Concord staff say Stantec study near midpoint; transit work, final report still pending

Stantec’s contract to produce a townwide transportation and mobility plan for the Town of Concord is partly complete, but several substantive tasks remain, town staff told the Transportation Advisory Committee on March 13.

Laura (staff member, Town of Concord) said Stantec has delivered the visioning work and a summary of existing conditions and that about two-thirds of the roughly $100,000 contract remains unspent. She said the firm has mostly finished a “summary of existing systems,” and has completed an initial public-engagement task that included a charrette-style meeting and a survey, but that “there is still some room to do more” on stakeholder outreach.

The committee heard that the study’s seven identified tasks include an alternatives assessment (not yet completed and described as a smaller effort), and a larger implementation-planning task intended to produce a multimodal action plan, a comprehensive transportation strategic plan and a multimodal best-practices guide. Laura said staff wants Stantec to prioritize work on the transit study component of that implementation task.

Staff plans to meet with Stantec to compile all deliverables produced to date, document gaps and then “restart the planning process,” Laura said. She recommended Stantec produce a formal final report to support grant applications and future planning work.

Committee members asked for copies of the notes summarizing the current contract status and for Stantec to share its prioritization criteria so TAC and Public Works can see the method behind recommended project lists. Nick and Ellen stressed that because Stantec is working on both the mobility study and the town’s asset-management contract, the town should confirm the two efforts are aligned.

Why it matters: the final plan and the transit analysis will shape future project sequencing, grant competitiveness and whether the town pursues pilot transit services or capital projects. TAC members said clear deliverables, cost estimates and a renewed public-outreach schedule will be important next steps.

What’s next: staff will meet with Stantec to gather delivered products, confirm remaining tasks and propose a timeline for completing the alternatives assessment, implementation plan and a final report. TAC requested a follow-up at a future meeting when Stantec has recommended projects and budgets to review.