Intercity
Passenger
Rail
funding
from
the
Federal
Railroad
Administration
will
make
it
possible
for
the
Massachusetts
Department
of
Transportation,
in
collaboration
with
the
Massachusetts
Port
Authority
and
the
City
of
Boston,
to
pursue
the
foundational
planning
and
environmental
review
necessary
to
ultimately
expand
South
Station
and
its
affiliated
railyard
capacity.
The
federal
funding
will
be
matched
by
$10.5
million
in
Commonwealth
of
Massachusetts
monies.
The
effort
commenced
upon
completion
of
the
FRA
grant-award
process,
at
the
beginning
of
September
2011.
Project
Objectives
- To perform an Alternatives Analysis to determine how best to expand Boston South Station and create a new layover facility in order to improve existing rail service – local, regional, and intercity – in and out of Boston. The expansion of South Station will include improvements to tracks, platforms, interlockings, passenger facilities, and other attendant infrastructure.
- To plan and design an enhanced environment at and around South Station through improved streetscape and pedestrian, bicycle, local transit, and vehicular facilities, including the re-opening of Dorchester Avenue for public use.
- To consider opportunities for joint public/private development over an expanded South Station.
- To plan for the relocation of an existing U.S. Postal Service General Mail Facility in order to create an appropriate adjacent site onto which to expand Boston South Station.
Project
Outcomes
- To improve current performance and enable growth in high-speed and other intercity passenger rail service throughout the Northeast, particularly between Boston, New York, and Washington, DC.
- To support a more attractive and higher-frequency MBTA Commuter Rail service, with associated benefits such as increased statewide transportation access, environmental sustainability, improved personal mobility.
- To leverage transportation investments at South Station to generate sustainable economic development and improved quality of life.
- To improve the public environmental around South Station.