Sudbury Transportation Committee charter sets mission, membership and review timeline

The Sudbury Transportation Committee's charter, established by the Selectmen on April 10, 2018 and most recently updated May 31, 2022, lays out the committee's mission, duties, membership structure and a Select Board review timeline. The document frames transportation as a central element of "livable communities" and identifies car-dependency as a local problem that can create isolation and limit access to work and medical care.

The charter directs the committee to conduct assessments and pilot experiments, consider all functional elements of transportation (public, specialized, congestion, and pedestrian infrastructure), review published studies to inform the Select Board and Town Manager, and advise town entities on transportation implications of residential and business development. It instructs the committee to align recommendations with environmental goals from the town's Energy and Sustainability Green Ribbon Committee and to propose how the committee's responsibilities might be transitioned to Town staff or other bodies over time.

Under the membership and structure rules, the committee will maintain a Core group of voting members and a larger Advisory roster. Core members must be available for most scheduled meetings. The Core will elect a Chair, who will run meetings and serve as the designated liaison to the Town Manager and staff, and a Clerk, who will prepare minutes and a list of attendees for approval, filing with the Town Clerk, website posting, and distribution to Advisory members within 15 days. Quorum is defined as a majority of serving Core members.

The charter also requires compliance with state and local laws and town policies, explicitly referencing the Open Meeting Law, the Public Records Law, and the Conflict of Interest Law. Appointees must follow the Select Board's Code of Conduct and the Town's email policy; violations of these policies are listed as potential grounds for removal from the committee.

The document lists recommended Core and Advisory representatives and liaisons. Recommended Core roles and named liaisons include Dan Carty as Select Board liaison; Robert Lieberman for the Council on Aging; Adam Duchesneau as Town Planner and regional liaison; Kay Bell for the Commission on Disability; and Debra Galloway, director of the Sudbury Senior Center, as a liaison to the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) and to Cross Town Connect (CTC). The advisory list identifies public safety (police), Department of Public Works, Chamber of Commerce, Board of Health and other town offices as stakeholders to consult. The charter assigns Beth Suedmeyer (Planning Department) as a co-liaison to Cross Town Connect, Mary Warzynski as liaison for Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, and notes State Representative Carmine Gentile as a regional and state link.

The Select Board is scheduled to review the committee's contributions prior to May 31, 2023 to determine whether the committee structure should continue through spring 2024; the charter envisions integrating the committee's responsibilities into town departments at a future date if appropriate. The charter also notes that, with the exception of specialized transportation provided by the Council on Aging, there is currently no public transportation within Sudbury town limits and parking for commuter rail in adjoining towns is limited.

The charter emphasizes outreach to stakeholders and calls for the committee to evaluate pilot programs and coordinate with regional partners. The document establishes administrative expectations (meeting notices and minutes posted on the Town's website and filed with the Town Clerk) and compliance obligations for members. No formal motions or votes are recorded in the text; it is drafted as an organizational charter rather than minutes of a meeting.

Next procedural step: Select Board review of the committee's contributions prior to May 31, 2023 to decide continuation through spring 2024.