As Massachusetts enters the first phase of its reopening plan, businesses will be making adjustments to ensure proper social distancing for workers once they get to the office. But what about the commute? On Monday, a photo circulated on Twitter by transportation advocate Chris Dempsey showed a packed Silver Line bus that services East Boston and Chelsea, two of the hardest hit communities by COVID-19 in the state.
Dempsey told Boston Public Radio on Wednesday the MBTA needs to start ramping up service quicker than Governor Charlie Baker's current plan, in order to ensure workers can commute safely to businesses as they reopen.
"What this crisis is doing of course, is really just exposing a lot of the deep inequeties that have existed in our transportation system for many decades now," he said. "We give some of these communities, low income communities, immigrant communities, communities of color, some of the very worst public transit service. That image in conjunction with what we're facing today is really concerning, but reflective of those deep inequeities. We're hoping images like that will cause the Governor and others to say immediately we should be increasing service."
Director of Transportation for Massachusetts and former Assistant Secretary of Transportation.
