Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com March 14, 2016 • Worcester Business Journal 31 Make Central Mass. the affordable college capital E D I T O R I A L The Worcester Business Journal welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Please send submissions to Brad Kane, editor, at bkane@wbjournal.com. M assachusetts is a leader in the nation in utilizing new technology to improve the lives of residents, visitors and members of the business community, and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is proud to be part of this effort. Just as Worcester has evolved from a city with a manufacturing base to a city becoming known for biotech and information technology, so too is our transportation system evolving; and Worcester County residents need look no further than just down the road to see modernizations taking place with highway infrastructure. The project to install All Electronic Tolling (AET) on I-90 from the New York border to Boston, the Tobin Bridge, Sumner/Callahan tunnels and Ted Williams tunnel is fully underway. This new tolling system will make travel safer, more efficient and reduce pollution. AETs are scheduled to be operational by the end of the year, and then Massachusetts will join 12 other states with having this convenient technology in place. AET transactions will be processed either through E-ZPass or an invoice based on the license plate. Each time a vehicle drives under one of the new overhead gantries, the system will search for an E-ZPass transponder. If an E-ZPass is found, the system classifies the vehicle and charges the appropriate amount to the customer's account. If no E-ZPass is found, a camera captures an image of the license plate. The license plate is either matched with the customer's existing E-ZPass account or a bill is mailed to the address of the vehicle registration holder. By eliminating the need to stop at a toll booth and pay a toll collector or reduce speed significantly to slow down and travel through a booth opening, congestion will be reduced, and there is reduced danger of rear collisions or side-swipe crashes as drivers navigate to the appropriate payment lanes. Motorists can drive at the posted travel speed right on through and below all the overhead gantries. This technology is expected to save between 500 and 2,500 gallons of gasoline per day, or 200,000 to 875,000 gallons annually. This efficiency brings other, indirect benefits to the entire commonwealth. The reduction in gasoline usage is expected to lower greenhouse gas emissions by up to 7,800 tons per year. Using less gas and spending less time on the road is good for both businesses and commuters. At the end of the year, we will have 16 gantry locations on I-90, replacing the current 25 tolling locations. AET will be revenue neutral. As Transportation Secretary and CEO Stephanie Pollack has stressed, we will have to set new rates because of the 16 gantry locations, but a driver traveling the length of I-90 will pay the rate as that driver pays now. We have already issued a request for proposals to help us with the process of setting prices for getting on and getting off I-90 at various exits. A selection committee will soon evaluate the responses to the RFP and choose the traffic and revenue consultant to assist us with pricing issues. In addition, Secretary Pollack will appoint a taxpayer advocate. We live at an exciting time for advances in the transportation sector, with improved safety features in vehicles, real-time data digital boards along roadways, and better-fabricated materials for use with road and bridge projects. Now we look forward to continue our efforts to use new technology and best practices to enhance the safety and quality of life for all members of the public. n Thomas Tinlin is the highway administrator for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Electronic tolling to make travel safer, faster, cleaner BY THOMAS TINLIN Special to the Worcester Business Journal V I E W P O I N T Thomas Tinlin The WPI ranking comes on the heels of Anna Maria College and Quinsigamond Community College creating a $40,000 program for first responders and social workers to get bachelor's degrees; Clark University, WPI and College of the Holy Cross landing in the top 200 of The Princeton Review's "2016 Colleges That Pay Your Back" book; Clark and Mount Wachusett Community College partnering to help MWCC students obtain affordable bachelor's degrees at Clark; and Nichols College freezing tuition for the next fall semester. In addition, a state pilot program recently launched in Worcester giving parents $50 to start saving for their children's educations. Following a long period of annual tuition hikes at colleges and universities over the past two decades, it seems the colleges are not just doing the necessary belt tightening, but in many cases developing affordable and innovative programs that are making their i n s t i t u t i o n s m o r e competitive. It is a hopeful sign that so many of our Central Massachusetts schools realize the opportunity to provide a high quality, yet affordable education. Could our region be developing a reputation as the capital for cost-effective learning? The recent recognition of so many area schools bodes well for students, parents, the institutions and our regional economy. When tuition spikes started pushing traditional college out of the reach of the not just the economically disadvantaged but many in the middle class, there were too many anecdotes about schools offering mediocre education with too little value and a big bill. The end result were students paying for degrees or certifications that didn't necessarily lead to the careers of their choosing and large swaths of the workforce willing to learn but lacking skills that aligned with what businesses really needed. Massachusetts has long held a stellar higher education reputation, and the colleges and universities in this state have long legacies of providing the learning necessary to create professionals and leaders in a wide variety of disciplines. Central Massachusetts is home to a dozen of these schools, and the city of Worcester is as much of a college town as any with WPI, Clark, Becker College, Assumption College, Holy Cross, Worcester State University, Quinsigamond C ommunity C ollege, MCPHS University and UMass Medical School all within its borders. Central Massachusetts can leverage this already strong reputation toward affordability by following the example set by Clark, QCC, Anna Maria, MWCC and others in finding creative solutions to make certain degrees affordable. In a time when the demographics of college- age students show a dip in New England, creative offers and innovative programs can attract new student to area schools.. We applaud efforts like those taken at Nichols at freezing tuition rates. The more streamlined and efficient a school can be in delivering educational value, the more successful it can be and the more students who can graduate with a reduced debt burden, the better for them and everyone. The more area colleges are attracting value conscious students, the more the region's reputation for affordability will grow. The community certainly benefits from having a workforce less beholden to excessive debt – it makes the road to marriage, children and home buying less burdensome. In a very competitive education marketplace, it is a good sign that so many area schools are being innovative with how they are pricing and delivering their products. n A t or near the top of the long list of what makes Central Massachusetts an attractive alternative to other areas of the state – and the country – is its affordability. The region offers a highly educated workforce, access to significant research and business infrastructure, a growing cultural hub in the city of Worcester, and a place where you can buy a house and lease or buy a warehouse or office building without breaking the bank. In yet another one of the seemingly endless ranking of institutions and markets, Worcester Polytechnic Institute was recently named one of the country's top 50 of colleges by the online guide Value Colleges for offering a high quality experience at an affordable price for its big data program. As big data becomes increasingly important in the business world, WPI's profile continues to rise on the national level. It is a hopeful sign that so many of our Central Massachusetts schools realize the opportunity to provide a high quality, yet affordable education.

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