General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Matthew said:
There is a phone number printed in large type on a prominent sign next to every grade crossing: to help notify the dispatcher whenever a situation like this develops. Before it gets worse.
Click to expand...

That's great, but when you find yourself in a sudden emergency situation & you're not from anywhere around New England, looking for a sign might not be thought #1 for a driver like this guy.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

djimpact1 said:
So atlantaden & BussesAin'tTrains, I say it's unbelievable that no matter how many wrong assumptions have been posted & proven wrong in the history of personal internet use, people still seem to know exactly what happens in the world from behind their keyboard. What the hell are you thinking? "I'm so presumptuous, I already know what happened without being there...f**k it, etc."
Click to expand...

So I'm a presumptuous asshole? Thanks buddy. This instance of a trucker actually getting stuck proves that the occasional human condition of "fucking train, I'm going first" is just shithead internet nonsense? Sure...
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

djimpact1 said:
That's great, but when you find yourself in a sudden emergency situation & you're not from anywhere around New England, looking for a sign might not be thought #1 for a driver like this guy.
Click to expand...

This is FRA standard procedure and it is followed all around the country. Are you implying that a truck driver might not be versed on standard safety procedures around railroad at-grade crossings?
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Matthew said:
This is FRA standard procedure and it is followed all around the country. Are you implying that a truck driver might not be versed on standard safety procedures around railroad at-grade crossings?
Click to expand...

No, I'm saying it's one thing to learn of protocol...it's another to find yourself in a potentially life-threatening situation & try to execute said protocol while under pressure like that.

Let's see how calm & to-the-book you'd be if we stick you in a truck, while making a phone call & are either still on the call or are waiting for some confirmation that your communication was received in time, as the gates drop down (& shows it wasn't).

Always a critic everywhere on the internet, unless it's your ass that's on the line.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

BussesAin'tTrains said:
So I'm a presumptuous asshole? Thanks buddy. This instance of a trucker actually getting stuck proves that the occasional human condition of "fucking train, I'm going first" is just shithead internet nonsense? Sure...
Click to expand...

No, I never called you an asshole...and I agree with you that there are truckers that indeed have that mentality. But there was no need to bring that mentality up before understanding this driver shouldn't have been grouped into it...because this driver & this instance of getting stuck is the topic at hand (rather than just stating a general mentality because why not), right?
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

djimpact1 said:
No, I never called you an asshole...and I agree with you that there are truckers that indeed have that mentality. But there was no need to bring that mentality up before understanding this driver shouldn't have been grouped into it...because this driver & this instance of getting stuck is the topic at hand (rather than just stating a general mentality because why not), right?
Click to expand...

Hah. Sorry for making generalizations on a public forum. It's only what humans do when they communicate.

Also, I don't recall actually making any general assumptions in my initial post... just some made-up quotes in answer to a hypothetical on what people might be thinking. Maybe I should have included: "OMG I'M STUCK! OHSHITOHSHITOHSHIT THERE'S A TRAIN! FUCKFUCKFUCK!" to placate the do-gooders behind the keyboard...
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

djimpact1 said:
When interviewed by NECN, the driver said as he was driving over the tracks the cab of his truck got stuck in snow on/around the tracks. He did try to reverse & proceed forward a few times but had no luck doing so. After some time, the crossing gates lowered & bells rang, at which point he knew the train was coming (and kept attempting to move his truck until a few seconds before the train hit it)...quite a valiant effort if I do say so.
Click to expand...

Did you not read your own writing? The driver had time to follow the proper protocol. He chose not to do so. Or he was unaware of the proper protocol. I don't believe that qualifies as a "valiant effort."

djimpact1 said:
No, I'm saying it's one thing to learn of protocol...it's another to find yourself in a potentially life-threatening situation & try to execute said protocol while under pressure like that.

Let's see how calm & to-the-book you'd be if we stick you in a truck, while making a phone call & are either still on the call or are waiting for some confirmation that your communication was received in time, as the gates drop down (& shows it wasn't).
Click to expand...

Once you are stuck, the first thing you do is get yourself out of the truck to a safe position, and call the number printed on a big sign next to the at-grade crossing. It's not hard, and it's the proper procedure. He had plenty of time to do so. Instead, he panicked and tried to get the truck unstuck on his own. That's a mistake.

Consider this alternative scenario: his truck had caught on fire and instead of calling the fire department he had simply tried to put it out by himself. We would also call that a mistake in judgement. Yes, I'm sure anyone would be pretty fraught by the situation, but that doesn't excuse them from making the call.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Impending cuts to the "transportation system" were announced:

Transit cuts won’t hurt MBTA service, Baker says

Governor Charlie Baker pledged Thursday that his $40 million in proposed cuts to the state’s transportation system to help bridge the state’s urgent budget deficit won’t impact MBTA service, which has operated poorly in recent days in part as a result of aging infrastructure and winter weather.

“Based on the conversations we’ve had with the leadership at the T and at [the Department of] Transportation, the proposals that we’re pursuing here, if the Legislature approves them, won’t have any impact on service,” Baker said.

The comments came after he delivered one of his first major speeches as governor.

...
Click to expand...

I wonder where he's going to make the $40m spending cuts. Is it throughout MassDOT or just to the MBTA? Anybody have any ideas?
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

^ Sounds like it's $40M to the DOT. All these cuts and revenue redirections solve the immediate budget crunch, but different methods will be needed for the next budget(s). These DOT cuts are probably just blunt slices out of certain offices and hiring freezes. Designing a new budget will need more auditing and fine tuned slicing of largesse where it's useless, or redirected to where it will do more good. That is something Baker is good at. He's not an ideologue, and I hope he's gotten the message over the last week the the DOT/MBTA needs A LOT of investment (just to maintain what we have).
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

I have a feeling we are going to hear of major new revenue sources for the MBTA from Baker soon (I'm an optimist). The timing of everyone knowing there needs to be more funding, while cuts are necessary to balance the budget is eye-opening.

I was recently reading about Los Angeles' mass transit system (Metro Rail), and getting very jealous of their ability to expand their system. In 1990 they had no HRT or LRT. Now, 25 years later, they have 80 stations over 88 track miles. Currently under construction are 2 new LRT lines, 1 HRT extension and 2 LRT extensions! This is in Los Angeles, USA. Imagine what Boston's transit system would look like with that sort of investment. Over that time period, the MBTA has added exactly 0 new track miles and 1 new infill station (Assembly). I understand the massive overhaul to many stations to make them ADA accessible is big investment, but I still have serious Metro Rail envy.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Since ridership continued to rise after the last fare hike, it'd make sense to try another small fare increase.

My ideal would be that they make Zones 1A/1/Bus/Subway free during the first hour of ops each day (for the low-wage service employees that ride at that hour and encouraging people to un-crush the rush hour trains), while raising fares by 5% at all other times.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

I have a feeling we are going to hear of major new revenue sources for the MBTA from Baker soon (I'm an optimist).
Click to expand...

Don't hold your breath.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

These DOT cuts are probably just blunt slices out of certain offices and hiring freezes.
Click to expand...
The draft I saw was all hiring freeze.
I have a feeling we are going to hear of major new revenue sources for the MBTA from Baker soon (I'm an optimist).
Click to expand...
There's probably never going to be a better time politically to do it, but I'm not sure I'm as optimistic as you.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

It would require legislation to raise fares because they are limited to 5% every two years, and they used that.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Matthew said:
It would require legislation to raise fares because they are limited to 5% every two years, and they used that.
Click to expand...

True, but as we saw last time, they can raise fares more than 5% on certain modes, balanced by smaller raises on other modes. I wonder if, by this logic, fares can be increased for some, and lowered for other, and have it not considered a fare hike. For example, lowering T Charlie Card fares by $0.10 at non-peak, and raising fares by $0.15 at peak.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

underground said:
The draft I saw was all hiring freeze.
Click to expand...

On paper that sounds good, but I've worked in shrinking municipal departments before and as we lost engineers, more and more was contracted out to make up for it. It costs A LOT more than doing it in house and you lose most of the valuable institutional knowledge.

There could be a lot of fluff positions ripe for elimination, but I warn against haphazardly eliminating unfilled positions just because it's easy.
 
Last edited:
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

underground said:
The draft I saw was all hiring freeze.
Click to expand...

The full article says hiring freeze/"not filling open jobs."

“It’s always better,” he said, “not to fill a job you can’t afford to pay for than it is to lay somebody off.
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

datadyne007 said:
The full article says hiring freeze/"not filling open jobs."

“It’s always better,” he said, “not to fill a job you can’t afford to pay for than it is to lay somebody off.
Click to expand...

Data when you read down to the end the key is the process -- nothing is cast in concrete so far

Baker was also asked, given this week’s severe transportation delays, whether his administration intended to revive a public discussion about additional investments in transportation infrastructure.

“Everybody always wants to spend more money on everything, I get that,” he said. “But I’m going to start this conversation with Stephanie” Pollack, the state transportation secretary, people at the MBTA, and the Legislature.
Click to expand...
 
Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Another day. Another mound of delays and cancellations.

Another morning of weather-related delays for MBTA

Passengers again waited on platforms in ice-cold conditions Friday morning as the MBTA confronted weather-related breakdowns on its trains.

The Orange Line experienced severe rush-hour delays due to a disabled train, the MBTA website said. Regular service resumed around 10 a.m.

Regular service was also restored to the Green and Red lines by 9:30 a.m., after earlier delays.

...
Click to expand...

On a personal note, the cancelled 453 (Fitchburg Line, 8:40 a.m. from North Station) train this morning caused my commute to go from 25 minutes to 1 hour, 20 minutes. That's a perfect week for the Fitchburg Line - at least one morning outbound Fitchburg Line train was cancelled every single day.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top