General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

bakgwailo said:
Riverside like the end of the D line? That's an 11 mile detour from Alewife (google maps - about 7.5 miles as the crow flies). I can't imagine that's a normal substitute for Alewife vs and number of CR stops, the new Tufts green line stop or w/e.
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As I understand it, a lot of Alewife riders drive down Route 2 from around/outside 128. (Probably including from commuter rail towns, preferring the Red Line’s frequency/flexibility, fare, access to the southside, or all of the above.) In a scenario like that, Riverside probably doesn’t seem too far out of the way.
 
I can't imagine that's a normal substitute for Alewife vs and number of CR stops, the new Tufts green line stop or w/e.
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Key words from the Twitter complaint are "Park and Ride".
 
fatnoah said:
Key words from the Twitter complaint are "Park and Ride".
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I mean sure, I just again don't see there being much cross over there for park and ride - I would think the alewife draw would be going very far out of their way to park and ride at Riverside, but, is there basically no where else to park and ride on the Lowell or Fitchburg line or w/e? I just have a hard time imagining that most people driving into Alewife to commute doesn't have a better option than going to Riverside.
 
I think it depends where you're coming from. On the Fitchburg Line, I don't think there are really any good options for park and ride inside of Concord. AFAIK, lots are either tiny or private or non-existent. For the Lowell Line, you have Anderson, but that's about it. If you're coming from the West, that may be a "bridge too far".
 
Yeah you know I just looked around on google maps and... there really isn't much alternatives there, which seems like a problem all to itself.
 
Brattle Loop said:
Where could you even fit it there? (And it'd be pretty close to Brandeis/Roberts at that.)
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It looks like there would be enough room where this office building is, although the wetlands may prove difficult to build over/around. You would also need to redesign the interchange slightly to have access ramps, so it may be getting into more crazy transit pitch territory. I think Brandeis/Roberts would be far enough but you'd have to close Kendal Green. This spot would be a good anchor for regional rail inbound every 15 mins or so to NS.
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BosMaineiac said:
It looks like there would be enough room where this office building is, although the wetlands may prove difficult to build over/around. You would also need to redesign the interchange slightly to have access ramps, so it may be getting into more crazy transit pitch territory. I think Brandeis/Roberts would be far enough but you'd have to close Kendal Green. This spot would be a good anchor for regional rail inbound every 15 mins or so to NS.
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That is the exact parcel where a station has been officially proposed: http://www.mapc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/128_Report.pdf. (See p.38 of the PDF.)
 
fatnoah said:
I think it depends where you're coming from. On the Fitchburg Line, I don't think there are really any good options for park and ride inside of Concord. AFAIK, lots are either tiny or private or non-existent. For the Lowell Line, you have Anderson, but that's about it. If you're coming from the West, that may be a "bridge too far".
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The Brandeis station is/was not that popular, despite it's small parking lot. Could also go to Wellesley Farms CR albeit not a cheap option.
 
jklo said:
The Brandeis station is/was not that popular, despite it's small parking lot.
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Brandeis/Roberts is relatively inconvenient to access by car from the highways, despite being relatively close to them the access is very roundabout. I don't know if I ever saw that parking lot full.
 
10-minute sketch of how you could make it work. Basically just expand the size of the rotary to give you enough room for a junction with the access road. Not exactly going to make the interchange better, but I can't imagine it would make it much worse. There aren't going to be too many people driving from the south (since Riverside is closer to the Pike), and hopefully those closer to downtown Waltham can use buses to get there, so I would hope that will limit the amount of traffic having to do the additional weave to get to the station.

The station should be an island platform so that terminating trains can use either track. There's probably enough room under the existing trail trestle to widen the tracks and add the platform, but it's not a majorly historically valuable bridge. Up and over at the southeast end, and a gated grade crossing for the handful of pedestrians walking from the Kendal Green area.

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The folks on Hobbs Brook Rd would have a coronary over that secondary entrance.
 
The EGE said:
10-minute sketch of how you could make it work. Basically just expand the size of the rotary to give you enough room for a junction with the access road. Not exactly going to make the interchange better, but I can't imagine it would make it much worse. There aren't going to be too many people driving from the south (since Riverside is closer to the Pike), and hopefully those closer to downtown Waltham can use buses to get there, so I would hope that will limit the amount of traffic having to do the additional weave to get to the station.

The station should be an island platform so that terminating trains can use either track. There's probably enough room under the existing trail trestle to widen the tracks and add the platform, but it's not a majorly historically valuable bridge. Up and over at the southeast end, and a gated grade crossing for the handful of pedestrians walking from the Kendal Green area.

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Here's slides on the Route 20 exit reconfiguration. Includes connector roads between 20 and 117 and a spur to Jones Rd. that would basically serve as this station's driveway.

 
BosMaineiac said:
What year is this from? Has there been any movement on a station here or at least the highway reconfiguration in recent years?
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2017 on the docs. No further action on the station as the MBTA hasn't yet picked up MAPC's recs. It's placemarked in the Rail Vision's Urban Rail scheme as "I-95 station". The interchange reconfig is thrashing along with MassDOT in paperwork, though I don't think it's been fully funded yet.
 
There is a three year old YouTube video posted showing the planned improvements for the Route 20 interchange with connector to Route 117.
 
bakgwailo said:
Wasn't the entire point of this law to try to spur TOD in suburbs where T stations exist, as Boston has been shouldering the brunt of new housing built for the region?
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The entire point of the law is to get the Weston Whopper built. Everything else is a side effect.
 
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