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eating lunch on the greenway today with co-workers, we all mentioned the same thing.... This time of year, crystal clear days with no haze at all
 
Can someone straighten this out for me... The Kendall Sq area is really confusing for me. What block or intersection is actually Kendall Sq? Which block is Cambridge Center? Which block or intersection is Technology Sq? Which intersection is Mechanics Sq?
 
Presented for your enlightenment in MSPaintovision:

KSDBndW.jpg
 
You and MS Paint are amazing, thank you. But then why is One Kendall Sq up above Mechanic Sq?
 
BostonUrbEx said:
Can someone straighten this out for me... The Kendall Sq area is really confusing for me. What block or intersection is actually Kendall Sq? Which block is Cambridge Center? Which block or intersection is Technology Sq? Which intersection is Mechanics Sq?
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Glad to try to help, but please don't take this as the 100% official/correct version:

1) Kendall Sq. the "business district" and Kendall Sq. "the square" are not identical, though the former certainly encapsulates the latter. The square itself is considered the intersections of Main and Broadway in Cambridge (e.g., here, where the giant globe fountain/sculpture resides)

2) The following business zones or developments within the Kendall Business District, including some of the ones you mentioned, are as follows on the map:
--- Technology Square - a quadrangle on Main
--- Cambridge Center - several office buildings that flank the Marriott tower
--- One Kendall Sq. - an office park on Hampshire
--- Osborne Triangle - a biotech research park at Osborne/Albany/Main
--- University Park - a biotech research park off of Mass ave

3) I would bound the Kendall Business District as Follows:
(see route tracing on this map link)

4) others feel free to modify as you see fit!
 
bigpicture7 said:
Glad to try to help, but please don't take this as the 100% official/correct version:

1) Kendall Sq. the "business district" and Kendall Sq. "the square" are not identical, though the former certainly encapsulates the latter. The square itself is considered the intersections of Main and Broadway in Cambridge (e.g., here, where the giant globe fountain/sculpture resides)

2) The following business zones or developments within the Kendall Business District, including some of the ones you mentioned, are as follows on the map:
--- Technology Square - a quadrangle on Main
--- Cambridge Center - several office buildings that flank the Marriott tower
--- One Kendall Sq. - an office park on Hampshire
--- Osborne Triangle - a biotech research park at Osborne/Albany/Main
--- University Park - a biotech research park off of Mass ave

3) I would bound the Kendall Business District as Follows:
(see route tracing on this map link)

4) others feel free to modify as you see fit!
Click to expand...

Cambridge Center has been renamed/rebranded as Kendall Center as of... earlier this year? It seemed to coincide with the "KSQ" structure going into place
http://www.kendallcenter.com/
 
I'd probably pick Malden. You've got the orange line running through it and many nice neighborhoods. The eastern part of Dot is also a good option, i'd look for a place near the red line. Lynn has some nice neighborhoods but it's fairly far out with poor transit into the city. I don't see it appreciating much unless the Blue Line extension is completed. Chelsea is a rough city but I could see it improving with the silver line and lots of construction. Revere is a nice city, it and Malden probably the lowest crime rate of the cities that you listed, however the airport noise may affect appreciation potential. Mattapan is probably the cheapest option but it's cheap for a reason.

You could ask the city-data fourms but they tend to be filled with a bunch of snobs.

Sorry if I offended anyone with my opinions on neighborhoods haha.

You could also take a look at Waltham or Watertown. The only downside to them is the lack of tranist. Roslindale could also be an option. Also take a look at Quincy, you've got the ocean there!
 
Malden is the next big burb. Cambridge -> Somerville -> Medford -> Malden.
 
Here's the deal with Malden. Me and my wife are half looking for an investment property nearby. A two family house down the road from me just went up for sale. I saw the sign and immediately looked it up. $649,800 :eek:

Granted, it was recently redone inside and out (vinyl but looks good from the street), has off-street parking and is a <5 minute walk to Oak Grove. Still, that price caught me off guard. Not sure if that will be the final sale price, but be prepared for some sticker shock.
 
^This entire discussion just reinforces the need for a much better transit network (e.g., "street car suburbs") to the outer neighborhoods around boston. It's just sad current state of affairs.
 
I work nearby and know people inside - this has to be one of the most efficient and effective full-building renovations/retrofits I have ever witnessed. The entire 5-story 1967 building was refreshed with entirely new HVAC, full building window refit (600 windows), and complete cosmetic and interior finishes and layout/repartitioning upgrades. While there wasn't much heavy structural work, the interior was essentially entirely redone and all of this was nonetheless completed in only 3 months! The building was closed/emptied in May, work took place during the summer, and the building was re-opened September 12th. I knew they were trying to avoid disrupting the academic schedule but I never thought they'd actually pull it off - kudos to them.

A decent overview article here:
http://news.mit.edu/2016/new-plan-refreshes-mit-home-for-planning-0919

“The schedule was beyond aggressive,” says Jim Harrington, director of facilities for the School of Architecture and Planning. “We did something like six months of work in less than three.” The kick-off meeting for the project was around Christmas last year; by late May, the entire building was closed, and hundreds of workers were on the job, working double-shifts and Saturdays to get everything completed by the start of the academic year this September.
Click to expand...

building-9-mit_0.jpg
 
http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/29/us/new-jersey-hoboken-train-crash/index.html

NJ Transit commuter train crashes into the bumper post at Hoboken Terminal on this morning's commute, cab car-first. 1 killed, 100 injured, platform canopy partially collapsed on the train when it jumped the bumper post and slid across the engress into the support column holding up the canopy.

Wow, these photos look bad.
 
F-Line to Dudley said:
http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/29/us/new-jersey-hoboken-train-crash/index.html

NJ Transit commuter train crashes into the bumper post at Hoboken Terminal on this morning's commute. 1 killed, 100 injured, platform canopy partially collapsed on the train. Wow, these photos look bad.
Click to expand...

Edit: Death toll was 1. Initial reports of 3 were wrong.

Also, it did more than crash into the bumper. It crashed right into the terminal!

Passengers on board say it was moving at full cruising speed as it approached & crashed into the station. No brakes were felt. The line has been operating short 1 car for weeks, so many people were standing, especially in 1st car which is most popular.
 
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datadyne007 said:
3 dead now.

Also, it did more than crash into the bumper. It crashed right into the terminal!

Passengers on board say it was moving at full cruising speed as it approached & crashed into the station. No brakes were felt. The line has been operating short 1 car for weeks, so many people were standing, especially in 1st car which is most popular.
Click to expand...

Full-speed is relative. Inside yard limits the cab signal and/or PTC system is overrideable at sub-10 MPH by operator control, which is why terminals and yards are the #1 most vulnerable place on the rail network for train-on-train collisions. In most circumstances single-digit speeds aren't going to cause serious injury because crash energy distribution more than absorbs an end-hit or sideswipe. But plowing straight through the end-of-track and UP four feet onto a solid concrete full-high platform egress while knocking out a heavy steel support beam causing the roof to collapse is absolutely the sort of event that'll cause mass casualties at that slow speed when no zero braking has been applied. Especially when the cab car is leading like it almost always is at stub-end terminals like North Station, South Station, and Hoboken. There's nothing you can do when being crumpled from every direction--roof, floor, and both sides--at once.

Clearly a stop signal was blown, but whether it was operator error or catastrophic mechanical failure is for the NTSB to decide. But this probably was indeed a 10 MPH-or-less incident despite the incredible damage. Even if the cab signal system issued a stop order, it gives the operator X seconds of reaction time for a controlled braking before throwing the train into emergency with a powerful jolt. So the signal system could've performed correctly depending on how it's configured, but if no brakes were applied and throttle was consistently applied at that operator-override sub-10 MPH, it would've sailed through the bumper post despite the signals performing to-spec. Now...if they were going 35 MPH with no brakes and no cab signal control the train would resting somewhere inside the ferry terminal a hundred paces from the Hudson River and there'd be 400 dead, not 3. So "fast" is an eye-of-beholder thing from people on the platform never used to seeing a terminating train come into the terminal that fast. Unless we get a confirmed speedometer reading showing a confirmed very high speed and catastrophic failure of the cab signals to stop it where the cabs should be in full control at that high speed...the reports are probably overstating the definition of "fast" by a lot and the physics lesson of what kind of damage sub-10 MPH is capable of doing with all that mass and unimpeded inertia-of-motion behind it.
 
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What we know as of this A.M.:

  • Engineer has no recollection of accident. Personnel records have been disclosed: first hired 1987 as part-time assistant conductor, promoted to full-time full conductor in '91, passed engineer qualifications in 2000 and has been driving trains for them ever since. 29-year vet with 25 years of full service time all with the same railroad...definitely on the senior end of the experience scale.

  • Black box recovered from the locomotive (running rear in push mode, as cab car was leading) was blank. Locomotives get an FRA-mandated 92-day inspections which includes black box testing. Unknown when this loco was last inspected. NJT's got a lot of explaining to do on how the event recorder FUBAR happened, because it should be automatically recording whenever the train isn't tied down with parking brake...even when fully stopped.
    • Loco make was a GP40PH-2B, built 1965 and fully remanufactured in 1991. Very similar to the T's GP40MC's, but with older-gen mechanical controls instead of the T's 90's-era computer controls and lifelong passenger engines instead of the T's converted freight units. They're a bit worn out at 25 years since last 'reman and due for replacement in NJT's next diesel procurement (more than half the fleet was displaced by their most recent procurement). NJT and its private predecessors have always been by far the #1 users of passenger Geeps on the continent. They're dead-simple design with nearly bulletproof reputation over 5 decades, and near-immortality through multiple rebuilds.
    • NJT only runs single-levels with their Geeps and not bi-levels, because they're wimpier horsepower than the newer diesels. Geep locos and single-levels are largely confined to the lower-ridership northern lines that cross into New York: Main Line, Bergen County, Port Jervis, Pascack Valley (this train).

  • Cab car was a Comet V single-level, built 2002-04. Large fleet of 200+ cars; only NJT's bi-levels are newer. Brakes are computer-controlled from the cab instead of requiring a mechanical handle like older cab cars or mechanical handle in the loco on the outbound trip. They'll be looking at that, although loss of the black box makes it harder to confirm any electronic fault.
    • Trailers were a mix of various Comet generations, 1982-1996 & '02. Except for the Alstom-built newer-design V's, the previous gens are all generic Bombardiers and Pullmans virtually identical to the T's single-level fleet, Metro North's fleet, and the intercity-configured Amtrak Horizons. Trailers are 'dumb' and just fire their air brakes on a simple pass-thru electric circuit whenever the whole train gets a brake application from the loco or cab car. If one trailer's brakes fail, it's nearly impossible for multiple cars to fail. No brakes whatsoever means for sure the brake signal from the cab car or loco was cut (which should've sent the train into emergency) or never issued in the first place.

  • Hoboken Terminal + yard limits are chock full of security cams, so they have footage of most of the approach. Doesn't look like there was anything whatsoever amiss until that literal last 1000 ft. into the bumper post where brakes weren't applied for the platform stop.

  • Train is confirmed to best of their knowledge without a black box reading to have been traveling 10 MPH into the bumper and not overspeeding at all within yard limits. Engineer recalls first entering yard limits, checking the schedule time (6 mins late), doing the required speedometer check for sub-10 reading to avoid signal penalty, doing the required brake-tap test for slowing down, and doing the required yard limits horn blow. Conductors (who have official supervisory duties on terminal approach) all corroborate there was no speeding and that all terminal approach checks were performed. There just were no brakes at the platform.
    • Ayup...as described in the other post, 10'll definitely do it with that amount of weight and unimpeded inertia behind it. And do it at the bumper while a sub-10 yard collision with another train will get fully absorbed by the crumple zones and only cause minor injuries from the sudden jolt. Perfect-storm scenario for a slow-speed casualty event.

  • NTSB rules out any signal or track faults; all trackside safety systems were performing normally and passed inspection with investigators this weekend. As described, a cab signal or PTC system won't enforce below 10 MPH within yard limits so operator control is in effect unless they exceed 10 and get dinged by the signals for a penalty. No overspeed penalty was levied, as it would've shown up on the dispatcher's console and been noticed by the conductors at their terminal approach positions. More factual corroboration that there was no speed violation.

  • Hoboken Terminal is still closed until further notice because the canopy hasn't been stabilized from the collapsed section. They're not sure when they can get it safe for occupation because the adjacent support pegs have been badly weakened by the collapsed supports. This could be a multi-week outage if they can't jack up the rest of the roof and isolate the damaged sections from load-bearing stress. Hudson-Bergen Light Rail trolleys are the only thing going in or out of the terminal today.

  • NJ Transit has been under formal audit by the FRA since June for marked increase in reported safety violations, and concerns about too many vacant administrative positions exacerbating disorder on the ground. This could play into the investigation, but FRA is a very different animal from NTSB and deals with incident reports for much more mundane things. Including just regular OSHA workplace brainfarts and whistleblower reports, because they have some regulatory stake on the labor side. Too early to tell if there's any overlap with this incident, because the FRA is only reporting number of incident reports...not type, severity, or which departments within NJT Rail have been slipping up of late. It is a lot of incident reports, however, so NJT and their wonderful underfunders in the Legislature and corner office are getting pasted in the press for the structural woes with upper management being laid bare.
 
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