Critics question cost of Mass. rail

Critics question cost of Mass. rail

	Published : Wed, 04 Apr 2007 22:33 By : Agencies Print this Story

BOSTON (AP) - A plan by Gov. Deval Patrick to build a long-awaited commuter rail link to New Bedford and Fall River is drawing criticism from skeptics who questioned how he plans to pay for the $1.4 billion expansion.

The plan, which would bring rail service to the region by 2016 and would require the state to spend $31 million just to expand South Station and relocate a nearby major postal facility, did not include a funding source.

'The reality is that there's no way that the state can afford a project of this magnitude without additional revenue,' said Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. Widmer worked on a recent study that found the state will need up to an extra $19 billion over the next 20 years just to pay for existing transportation needs.

House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi, D-Boston, also said that paying for any additional transportation projects would be tough, given the expense of maintaining the state's existing -- and aging -- roads, bridges and rails.

'It's not going to be easy,' DiMasi said. 'The expansion of any of the commuter rails, public transportation and new road systems all have to be incorporated into the 15- to 20-year transportation plan that's coming into our radar screen now.'

Patrick's chief budget official, Administration and Finance Secretary Leslie Kirwan, said the administration hopes the project will, in large part, pay for itself by sparking the development of new homes and jobs along the rail line.

'There's hoping that at least a very good portion of this would be covered by new economic development,' Kirwan said. 'A key part of his proposal is identifying new revenues that could be brought to financing that rail.'

Patrick has already agreed to spend $17 million in state funds for the planning phase of the project.

Some of the other hurdles facing the project include completing state and federal environmental reviews, acquiring the needed rights of way and completing the project's design, including the changes to South Station.

Patrick, meeting with local officials at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth on Wednesday, said he's 'fully committed to bringing rail access' to the SouthCoast region, despite the challenges facing the project.

'I promised that we would have a timeline for this project within the first 90 days of this administration, and we have one,' he said, but conceded that new revenue sources would be needed to cover the cost of the project.

Patrick said rail service will attract new private investment, provide vital infrastructure improvements to spur economic development for the region.

One funding source the state shouldn't bank on is the federal government, according to Widmer.

'It's unlikely the feds would support this project,' he said. 'It would have to be new state money and new tax dollars.'

Patrick's announcement drew applause from members of the state's congressional delegation, including Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry, who pledged to work with him to turn the plan into a reality.

It's not the first time a governor has pledged to bring rail services to the two communities.

In 1995, former Gov. William Weld unveiled a plan to have the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority spend $156 million to bring commuter rail service to New Bedford and Fall River by the fall of 1997.

And in 2005, former Gov. Mitt Romney rolled out his own plan to set aside $670 million to build a rail link between Boston and communities south of Boston.