The project will replace the Allston Viaduct, which carries the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90) from the Allston Interchange to the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge and makes transportation infrastructure improvements to nearby roads and the railroad corridor. Additionally, the project will create new and improved access to expanded waterfront parks and open space in an Environmental Justice community. It includes construction of the MBTA’s West Station along the Worcester Commuter Rail Line, a new bicycle and pedestrian bridge, and four acres of new parkland.
The award follows the administration’s application in September 2023 to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant Program (RCN) that provides funding to remove or mitigate highways and other transportation infrastructure that create barriers for community connectivity. The federal program includes $3.3 billion in funding for fiscal year 2023 from both the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act.
The successful application for RCN grant funding for the Allston Multimodal Project was the result of close coordination with the City of Boston, Harvard University, and Boston University, in addition to other local partners.
“This is another major win for Massachusetts. The Allston Multimodal Project is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve transportation infrastructure in the Allston community and better connect residents across the state with housing and job opportunities,” Governor Maura Healey said. "We’re grateful for the partnership of the Biden-Harris Administration, our congressional delegation, the City of Boston, and other partners to drive progress on this important project.”
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“Our administration continues to bring people together and drive progress on critical infrastructure projects that have long been stalled in our state," Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll said. "The Allston Multimodal Project is part of our commitment to making investments that are good for the economy and good for our residents, whether they want to travel on foot, on bike, on public transportation, or by automobile. This federal grant will help build a project that will have widespread benefits in the decades ahead, improving access to the Charles River, between Boston and points west, and for everyone taking trips in the Allston area.”
“The Allston neighborhood will no longer be cut off from the Charles River and other nearby destinations by an elevated highway when the multimodal project is built," said Monica Tibbits-Nutt, Secretary of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). “The Allston Multimodal Project will be transformational for people who live, work, and travel in this area of Boston, and the federal grant puts us on the way to getting the necessary funds to advance the project’s design and construction.”
“The City of Boston is grateful to our federal delegation and to MassDOT for their support in moving this transformational project forward,” Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said. “The Allston Multimodal Project will improve public transit, expand parkland, reconnect residents to beautiful open space along the Charles River, and create new opportunities for housing and jobs — and bring much-needed fixes for crumbling infrastructure. We will continue to work with the Allston community to refine a design that improves for our city for generations to come."
The multimodal project will result in many benefits, including reconnecting a neighborhood currently separated by an interstate highway and advancing environmental justice, increasing access to regional multimodal transportation, providing a unique opportunity for equitable economic and workforce development, and building on comprehensive community engagement for the future transportation network in this area.
The Healey-Driscoll Administration has secured nearly $3 billion in federal funding grants since taking office, and currently the administration has $2 billion in pending grant requests. The Allston Multimodal RCN application is among other federal funding awards for transportation projects:
- $108 million award toward West-East rail
- $375 million award for the Sagamore Bridge project
- $249.4 million for the MBTA in discretionary grant funding
- $116 million grant for the MBTA’s purchase of battery-electric buses
The Healey-Driscoll Administration continues to wait for federal government review of other transportation grant applications, including an application for $1.06 billion in grant funding through the Bridge Investment Program Large Bridge Project Program for replacement of the Sagamore Bridge. MassDOT is the lead applicant, applying jointly with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the owner of the bridge.
