OVER THE PAST two decades, Greater Boston has enjoyed the benefits of the most expensive public works project in American history. More than $15 billion poured into Boston, most of it state dollars, providing tens of thousands of jobs and transforming the core of the city's transportation network.
The Commonwealth borrowed most of the billions of dollars needed to complete the Big Dig. That bill is now coming due. Those who most benefit from the project should pay it.
Some have suggested that we eliminate tolls on the Massachusetts Turnpike and the Boston Harbor tunnels in favor of a higher gas tax, which would spread the costs of servicing the Big Dig debt and maintaining the turnpike and tunnels evenly across the state. Some even suggest covering the MBTA's massive debt service this way.
As the transportation debate unfolds on Beacon Hill, we must remember this: Imposing new statewide taxes to fund Greater Boston's transportation infrastructure would constitute a massive shift of wealth - from the rest of the state to Greater Boston - and would be outrageously unfair.
For 20 years state government ignored the transportation needs of communities outside of Greater Boston as the Big Dig, overdue and over budget, became a crisis. Projects that could have relieved the economic stagnation of Western and Southeastern Massachusetts - including new rail service for New Bedford, Fall River, and Springfield - were put on hold, with promises that the Commonwealth would turn its attention to the rest of the state's needs as soon as the Big Dig crisis had passed.
Additionally, those of us who receive no MBTA service - more than half of Massachusetts - already pay 1 cent of our sales taxes to the T under state law.
Now that the Big Dig is built, those of us outside Greater Boston are being asked to forget those decades of neglect, help pay the interest on the Big Dig's debt for the next 20 years, and help maintain the turnpike and harbor tunnels that we only use occassionally.
This isn't just a question of regional equity. By failing to invest in public transport during the decades of the Big Dig, we missed our chance to provide alternatives to highway commuting that would have saved commuters money, given Massachusetts an edge in attracting business investment, and reduced our contribution to climate change.
The results have been predictable.
First, Boston has thrived at the expense of the rest of the state. As the group MassInc. determined in a report last year, the total number of jobs in Greater Boston increased by 467,000 in the last three decades, while 11 large, older cities outside Greater Boston had a net loss of 11,000 jobs.
Second, our lack of investment in public transit is overloading our highways and bridges, making Massachusetts less attractive to businesses. As the Beacon Hill Institute reported last year, only three other states' commuters endure longer commute times.
The state must keep its promise to attend to the transportation needs of the rest of Massachusetts. To be both fair and a good investment, changes in the way we finance transportation must recognize this history, consider the regional equities implicit in all transportation decisions, and improve the entire system, rather than simply maintain the roads and bridges of the last century. Public transit investments outside of Boston should be a priority.
A new system should contain incentives to use public transit and promote smart growth in all regions of the state. To accomplish this, a portion of any increase in the gas tax should be placed in a segregated fund dedicated solely to rail. We should similarly dedicate the proceeds from a new green registration fee for cars and trucks, scaled according to vehicles' carbon footprint. Other smart-growth revenue options, such as a mechanism called district-improvement financing, could be included. Yesterday Governor Patrick announced a creative approach that acknowledges these priorities.
We need an equitable transportation finance system that spreads investments to those areas most in need and provides incentives to shift to public transportation. As the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation has stated, "Finding the funds for costly transit projects will be extraordinarily difficult, but the consequences of inaction would be severe."
Antonio F.D. Cabral, Democrat of New Bedford, is a state representative. 
