Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos
The Boston Globe has a story on the T's recent issues:
Sluggish commute today on roads, MBTA
The general manager of the MBTA said Tuesday that the regional transit system would not be able to operate near capacity during the evening commute and would not be able to boost its service Wednesday when thousands of New England Patriots fans are expected to flock to the city for a Super Bowl championship parade.
Beverly Scott, in a telephone interview, said that the struggles commuters faced Tuesday morning would continue for the immediate future. She used one word to describe the morning commute, in which severe delays were reported on all types of transit services: “Rough.’’
“We are going to give it everything we have, and we are going to be as candid with the public as we can be,’’ said Scott. “There are significant delays across the system.’’
...
Essentially they are saying, it sucks, it's going to continue to suck, there is nothing we can do about it.
What bothers me is that there was something that could have been done about it, but that aspect is being ignored. Also, there needs to be an evaluation of "how do we avoid this problem in future years (decades)?"
Okay, new cars are coming, and there is nothing we can do for the next few years, while we watch service deteriorate each winter. That sucks. I want to see a plan to avoid this from being a recurring cycle when cars get so old. The 1700's are less than 20 years younger than the 1500's and 1600's. They are not due to be replaced with the new order. We clearly can't have them turn 45 while still in use.
So, an order to fully replace the 1700 series should be placed by their 35th birthday (2023), with extra cars for an increase in frequency. By then, the T management will probably say, "the last brand new cars from our recent order are still entering service today. There is no need for another order!"
But, in reality, the second this order is complete, they should be placing another order to immediately replace the 1700 series. This should be a part of T's annual budget! They will always need to be at some stage in the procurement of replacement cars, so budget for that! I don't know who this ire should be directed at: the MBTA, MassDOT, Charlie Baker, but new cars should stop being treated as an exception, and start being treated as a necessary and routine part of maintenance.