Gov. Deval Patrick on Tuesday promised an updated capital spending plan by Thanksgiving that will present a roadmap for state investments in transportation and other areas that will outlast his tenure as governor.
Patrick, who delivered a speech to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce on Tuesdaymorning, said the prioritization of capital projects will be made based on the principles of regional equity and their ability to meet future ridership capacity demands on public transit.
As resources are directed into the types of transportation projects he believes will spur economic growth, Patrick cautioned that other projects could be put on hold, a worst-case scenario for supporters of major transportation projects who can’t be certain how the next governor will approach public infrastructure.
Patrick this year had sought $1 billion in new transportation funding. Lawmakers instead approved a bill dedicating $600 million to $800 million in new annual funding by pulling existing funds away from other spending priorities and raising taxes by about $500 million, although a $160 million technology services tax has been repealed already and opponents of tying the gas tax to inflation are vowing to repeal that policy next November.
Patrick, in his speech, outlined more than $2.6 billion his administration plans to invest in new Orange and Red Line subway cars, an electronic tolling system on the Turnpike and a reconstruction of the Mass Turnpike in Allston to straighten the highway, relieve traffic congestion and free up 60 acres for new development.
“There’s some things we’re going to have to delay, courthouses and other kinds of projects that are also important, but maybe not as pressing as these,” said Patrick, who has angered some local officials by agreeing to $300 million in local road funds this year but then assenting to delivering only $200 million.
Uttering five words that would have made his advisors squeamish just three years ago on the re-election campaign trail, Patrick said, “I love the Big Dig,” for how it was able to unlock development in Boston, but called the concentration of public investment in the Big Dig to the detriment of other regions “a profound economic failure.”
Patrick plans to leave Wednesday for California to visit family, and has scheduled stops at four regional chambers of commerce next week to announce other projects his administration intends to advance with the new funding made available by this summer’s new transportation financing law. Patrick will also be announcing commitments to education and innovation projects.
While Patrick preached the necessity of increasing ridership capacity throughout the public transit system, the Boston Globe reported on Tuesday that since 2003 when the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail Co. took over the commuter rail system ridership has declined, in contrast to other metro areas like New York and Philadelphia.
The report was based on ridership records maintained by the American Public Transportation Association that showed between spring 2003 and the same period in 2013, average weekday ridership for the Massachusetts commuter rail fell by 12.5 percent.
“As I understand it the dip occurred during the economy, but I’ll be honest. Having run commuter rail a couple of lives ago, I’m not entirely sure those passenger counts are accurate,” Transportation Secretary Richard Davey told the News Service. “I have hope that in the next iteration of commuter rail we’ll get better and accurate counts. The bottom line for places like South Coast and the Worcester line, people are asking for more not less.”
Patrick in January put forward a tax reform plan that would have generated $1.9 billion in new annual tax revenue to finance transportation and education spending priorities, but the Legislature opted for a scaled down tax package that Patrick said will force lawmakers to confront the issue again in several years.
Though pursuing reforms and efficiencies remain a priority, Patrick said, “Let me be clear. Reform is no substitute for adequate revenue, but reform must continue alongside investment.”
With the race for governor in 2014 starting to heat up, Patrick suggested that the next battle over infrastructure financing could be left for whoever occupies his office next.
“I’ve got 14 months to use the tools we have and I’m going to focus on that. If there are members of the Legislature who decide they want to bring these issues forward or from the business community . . . ,” Patrick said, before getting distracted by a reporter’s new beard and not finishing his thoughts. Patrick has previously said he does not intend to press for new taxes in his final budget next year.
Much of Patrick’s speech on Tuesday focused on what he considers to be the successes of his administration in investing in infrastructure, education and innovation. He said the economic growth in Massachusetts has sped out of the recession at twice the pace of the national economy, and said “by any measure” Massachusetts is more competitive than it was seven years ago.
Still, Patrick said “the American Dream is in trouble,” citing a growing disparity between the wealthiest citizens and the poor and working class. Despite slow job gains in recent months, the Massachusetts unemployment rate has been climbing.
After the federal jobs report was delayed by the federal government shutdown, the U.S. Labor Department reported Tuesday that the economy added 148,000 jobs in September, driving the unemployment rate down a tenth of a point to 7.2 percent, now tied with Massachusetts for the first time since before the recession. State labor officials said they weren’t sure yet when updated Massachusetts jobs numbers would be released.
“It’s a number. It’s concerning, obviously, but the fact behind the numbers that more people are looking for work now which means that more people are optimistic about their opportunities, their possibilities of getting work and that’s good,” Patrick said, about no longer being able to boast a lower number than the national average. “I’d obviously rather see the number go down but I want as many people successfully in the job market as possible.”
Patrick believes the investments his administration plans to make in road, bridge and public transit projects will lead to job growth, not just in Boston, but across the state in more economic depressed areas like Fall River and New Bedford.
“Imagine if you worked here in Boston and could get a fast train to New Bedford and live affordably on the water within 45 minutes. It completely transforms the way we think about economic growth,” Patrick said, referring to the South Coast rail project that he said people on the South Coast fear could get squashed after he leaves office.
Christina Egan, of Transportation for Massachusetts, said the decisions Patrick makes now and over the next several months will go a long way toward determining what gets built and what gets thrown back into the pond.
“It’s really important to get them started because there’s a certain momentum that builds once you fix a bridge that’s needed for a rail track or buy the cars that you need for the subway or get the regional transit authority buses in line,” Egan said. “It sets expectations among the public that these projects are going to be done and increases the pressure on political leaders in the future to ensure those projects completion.”
