MBTA asks for public feedback on multiyear spending plan

The MBTA is asking for public input on its plans to invest nearly $10 billion in over the next five years.

The agency released its proposed Capital Investment Plan for 2026-2030 last week, and is soliciting feedback through an online form and two public meetings. The agency will submit its final plan to the MBTA board of directors in May for approval.

The five-year plan includes nearly 700 different projects. Officials said the proposal focuses on increasing safety and reliability across the system, with many projects related to infrastructure and technology improvements.

“Under the leadership of the Healey-Driscoll administration, Massachusetts is setting a national example for how to accelerate transportation infrastructure projects,” state Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt said in a statement. “By leveraging diverse funding sources, expanding our workforce, and working in close partnership with legislators and municipal leaders, we are moving faster and smarter than ever.”

Transportation advocates and experts are celebrating the plan’s focus on service improvements, which they believe will help rebuild trust with riders who have ditched public transportation after years of dangerous incidents and a cascade of maintenance problems.

But former Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation Jim Aloisi said the spending plan fails to deliver on major projects.

“It’s a mixed bag,” he said, adding that he wishes more funding were dedicated toward upgrading and electrifying the Commuter Rail.

“One sure way to reduce traffic congestion in Greater Boston is to get people who have a choice out of their car and onto regional rail,” he said. “We’re not going to do that unless we have a regional rail system that functions like a world-class modern system.”

Aloisi also criticized the agency for punting on the “Red-Blue Connector,” a plan to extend the Blue Line below Cambridge Street to Charles/MGH station on the Red Line. The Capital Investment Plan does allocate millions of dollars for the project, but Aloisi believes the T needs to invest more to show that they will deliver on the proposal.

“That for me is a real disappointment and it can’t be sugar coated,” he said. “We’re either serious about this or we’re not. And the CIP in my judgment doesn’t show that we’re serious enough about it.”