(Photo courtesy Sen. Ed Markey)
BOSTON (WBZ-AM) -- In an address to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Thursday, Gov. Charlie Baker told his audience the state needs to get going in developing new housing.
"We have simply not been developing enough supply to keep up with demand for decades here in the Commonwealth. Decades!" told the chamber.
He warned what would happen if the state doesn't build more housing.
"Eventually, what that does is it drives up price--and when it drives up price, it pushes a lot of people to the edge of the market, and in some cases, pushes them out of it," he said.
He said he hopes state lawmakers act quickly on housing measures he's proposed.
The governor also said that new investments made in new equipment for the T would enable more trains to run, because new switches can shorten the time between trains to 2-3 minutes.
But Baker got his biggest applause when he announced that the Longfellow Bridge project, which has been a big thorn in the side of state transportation officials, would be completed in May.
"On budget," he added. "It's pretty impressive."
He apologized for the project taking so long.
"Because it's on the National Registry, if you repair it, you have to repair it exactly the same way it was originally constructed, using exactly the same tools as when it was originally constructed," he said. "That's not a joke, that's the truth!"
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Doug Cope reports