(FULL BLUEPRINT TO COME)
Bill Walczak Quotes on Transportation
“It is imperative that we improve late-night transportation in Boston. Many service-industry employees work until 2:00am and 3:00am and they are being forced to spend exorbitant amounts on cab fares or walk long distances through unsafe neighborhoods. Boston needs to become a 24-hour city, extending the runtimes of buses and subways, in order to cater to the needs of those workers as well as to stimulate business that comes from the bustling nightlife that exists in our city. We also need to reform our taxi system, bringing in an independent group to determine the right amount of medallions for the city, beginning to treat taxi drivers as full-time employees instead of contracted workers, and allowing for a regional taxi system that works with surrounding areas that we all understand to be part of the larger fabric of the Boston community.”
-Boston.Comment Meet the Mayoral Candidates Series
“I am an avid bicyclist, and I understand both how wonderful and dangerous it is to ride in Boston. We need to encourage cycling to reduce traffic congestion and our carbon footprint and to promote a healthy alternative to driving, but we must start by making it safe. Helmets are important, and we need to give bikers more clearly designated and more heavily protected lanes that stretch into every neighborhood. We must also educate cyclists and drivers about the rules of the road, and place signs at difficult intersections to remind everyone to ride and drive safely.”
-Boston.Comment Meet the Mayoral Candidates Series
“It’s very difficult to work with the MBTA, we all know that … I can tell you right now that the MBTA is making a huge mistake in not making the fares reasonable and fair for people who live on the Fairmount line. It’s a crazy idea, the idea of limiting access to the line, because all you’re going to wind up doing is having half-empty trains, and then there’s going to be an excuse for saying we have to cut back farther… As mayor, I certainly will support working with the MBTA and fighting with the state if necessary around the issue of how do we create fair fares.”
