Johnny Cash used to sing that he could “hear the train a’comin” and now those living near – even not so near – the South Coast Rail construction sites are finding themselves singing the same tune.
Some on social media believed the horns are being heard further away from the tracks because of trees that have been cleared along tracks and right of ways where equipment is being brought in for the massive commuter rail construction project.
However, Joe Pesturo, communications director at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, said he doesn’t believe that s why more residents are hearing the train horns.
LAKEVILLE Selectmen met virtually with their state legislators last week to get an update on the steady flow of federal pandemic relief and economic stimulus grant money being funneled to Massachusetts cities and towns.
In the first meeting after the annual town election, newly-elected Lorraine Carboni was welcomed to the board. During its annual reorganization session, the board named Lia Fabian as the new chair; member Richard LaCamera moved to vice chair for the next year.
The town received a$1.66 million allocation for pandemic related expenses under the CARES Act, the first federal relief bill passed last year. Much of that reimbursement money went to the school department, with the fire department adding two temporary firefighter/EMTs to help with the pandemic surge.
The Enterprise
State lawmakers representing Southeastern Massachusetts are calling for more local COVID-19 vaccination sites saying not enough were included among the more than 100 that are slated to be open statewide by the end of the week. Brockton has been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and we had one of the highest rates of COVID-19 cases in the state. We are still struggling with a high rate of cases in the city, state Rep. Claire Cronin, a Democrat whose district includes Easton and Brockton, said in a statement. It is critical that there be vaccination sites in Brockton that are accessible to members of our community, specifically our most vulnerable populations, she said.
The bill calls for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, sets interim emission targets, establishes appliance energy efficiency standards, authorizes additional purchases of offshore wind power and adds protections for environmental justice communities.