Episode Three: Adapting Regional Transit for Climate Change
Description
The transportation system is a critical component of our infrastructure here in Massachusetts. We rely on all modes of transit for economic development, access to goods and services, as well as social interaction and enrichment. While the system has numerous benefits, it also contributes to over one-third of the Bay State’s greenhouse gas emissions, a key cause of climate change.
Climate change mitigation and adaptation involves adjusting the way the transportation community plans, designs, constructs, operates, and maintains transportation infrastructure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to protect against the impacts caused by changes in climate and extreme weather events.
While actions taken to mitigate climate change may not be able to fully stop climate change, they can help the effort to slow the rate of change and provide more time for the region to adapt to a changing climate and its impacts.
We will explore many facets of the Cape’s transportation system in this podcast series, today we are focused on regional transit, and the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, which has made a number of changes and upgrades to its systems and amenities over the years to help offset its carbon footprint.
This episode features Cape Cod Commission Transportation Program Manager Steven Tupper and Tom Cahir, administrator of the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority.