Imagine
bus lines eliminated. Picture trying to get home from work, but your
commuter rail has stopped running in the evening or on the weekends. Or
better yet, imagine being a disabled person who depends on 'The Ride'
to stay connected to your community, your job, and your doctor, but
'The Ride' has been eliminated in your community. This is the reality
we as a Commonwealth are facing in a matter of months unless the
legislature takes action.

These are challenging economic times
for all of our families, and many of our small businesses are
struggling to keep their doors open. This requires that we, as
residents of the Commonwealth, work together to make thoughtful
decisions about our priorities. As a legislator, I believe this is the
time to act responsibly, be honest about the magnitude of the
challenges we are facing, and do what I can to maintain a decent
quality of life for our residents.

The MBTA is not without its
problems. We have heard a lot about the need for 'reforms before
revenue.' Reforms that we have already begun to implement, and more,
are critical to restoring financial responsibility to the T. And more
importantly, such reforms are necessary to restore the public trust in
the way our agencies are run.

It would be dishonest, however,
if I told you that reforms without new revenues would be enough. While
we strive for reforms that may bring savings in the tens of millions,
the T is facing a deficit in excess of $160 million. And next year's
deficit, and the associated service cuts and fare increases being
proposed to fill this gap, doesn't even capture the backlog of
maintenance that causes delays and service interruptions experienced by
T riders every day.

The story isn't complete until we take
into account the history of fare increases that have already happened.
While tolls and the gas tax have been left untouched, T riders have
faced fares that have doubled in just a few short years. Fare increases
may sound reasonable to some, but the reality is that an increase in
fares directly leads to a decrease in ridership. This is bad for road
congestion, this is bad for the environment, and this is taking us in
the wrong direction at a time we know we should be investing in public
transportation.

I have heard from many constituents who are
concerned about service cuts, whether for the T, for our schools,
public safety, or a host of programs that improve our quality of life,
protect our seniors, and provide for our children. As the debates
proceed around the need for revenues and reforms, it will be your
stories and priorities that I and other legislators take into account
to inform our decision-making. We have tough choices to make, but I am
certain that the severity of the times gives us an opportunity to
refocus our priorities and to remember what it is we value about the
quality of life Massachusetts offers.