Devin 🌹🚉

I am really frustrated that the press is discussing the destruction of USAID as something that has happened rather than an illegal action that will likely be undone in two weeks when courts tell the world that it was illegal.

Massachusetts new Housing Plan has set a housing production goal of 222,000 units by 2035.

A 22,000-unit average would require us to build at a pace not seen since the 1980s, with annual permits likely needing to exceed 22,000. MA issued 11,600 permits in all of 2023.
www.mass.gov/doc/a-home-f...

A year of shutdowns: Was it worth it? — TransitMatters It’s hard to say whether the shutdowns were “worth it” for each and every rider. However, on aggregate, and by looking at the data, the T was successful in its goals.

🚧 2024 was tough for MBTA riders. The T asked a lot from us while shutting down each line for repairs. But the T successfully removed all slow zones!*

📉 After each shutdown, our Labs team monitored the T’s progress. Check out the team's analysis here: transitmatters.org/blog/labs-20...

WELCOME TO PUBLIC COMMENT - THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING WELCOME TO PUBLIC COMMENT - THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING

The time to end exclusionary zoning is here. It’s taken 5 years and hundreds of meeting but we’re almost there!

Public comment tomorrow at 5pm cambridgema.gov/Departments/...

Single most important day.

Email your testimonies to council@cambridgema.gov & cityclerk@cambridgema.gov too

Brassy blade sign at Somerville City Hall for the City Clerk.

Today we dropped off our first zoning amendment petition!

This amendment will simplify & streamline regulations for building or renovating dormers, removing multiple onerous rules that make it difficult or impossible for folks to modify their homes to better suit their ever-changing needs.

Now that the T is slow zone free, what’s the biggest thing you want @transitmatters.bsky.social Labs to look into next year.

What info about the T do you lack data for?

Return-to-office (RTO) mandates lead to abnormally high employee turnover, especially for female/more senior/more skilled employees.

It also takes significantly longer to fill these job vacancies after RTO mandates.

papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

NBC news screenshot of interview with Texas representative Greg Casar "The progressive movement needs to change. We need to re-emphasize core economic issues every time some of these cultural war issues are brought up," Casar said. "So when we hear Republicans attacking queer Americans again, I think the progressive response needs to be that a trans person didn't deny your health insurance claim, a big corporation did - with Republican help. We need to connect the dots for people that the Republican Party obsession with these culture war issues is driven by Republicans' desire to distract voters and have them look away while Republicans pick their pocket."

Newly elected Congressional Progressive Caucus chair Greg Casar is already cooking
www.nbcnews.com/politics/con...

I’m excited for @gregcasar.bsky.social’s leadership at the Progressive Caucus. He’s going to be great.

In 2018 Dems elected the largest class to Congress since Watergate, ~60 seats.

A lot of it was, yes, Trump backlash. But the winners also had another thing in common, despite a wide range of differences: most rejected corporate PAC money.

It’s a hugely compelling factor to voters & underdiscussed

Effectively no more slow zones on the Red Line, the last 14s are likely just ops which will clear tomorrow.

Exciting stuff! All heavy rail is (almost) slow zone free!

✅ Fixed Slow Zone 🎉
---------------------
🔴 Central → Kendall/MIT
🗓️ 503 days ⏳ 32.0s ⬆️ 20.38%

Check it out in our Data Dashboard: https://dashboard.transitmatters.org/red/trips/multi/?from=70069&to=70071&startDate=2023-06-27&endDate=2024-11-26

Slowzone bot is now on BlueSky

A quote from Jonathan Berk, board member of Abundant Housing Massachusetts on a blue background. Quote read: "Massachusetts must wholeheartedly embrace a mindset of housing abundance and bring about the necessary reforms to achieve that result."

We loved this piece in Banker and Tradesman from @abundanthousingma.org board member Jonathan Berk (@berkie1.bsky.social) on the importance of action on housing. No one will take action for us, so we have to take the initiative to make more housing happen! buff.ly/3Ocoi8r

Walkable, denser development can address both housing and traffic woes Part of the solution to our existential housing and transportation crises is building more homes, of all types, in and around walkable neighborhoods.

“We have to think bigger & be bolder when it comes to solutions to our region’s greatest challenges. These changes require all of us to take an open mind to rethinking the last 60 years of unsustainable sprawl & embrace more walkable, infill housing (again!).”
commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/walk...

www.somervillema.gov/news/mayor-k...

Great news for #somervillema

Go save money and decarbonize the local electric grid!

Everyone should make sure to call and email their reps, and the governor to ask them to finally be proactive instead of just being reactive to the right wing government.

They need to protect our rights, healthcare, education, and everything else BEFORE Trump tries to mess with it

#mapoli

Ask Somerville to Remove Parking Minimums, Enact Maximums & Expand Dedicated Bus Lanes.

actionnetwork.org/petitions/as...

We don't need parking minimums, we need maximums!

#somerville #parking

MBTA GM Eng says shutdowns will allow T to deal with maintenance backlog By the end of 2024, MBTA officials said, the agency will fix all of the slow zones that have been a thorn in the side of riders for more than a year at this point.

Everything Phil Eng said in this interview is incredibly promising. Especially considering Single tracking! Single tracking is super valuable to maintaining the tracks into the future with minimal disruption to riders. Really good stuff here
www.wgbh.org/news/local/2...