OIG Issues Required Report on MassDOT Service Plazas Procurement

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) today issued a report, required by the process the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is using to procure an operator(s) to redevelop and operate the Commonwealth’s 18 highway service plazas.

In March 2026, MassDOT announced that it would use a public-private partnership infrastructure oversight commission (P3 Commission) process to develop an RFP and proposed form of contract for the service plazas project. Under the law, the OIG is required to review MassDOT’s draft contract and give the P3 Commission written notice of any “material objections” to the draft contract within 30 days.

“The OIG acknowledges MassDOT’s meaningful efforts to use the ‘lessons learned’ from the initial procurement to improve its processes,” Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shapiro said. “The OIG offers its comments and recommendations in this report to not only fulfill its statutory obligation, but to also further the Commonwealth’s goal of conducting an effective procurement for the revitalization and multi-decade operation of significant amenities serving the traveling public.”

The OIG’s primary “material objection” to the proposed contract is that it does not explicitly include the OIG’s right to audit and investigate. MassDOT should also make clear that governmental access goes beyond investigations of noncompliance to other contexts such as routine audits and reviews.

Since this project is of significant public interest, the OIG exercised its discretion to issue a more in-depth report of the procurement process. In this regard, the OIG recommends that MassDOT adhere to strong recordkeeping requirements to document and define project milestones, key decisions, and project developments. In addition, the OIG recommends that MassDOT consider requiring a performance bond to ensure satisfactory handover of the public asset at the end of the 35-year lease.

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