Gov. Maura Healey signed a transportation bill Thursday that delivers $300 million in annual aid for municipal road and bridge work while authorizing another $1.1 billion in borrowing and creating $3.2 billion in new flexibility to borrow for projects approved in 2022.
The measure, which cleared the House and Senate with broad support this spring, continues a recent increase in Chapter 90 funding, the state’s primary source of local transportation aid. Communities use the money for road resurfacing, bridge repairs, sidewalk construction, intersection upgrades and other municipal transportation projects.
The bill (H 5375) provides $300 million in Chapter 90 funding, matching last year’s record level. Of that, $200 million will be distributed through the traditional Chapter 90 formula, while an additional $100 million will be allocated based on lane miles, a change made last year and intended to direct more aid to rural and smaller communities with extensive roadway networks.
In the bill, lawmakers denied Healey’s request for Chapter 90 funding over multiple years, a longstanding priority for municipal officials who argue predictable funding allows communities to better plan projects and secure contracts. Lawmakers opted for a one-year authorization amid broader concerns about the state’s fiscal outlook and future budget pressures.
The new statute adds to major laws passed this year governing cannabis industry oversight and new spending that uses income surtax revenue from wealthier households. Lawmakers are also trying to forge compromises and move bills to Healey dealing with public higher education infrastructure, early literacy, immigrant protections and the annual state budget that’s due July 1.
The new transportation law also aims to sustain transportation investments beyond municipal road maintenance.
The bill authorizes $500 million for MassDOT’s bridge and pavement lifecycle asset management program, which funds preservation and rehabilitation work on state-owned transportation infrastructure. Another $200 million is authorized for transportation improvements linked to housing production, including roadways, intersections, pedestrian facilities and bicycle infrastructure needed to support new housing developments.
Lawmakers included $200 million for a new Parkway Resilience Improvement and Safety Modernization program focused on Department of Conservation and Recreation assets, including roads, parkways, bridges, culverts and multi-use paths.
An additional $200 million is authorized for MBTA rail reliability and vehicle replacement efforts, including commuter rail fleet upgrades.
The agency is preparing to procure new battery-electric and cleaner diesel locomotives to replace an aging fleet, a plan transit advocates have criticized at odds with the state’s longer-term vision for a fully electrified regional rail network. MBTA officials say the procurement is necessary to avoid a looming fleet shortage while advancing incremental electrification efforts.
The legislation replenishes transportation accounts authorized under a 2022 law. The measure provides $3.2 billion in renewed borrowing capacity for programs that state officials said are approaching the limits of their existing authorizations.
Those reauthorizations include $2.3 billion for federally aided highway projects, $800 million for non-federally aided road and bridge projects, $65 million for the Municipal Pavement Program and $12 million for the Shared Streets and Spaces grant program, according to the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
In April, Administration and Finance Undersecretary Jennifer Sullivan described the reauthorization as a temporary bridge until lawmakers consider a broader transportation bond package, “probably be in the next legislative session.”
The legislation arrives as transportation financing remains one of the dominant issues on Beacon Hill. Earlier this year, Healey unveiled an $8 billion, 10-year transportation investment strategy centered on roads, bridges, regional transit and the MBTA, and lawmakers have approved billions in surtax-funded supplemental spending over the past few years toward transportation programs and MBTA operations.
