America’s Great Infrastructure Stagnation

For the Greater Boston area, the revelation of massive cost overruns in the planned extension of the MBTA’s Green Line was déjà vu all over again. Another mega-project, the Big Dig, famously ballooned from $2 billion to $16 billion, and the state is still struggling with paying for its portion, well beyond the federal funding that was provided.

Most planners believe that extending the iconic Green Line from its current terminus at Lechmere station in Cambridge northward through the adjacent city of Somerville is a very good idea. It’s one of the basic expansions of the MBTA system—others include connecting the Red and Blue lines, or extending the Blue Line to Lynn—that is an exercise in building on an excellent century-old network. Just a tweak, with huge returns for improved access, and opportunities for transit-oriented development.