We expect suburban and rural state legislators to hop on board with their Boston peers in fixing the MBTA’s budget woes.
Most of them are Democrats, and Massachusetts Democrats believe in properly funding the MBTA. It says so right in their party platform, which supports “increasing investments and promotion of public transportation throughout the Commonwealth.”
Massachusetts Democrats want transportation construction, operations and maintenance costs to be “equitably distribute[d].” They want public transit to be “safe and reliable.”
Republican legislators surely don’t want higher fees and transit cuts, either. The Mass. GOP website says they support “economic growth” to “create jobs and a healthy, self-sufficient economy.” A service plan that prevents employees from getting to work, blocks customers from visiting businesses and undermines transit-oriented development already under way has to be a no-go.
We also are sure that the Boston delegation will be happy to support improved public transit in rural areas under the same principles of transit equality.
In short, the State House must be champing at the bit to come up with a quick, smart, statewide solution to prevent drastic cuts and put the MBTA on a solid financial footing going forward.
After all, politicians always mean what they say, don’t they?