Latest news with #MassDOT
CBS News
9 hours ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
Major Mass Pike traffic delays near Boston anticipated again for 2nd weekend of lane closures
Major traffic delays are anticipated near Boston again this weekend as a second round of lane closures is scheduled to accommodate construction work on the Mass Pike in Newton and Weston, Massachusetts. There will only be one lane open in each direction between exits 123 and 125, near the I-95 interchange. Crews are finishing the demolition of a highway bridge that goes over the MBTA railroad. It's part of a $400 million project to repair of fix eight bridges in the state. MassDOT is once again telling drivers to avoid that part of the Mass Pike all weekend if possible. A map of lane closures on the Mass Pike this weekend. MassDOT When are the Mass Pike lane closures? Lanes will be closed starting at 9 p.m. on Friday, June 20 until 5 a.m. on Monday, June 23. "Drivers traveling through the affected areas should expect delays, reduce speed, and use caution," the agency said in a statement. It's possible that the delays could extend into the Monday morning commute. Mass Pike traffic Before the first round of construction between May 30 and June 2, highway administrator Jonathan Gulliver warned that there could be delays of up to three hours on the Mass Pike if drivers didn't follow the recommendation to stay away. Typically, that part of the Mass Pike sees about 100,000 cars on an average weekend day. A MassDOT spokesperson that during the first weekend closure, there was a roughly 30% to 36% decrease in traffic volume. Wait times on the Mass Pike peaked at one hour. There will also be impacts felt by MBTA riders. The Commuter Rail on the Framingham/Worcester Line will be shut down between South Station and Framingham to accommodate the work, as will the Amtrak train between Boston and Albany. Shuttle buses will be offered instead during the weekend.
CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Here's what's proposed for 18 Massachusetts highway service plazas after Irish company wins bid
Big changes are coming to 18 highway service plazas in Massachusetts. The Department of Transportation voted Wednesday to award a 35-year lease to an Irish company that intends to raze and rebuild nine rest stops, while significantly refurbishing nine others. Construction will start in January of 2026. Applegreen chief investment officer Ronan Ryan said Dublin-based company will invest $750 million in the plazas, which will remained owned by MassDOT. "We have a proven track record of undertaking significant service plaza redevelopment projects in the U.S.," Ryan said. Map of service plazas that will be rebuilt or renovated. MassDOT Many of the plazas that will be knocked down and rebuild are on the Mass Pike. They include the Natick, Framingham, Westboro, Charlton, Ludlow and Lee plazas. At the MassDOT board meeting, many spoke out in favor of Boston-based Global Partners, which was also bidding for the contract. Global Partners chief operating officer Mark Romaine said that his company made a rent commitment that was worth $500 million more than Applegreen. "Instead, the committee is recommending a foreign-owned operator with a documented history of underperformance," he said. MassDOT chief development officer Scott Bosworth touted Applegreen's "bold approach" and noted that they just renovated 27 service areas in New York. The plazas will have a different exterior based on their location, with "coastal," "metro" and a "western" design that is meant to invoke the Berkshires. Different exteriors for the renovated rest stops. MassDOT Among the improvements planned for the Massachusetts rest stops include hundreds more parking spots, children's play areas, dog areas and "inviting" bathrooms. "Seventy percent of the people turn into the plaza to use the bathrooms. That's a critical point," Bosworth said. "The data shows that if they have a good experience doing that, the dwell time will be increased as well as the conversion rate, meaning they'll actually stop and buy something." Plans for the refurbished service plazas. MassDOT
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
MassDOT board approves Applegreen to redo service plazas, over local bidder's objections
Advertisement Global's employees and other supporters flooded the board with emails in support in recent days, underscoring its community involvement and its management across four generations of the Slifka family. On Wednesday, Global also packed the boardroom at MassDOT's Park Plaza headquarters, with some supporters holding signs with messages such as 'Keep It Local' and 'Something Is Fishy at MassDOT.' 'Global isn't just the highest bidder, we are the stronger, safer, proven operator,' Mark Romaine, chief operating officer at Global, told the board before the vote. 'The people of Massachusetts should be outraged and, quite frankly, the administration should be ashamed.' In a statement after the vote, Romaine said the 'fight for Massachusetts is not over,' and that Global executives hope MassDOT weighs the risks and reconsiders before signing the Applegreen lease. Advertisement Applegreen, backed by private equity giant Blackstone, pledged to invest $750 million in capital improvements, including the complete replacement of buildings at nine plazas and major renovations of the others, over the life of the 35-year lease. MassDOT staff also expects average rent payments to the state of up to $28.4 million a year, based on a percentage of revenue — or nearly $1 billion over the life of the lease, although bid documents show the cumulative rent could be as low as $623 million. In contrast, Global says it guaranteed $1.5 billion in rent over the 35-year term, along with $650 million in capital improvements. Scott Bosworth, chief development officer at MassDOT, told the board that revenue represented only 25 percent of the selection committee's scoring criteria. The quality of the redevelopment plan represented another 25 percent, for example, and the transition plan from the current operator represented 15 percent. Boston-based Suffolk Construction is Applegreen's general contractor for the project. All construction is expected to be done by sometime in 2028, with no two consecutive plazas on the Pike shut down at the same time. 'They are ready to go, ready to hit the ground running,' Bosworth said. Executives from Applegreen, Blackstone, and Suffolk attended the board meeting to make their case, in part by saying they'll hire locally and purchase from local vendors. Over the past decade, Applegreen has been rapidly growing its service plaza business in the US, an expansion that gained steam after Advertisement 'We are ready to commence construction in January 2026 to deliver state-of-the-art, sustainable, world-class buildings for the commonwealth,' said Ronan Ryan, Applegreen's chief investments officer. The lease will involve redoing the 11 service plazas on the Mass. Turnpike, along with seven others. McDonald's is the lead food vendor and Gulf is the lead fuel vendor along the turnpike, though Global is a subtenant of McDonald's to operate the convenience stores on the Pike and an agent of Gulf running the gas stations on its behalf. Global also is the state's direct concessionaire for four highway rest areas: two in Bridgewater, one in Barnstable, and one in Beverly. Applegreen is slated to take over those leases in mid-2027, while the rest come up for renewal in six months. MassDOT board member Lisa Iezzoni expressed reservations about picking Applegreen during the board's public comments, and she abstained from the actual vote. 'When I got the outpouring of emails about the comments from the Global Partners advocates, I was overwhelmed by that,' Iezzoni said. 'I had not realized some of the concerns that they raised.' Global's supporters pointed to The Global crowd put an even greater emphasis on the responsiveness and economic impact that would come with picking an operator with strong local ties. 'This is not just about the brand of coffee that gets served on the Pike,' said Global's Catie Kerns. 'We are the best ambassadors for this state.' Advertisement Jon Chesto can be reached at
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- Boston Globe
The Mass. Pike rest stops are about to get a makeover. Here's what readers want to see.
Advertisement Here are some of the most popular topics and a sampling of reader comments: Food choices The most common reader response was seeking better and healthier food options. Suggestions for specific restaurants included Sweetgreen, Shake Shack, Tasty Burger, and Panera. Some people asked for more gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan options. Readers also asked for the rest stops to have a more local flavor with 'New England authenticity' and seasonal food items. 'Small local restaurants and businesses instead of fast food chains!!,' Boston reader Melissa Mazzeo wrote. 'It would be so nice to get a feel for the town/region at a rest stop, rather than it feeling like I could be anywhere in the country.' ' 'Gluten-free options!!! And perhaps ways to accommodate other dietary/food allergy concerns. How about some small, local restaurants? Good ice cream.' Sharon Catto, Brookline But several readers pointed out that the current chains, like McDonald's and Dunkin, provide quick and simple food choices for harried families with kids. 'Families especially, need to juggle the tastes of multiple people with limited time to peruse every menu,' wrote Jay Minkarah of Nashua. 'Reliability and predictably at rest stops is important.' Advertisement There were also a few out-there suggestions. 'On a lighter note, please bring back Howard Johnson's,' reader Bill Latimer from Plainfield wrote. 'Today, there's nothing like HoJo's all-you-can-eat fried chicken, hot and crispy on the outside and still frozen at the bone!' And many readers want MassDOT to make sure food and gas prices are affordable. Electric vehicle charging The second most popular request was for more and better EV charging options. Currently, the Pike has two Tesla-only stations along with six relatively slow generic chargers. In its request for proposals, MassDOT required that the new manager ' 'More and more powerful EV chargers. And EV chargers that are under cover (people pumping gas don't have to stand in the rain).' Patrick Gabridge, Northampton 'They should be well lit, with proper facilities nearby for people to use,' reader Jay Dobbie in Worcester wrote. 'We can't expect EVs to keep thriving if the state doesn't keep to their word [and] help with the infrastructure.' Connecticut resident Sue Santos was worried about high prices at Applegreen's chargers. 'It would be nice if Tesla upgraded the software to allow non-Tesla cars to charge, currently they can't at most [rest stops] on the Pike,' she wrote. 'They perform better than the Applegreen units.' Applegreen has three different design options for the plazas: one for coastal areas, one for the central part of the state, and one for the Berkshire hills. This rendering shows the concept for the coastal area. Rendering by Upland Architects Bathrooms, bathrooms, bathrooms Readers also had many suggestions for the rest stops' restrooms, starting with offering more options for family bathrooms, nongender-specific bathrooms, and attended bathrooms. Some would like to see paper towels make a comeback. And cleanliness was cited as an issue by dozens of readers. Advertisement ' 'All entrances should have handicap door openers, also known as automatic swing door openers or ADA door openers. Every time I have to stop at a rest stop, I'm amazed and frustrated at the lack of them. -- Also, handicap toilet stalls should be checked more frequently - too often, the only handicap stall is unusable.' Anonymous 'A built in stool at a sink so that little kids can reach the sink/soap themselves is the easiest thing that I wish all public restrooms had,' Abigail Starr in Cambridge wrote. 'A stall that is family friendly would be AMAZING too. Like having a baby holder, a seat for a young child, a shelf to put a diaper bag, and if they really want to make it totally welcoming a small flush toilet in addition to the regular adult sized toilet.' Applegreen in New York Dozens of readers said they had experience with the newly built rest stops by Applegreen in New York, and most were not happy about the facilities. 'Look at NY Thruway renovations and do the opposite,' John Mungovan of Harwich Port wrote, citing an inadequate number of bathrooms and crowded eating spaces. Kathy Chelini of Milford said she has been driving back and forth to Rochester, N.Y., for more than 40 years and does not like the new rest stops. 'Few places to sit and eat and we have to eat in the car,' she wrote. 'Too few bathrooms, too few gas pumps, long lines. Poor choice of food restaurants that close on Sunday and few vegetarian options.' ' 'THE NY THRUWAY STOPS ARE HORRIBLE.' Harriet Luppino, Newton, MA The controversy around Chick-fil-A on the Thruway was also mentioned by Globe readers. In New York, some have complained that the chain's decision to close on Sundays makes it a bad choice for a highway rest stop used seven days a week. In its request for proposals, MassDOT Including Chick-fil-A is 'very impractical for a rest area restaurant to be closed on a Sunday, making everything else overcrowded and slow,' wrote Christina Paradiso from Princeton. Advertisement Assorted other ideas Other suggestions including adding compost bins for leftover food, cushy chairs for weary travelers, and playground equipment for kids. About a dozen readers asked for a fenced-in dog walk or other pet-oriented features. 'I'd love to see designated dog walk areas with disposal bags and containers,' wrote Linda Barbadoro of Sturbridge. But perhaps the best suggestion came from the Rev. Laura Everett of Jamaica Plain, who said she appreciated that New Jersey has named its rest stops for famous state residents. 'Driving back from Cape May to Boston recently I stopped at Jon Bon Jovi, Judy Blume, Whitney Houston & James Gandolfini,' Everett wrote. 'Imagine how much more fun (and educational) our Massachusetts rest stops would be if we got to stop at the Amy Poehler Service Plaza or the Aaron Pressman can be reached at
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Brockton driving school owner pleads guilty to RMV scheme, paying more than $20K in bribes
A 71-year-old man pleaded guilty Wednesday, June 11, in federal court in Boston to charges he bribed a Brockton Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) road test examiner to issue drivers licenses to people who did not pass — or some cases even take — their road test, the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney's office announced in a written statement. Carlos Cardoso, 71, of Brockton, pleaded guilty to one count each of honest services mail fraud and conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud, the U.S. Attorney's office wrote. Cardoso was the owner of a driving school when he paid more than $20,000 in cash bribes to a road test examiner at the Brockton RMV service center to misrepresent or manufacture road test scores, causing the RMV to mail drivers licenses to thousands of unqualified individuals, the U.S Attorney's office said. Honest mail services fraud and conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud provides for a prison sentence of up to 20 years each. Cardoso is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 11, 2025. On Feb. 15, 2022, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) reported that the RMV had determined 2,100 drivers were given road test passing scores by two road test examiners at the Brockton Service Center without taking the road test. The state sent letters to those customers who did not complete the road test and notified them that they would be required to take and pass a road test within 10 days. Those who did not take the road test within 10 days would have their licenses suspended. Of the 1,074 road tests conducted for the more than 2,000 drivers involved, 381 people passed their exam while 693 failed, according to reporting by WCVB. This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Driving school owner pleads guilty to Brockton RMV bribery scheme
