This past Saturday, we co-hosted a half-day conference on federal investment in public transportation for the state of Massachusetts. Led by MIT Professor and Radius Steering Committee member, Jonathan King, the conference drew 140+ people on a very cold weekend morning. The number of participants and their obvious passion about the issue made for an exciting day. In addition to substantive information, participants were offered many ideas and avenues to help create change.

The need for investment in our public transit system is deep. Many cars on the MBTA have been slated to be replaced for well over two decades. No one need look further than the winter of 2015 to be aware of the obvious need for modernizing our mass transit here in Boston. However, the conversations included much more than the Boston subway system. Topics such as climate protection, the role of the federal government, critical public transit needs for the entire state of Massachusetts, and funding solutions were explored.

In addition to Jonathan King, we extend a very special thank you to former Governor Michael Dukakis and former Secretary Fred Salvucci for their insightful, wise keynotes which were the cornerstones of the event. We would also like to express sincere thanks to our very excellent moderators, Mike Connolly, State Representative-Elect, 26th Middlesex District and Torgun Austin of Cambridge Residents Alliance and to all the panelists who added so much to the day. Finally, thank you  to our co-hosts, MIT Transit Group, Cambridge Residents Alliance, Mass People’s Budget and Mass Peace Action.

The event will be video archived on the Radius site. Please check back soon!