The winning bidder in the controversial procurement for a highway service plaza concession contract is walking away from lease talks with the state. These commercial realities have been coupled with costly and continued litigation threats from an opposing bidder that have jeopardized the project’s timeline and financing. Rival bidder Global Partners has vehemently contested the MassDOT bid award, claiming its offer was superior. By failing to appear before this committee, MassDOT and Applegreen have effectively denied taxpayers the answers that they are entitled to. I see no reason to continue this process and urge MassDOT to put this project back out to bid."