a report from Vice Mayor Jan Devereux, Chair of the Transportation and Public Utilities Committee, for a public hearing held on Wednesday, April 11, 2018 to discuss topics related to the MBTA bus service

CITY TRANSIT STRATEGIC PLANNING AND MBTA BUS SERVICE City Council Transportation and Public Utilities Committee April 11, 2018

Presentation Contents • City Transit Strategic Planning Overview • MBTA Bus Service Planning Process and City Role/Collaboration • Overview of Mt. Auburn Street Bus Priority Pilot • Transit Signal Priority Update • Harvard Bus Tunnel Update

CITY TRANSIT STRATEGIC PLANNING OVERVIEW

Context of Transit in Cambridge • Good transit is essential for the City to grow without negative traffic impacts • 30% increase in transit trips in the region predicted by 2035 (LRTP) • Red Line capacity expected to increase by 50% by 2024 (vehicle replacement) • Bus service is the easiest to expand and is the most local service, but suffers from significant delay and reliability challenges

Transit Strategic Planning 2015 Transit Strategic Plan What can the City do to improve transit? • Streets • Signals • Funding • Coordination Adopted by City Council in October 2015

Transit Advisory Committee • Meeting since May 2013 • Membership includes: • 1/2 residents with geographic diversity • 1/2 representatives of businesses, institutions, cross-section of stakeholder groups (e.g., commuters, persons with disabilities, low income, elderly, youth, and advocacy groups) • Attended by an MBTA representative • Participated in development of Transit Strategic Plan • Drafted an Implementation Plan with priorities • Developed a set of ideas to improve bus service in Cambridge

MBTA Coordination • Monthly MBTA coordination meetings coordinated by staff (operational and strategic topics) • Ad hoc coordination with departments • For planning, design, and construction projects (all departments) • For operational issues (TP&T, CDD) • MBTA projects (e.g. coordinating with DPW on Harvard, Central elevator closures) • City staff participation in the MBTA Advisory Board meetings • MBTA represented on stakeholder groups such as Kendall Sq. Mobility Task Force

Other MBTA-related Initiatives • Kendall Square Mobility Task Force (recommendations to improve transit) • Green Line Extension (City making significant financial contribution and currently participating in stakeholder group) • Allston I-90 Transit Study (led by MAPC) • Mt. Auburn Bus Priority Pilot (summer implementation) • South Mass Ave Corridor Safety Improvements (fall implementation) • Transit Signal Priority (pilot and Participatory Budget project) • River Street Design and Construction (upcoming)

MBTA SERVICE PLANNING AND CITY ROLE/COLLABORATION

MBTA “Better Bus” Project (BBP) • Short-term service planning process • Will analyze every route in the network and consider changes • Tiered recommendations • Goal is to achieve service delivery policy, which defines the quality and level of service we should be providing (not a focus on expansion) • Public outreach expected to start this spring, through 2018

See https://mbta.com/projects/better-bus-project

MBTA Outreach for BBP • Established a new director position to support coordination between the MBTA and municipalities to: • Help build more effective and meaningful partnerships • Support municipalities in implementing transit priority projects across the region • MBTA has scheduled a State House briefing on the BBP for April 12, then will begin outreach • BBP team reached out to staff to request meeting with staff and Transit Advisory Committee

Planned City Efforts related to MBTA BBP • Develop City goals for service improvements • Develop graphics and communication materials • Communicate: Graphics/maps, flyers, boards, web page • Input: Wikimap, surveys, phone/text • Supplement Service Planning Public Process • Engagement events in community locations • Neighborhood public meetings • The process is intended to refine and build on ideas from the Transit Advisory Committee, and include committee member involvement

MT. AUBURN STREET BUS PRIORITY PILOT cambridgema.gov/MtAuburnBusPriority

Watertown High School Hosmer Elementary School Watertown Square Harvard Square Coolidge Square Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Hospital MBTA Route 73 (Harvard to Waverly Square) MBTA Route 71 (Harvard to Watertown Square) 73 71 71/73 Tufts Health Plan Mount Auburn Street: typically two travel lanes in each direction and carries approximately 19,000 vehicles per day Route 71 and 73: 12,000 weekday daily passenger trips combined Shuttles: Mt. Auburn Hospital, athenahealth, Bentley, etc. Context

Vehicle Volumes vs. People Volumes on Mt. Auburn St. Between Brattle Street and Coolidge Avenue (Source: DCR Public Presentation, January 10, 2016, Slide 70) http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dcr/conservation/planning-and-resource-protection/projects/mount-auburn-street-corridor-study.html

City Analysis of Transit Reliability and Delay (2014) (Data for Route 73, morning peak rush hour)

Mt. Auburn Bus Priority Pilot • Cambridge and Watertown Barr Foundation grant for bus priority west of Fresh Pond Parkway • Bus-only lanes and signal priority eastbound (toward Harvard) • Bike lanes westbound (toward Watertown) • “Pilot” with minimal or no construction, intended to test and evaluate • Materials: Paint, signal changes, signs, education and enforcement • MUST be implemented in conjunction with DCR’s short-term design: • Minor construction and signal improvements at Coolidge Ave and Fresh Pond Pkwy • Improve traffic flow and improve pedestrian and bicycle safety

Existing Conditions

Conceptual Layout for Bus Lanes Proposed bus lane/queue jump

Current Public Outreach / Evaluation Timeline • Jan-March: City Transit, Bicycle, and Pedestrian Advisory Committees • February 15: Watertown Mt. Auburn corridor transit meeting • March 27: Strawberry Hill Neighborhood Meeting • March/April: Outreach to stakeholders (businesses, institutions) • April/May: Gather additional data • May 1: Joint Watertown/Cambridge public meeting • June: Street teams, education, implementation and enforcement • July/August: Evaluate and refine into the Fall

TRANSIT SIGNAL PRIORITY UPDATE

Transit Signal Priority (TSP) Reduce time buses stop at traffic signals by: • Extending green signal at end of phase • Giving green signal early at start of phase TSP impacts: • Improve reliability • Reduce travel time • Increase capacity TSP outcomes: • Better service for current riders • Attract new riders

TSP Pilot Strategy 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Develop TSP software and pilot on individual signals TSP pilot corridors: • Beacon Street, Brookline • Commonwealth Avenue, Boston • Huntington Avenue, Boston • Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge • Mt. Auburn St., Cambridge/Watertown • Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington Roll out to high ridership corridors

MBTA TSP Program • Focus on high-ridership, high-delay corridors • “Piggyback” on other traffic signal projects to add TSP • Emphasis on municipalities eager to partner • Concentrate on candidate corridors for dedicated bus lane

HARVARD SQUARE BUS TUNNEL UPDATE

Harvard Square Bus Tunnel Schedule (Tentative) • One direction of Harvard Square Bus Tunnel closed at a time • Upper tunnel closure expected during last 3-4 months of 2018 • Lower tunnel closure expected during first 3-4 months of 2019 • Massachusetts Avenue (77/96) and Garden Street (72/74/75/78) Buses: • Northbound buses always operate in tunnel, regardless of which tunnel level is closed • Southbound buses drop off on surface in front of Harvard Coop • Mount Auburn Street Buses (71/73) circulate aboveground and do not enter tunnel • Buses currently on the surface (1/66/68/69/86) remain on the surface • MBTA staff preparing detailed legislative briefing – meeting not yet scheduled