The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is announcing the award of almost $1.2 million in the final round of funding from the Baker-Polito Administration’s Shared Streets & Spaces program.
The program, which was launched on June 10, provided technical and funding assistance to help Massachusetts cities and towns conceive, design, and implement tactical changes to curbs, streets, on-street parking spaces and off-street parking lots in support of public health, safe mobility, and renewed commerce. With the award of this final round of funding, the program will have given out a total of $10.2 million to fund 124 projects in 103 municipalities across the Commonwealth, of which 60% are Environmental Justice communities.
“Many communities have demonstrated their creativity to create safe spaces for outdoor dining, safe connections to businesses and workplaces and expanded space for all transit options—from buses to bikes through the Shared Streets and Spaces grant program,” said Governor Baker. “We are pleased that these grants can provide safe and responsible improvements while helping to stimulate our businesses and help people feel more comfortable moving about safely.”
This new round will provide $1.18 million to projects in 17 municipalities, of which 65% are Environmental Justice communities.
Some 304 applications were submitted by 279 municipalities, for a total of $34 million requested. Two of the local winners were:
•Chelsea was awarded $81,406.25 to continue dedicated bike lane and sharrow markings from 3rd Street and Broadway up to Chelsea Waterfront, in conjunction with an MBTA-supposed bus lane project.
•Everett was awarded $20,000 to implement shared/slow streets and mobility hubs along Broadway and intersecting side streets. Also includes a road diet on Ferry Street via a lane reduction and repurposing of road space to outdoor dining/gathering spaces.
The Baker-Polito Administration launched the Shared Streets & Spaces program to support quick-build projects that can bring meaningful benefits to cities and towns. The program is modeled after the Administration’s Complete Streets Funding Program, created in February 2016, which, as of January 2020, has awarded a total $46 million to cities and towns for municipal projects improving infrastructure to improve safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and public transportation customers. The Administration included $20 million for the Complete Streets Program as part of the Administration’s $18 billion transportation bond bill which was filed in July 2019.