Popularity Threatens Progress in Boston's Booming Seaport District

With growth ten years ahead of estimates, Boston's Innovation District is in need of some fresh ideas to help stave of death by traffic asphyxiation. Local roads and mass transit are already stretched to capacity during the evening commute.

1 minute read

August 20, 2013, 7:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


While meteoric growth and packed buses may sound like a problem any city would be happy to have, the unexpected popularity of Boston's Seaport District has planners playing catch-up to stave off development-killing gridlock. 

“All this growth wasn’t supposed to happen until 2025,” said Mayor Thomas Menino. “It’s a wonderful success. Because of the success, we’re having a problem. It’s amazing to me.”

"Menino this week gathered a collection of transportation officials and Seaport leaders in the Eagle Room of City Hall to try to address the potential choke hold on the area’s meteoric growth," reports Shirley Leung. "The group plans to start implementing immediate fixes starting in September and spend up to a $1 million on a yearlong study to develop a comprehensive transportation plan by the end of the next year."

Friday, August 16, 2013 in The Boston Globe

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