Mayor interviewed about bus lane by Fox 25 Boston

Pilot program has become national model

   On Monday, December 4, Mayor Carlo DeMaria was interviewed by Fox 25 Boston on Everett’s bus lane. In early December 2016, the City of Everett launched a bus-only-lane pilot program on Broadway, which has become permanent and a national model for other communities.

Mayor DeMaria and his administration established this time-saving bus lane to allow buses to make additional trips in order to reduce the frequent overcrowding that occurs on these routes. While similar bus lanes exist in other parts of the MBTA bus system, the Broadway example is the first one outside Boston.

Mayor DeMaria stated, “I was happy to speak with Fox 25 on the continued success of the bus-only lane. Commuters have seen significantly reduced times while traveling to work and have strongly endorsed this initiative.”

The bus-only lane was part of the Everett Transit Action Plan, which explored a number of ways to improve transit accessibility and reliability in Everett. The DeMaria administration was pleased to see the dramatic and positive impact of the bus lane in expediting bus and other vehicle travel, and it has started to introduce other lanes throughout the city.

In June, the City of Everett was awarded a grant by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for $150,000 in order to provide funding for the preliminary design and engineering of a bus-only lane on the west side of Broadway/Route 99 from the Everett city line to Route 16/Sweetser Circle, a primary traffic corridor for expected casino-related traffic.

The DeMaria administration will also launch a similar lane on Main Street and will be studying feasibility for a bus-only lane on Chelsea and Ferry Streets.

The city continues to solicit and encourage feedback from residents, bus riders, and business owners regarding overall operations and traffic flow. The city welcomes feedback from residents via the constituent services hotline: 617-394-2270.