General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

It isn't just about signalized intersections, though. Even if the train has to make a stop at the signal, the greater waste of time is having to make the stop to deboard/board passengers (which are a relatively small number during rush hour). Couple that with the fact that these stations are already well served by nearby stops and it seems like a no-brainer.

---

As an aside, my commute tonight took 90 minutes... 25 of which included waiting for a B train to show up at Government Center. You would think they might have alerts playing in the station to notify us that they must have been looping every B train at Park Street. But of course, there was not. They couldn't even be bothered to have a message on Twitter or their website. To make matters worse, once a B rolled through, one of the side doors was not functioning. What an absolute joke.

Omaja -- why not just either walk to Park (3 or so minutes) or take any train from Gov't Center to Park to get the B trains which are short turning around before they get to Gov't Center

seems like a no-brainer

 

[omaja]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Looks like we posted at the same time, whigh. From my post on the last page:

"Funny thing is that most of the time when I hear a driver announce to take any train to Park for B service, a B is the very next train that pulls up at Government Center. So if you're a poor soul that followed their announcement, you'll be standing all the way from Park to your destination; whereas if you had waited, you'd easily have a seat."

--- So, as bad as Government Center can be, having to hedge that the next B will actually turn at Park is usually a losing bet when they are making these announcements. When they don't make any announcements, it's impossible to know what is going on. As far as walking to Park, this was today at 5:20 when there was an absolute downpour flooding Downtown. Not exactly the time to be taking a stroll down Tremont.

 

[KentXie]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

The MBTA and the Green Line is a complete f*cking joke.

Today I had at eye appointment at 5:30pm that I completely miss because the entire Green Line system was overwhelmed. I waited at Boylston Station for 45 minute without being able to get on one freaking 'D' line. In fact, for that 45 minutes at least 20 trolleys came completely full with the exception of maybe 3 'E' lines. When I got to the station, there was a period of at least 5 minutes where not one single westbound train came, causing an enormous backup at Government and Park St thanks to tonight's Red Sox game. By 6:00 pm, I just gave up. I can guarantee you that the Green Line is still completely overwhelmed as I type this post. Mbta.com posted an alert saying a train broke down in Arlington at 6:14 pm. I call total bullshit and I bet that train broke down closer to 5:14 than 6:14. Holy shit, how does a train system in a major city like Boston gets completely overwhelmed like this? I've never hated Red Sox fans more in my life. There needs to be another way to funnel them to Fenway because it's clearly not working.

I remember this article?

http://www.boston.com/news/local/ma..._report_warns/?comments=all&plckCurrentPage=9

I remember how some people who commented there stated that this is all some scare mongering tactic used to fund more taxpayer money into the T.

To each and everyone of them:

Fuck you, go eat shit because that prediction happened today.

/rant

 

[blade_bltz]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Rule of thumb: if you have an important appointment anywhere in the Boston area, always have cash on hand for a cab just in case. That's just life in a city with a non-world class transit system.

When I worked in Central Square one summer, I used to walk home to Brookline rather than deal with the home game T congestion.

 

[KentXie]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Rule of thumb: if you have an important appointment anywhere in the Boston area, always have cash on hand for a cab just in case. That's just life in a city with a non-world class transit system.

When I worked in Central Square one summer, I used to walk home to Brookline rather than deal with the day game T congestion.

Wouldn't matter. Traffic was backed up as well.

 

[choo]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

dare i say, Hubway. if you haven't, you should at least give it a look- depending on where exactly you were going. You could get to Fenway or longwood pretty easy tho from there.

 

[datadyne007]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Rule of thumb: if you have an important appointment anywhere in the Boston area, always have cash on hand for a cab just in case. That's just life in a city with a non-world class transit system.

When I worked in Central Square one summer, I used to walk home to Brookline rather than deal with the home game T congestion.

All cabs accept credit cards.

 

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Rule of thumb: if you have an important appointment anywhere in the Boston area, always have cash on hand for a cab just in case. That's just life in a city with a non-world class transit system.

When I worked in Central Square one summer, I used to walk home to Brookline rather than deal with the home game T congestion.

Blade -- and which "World Class Transit System" were you comparing things to -- one in planet Eutopia where things never break.

Unfortunately, in the real world things break, extreme natural phenomena occur, special events happen, and people act irrationally, or maliciously.

All of the above can bring any system to its knees -- whether rail transit or roads

I've been delayed in reaching my destination, or detered from taking a particular route to a destination in World Class Cities all arounnd the world. Even the London Underground with its immense complexity and redundant routing can cease being useful with a couple of strategic failures.

 

[KentXie]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Blade -- and which "World Class Transit System" were you comparing things to -- one in planet Eutopia where things never break.

Unfortunately, in the real world things break, extreme natural phenomena occur, special events happen, and people act irrationally, or maliciously.

All of the above can bring any system to its knees -- whether rail transit or roads

I've been delayed in reaching my destination, or detered from taking a particular route to a destination in World Class Cities all arounnd the world. Even the London Underground with its immense complexity and redundant routing can cease being useful with a couple of strategic failures.

Has the London Underground ever prevented you from getting to your destination because of the fact that one of their lines lack the capacity to carry any more passenger during an event for a whole 1 hour+ period?

 

[saulblum]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Blade -- and which "World Class Transit System" were you comparing things to -- one in planet Eutopia where things never break.

Unfortunately, in the real world things break, extreme natural phenomena occur, special events happen, and people act irrationally, or maliciously.

All of the above can bring any system to its knees -- whether rail transit or roads

I've been delayed in reaching my destination, or detered from taking a particular route to a destination in World Class Cities all arounnd the world. Even the London Underground with its immense complexity and redundant routing can cease being useful with a couple of strategic failures.

Sox games happen at least 81 times a year. There is a rush hour breakdown on one of the four lines probably at least twice a week. The majority of the fleet is over 25 years old.

Just as I type this --

Red Line experiencing 10-15 min delays due to a signal problem nea Harvard Square Station. 7/19/2012 9:44 PM

Why? T management can't pull out the "oldest subway in the nation" excuse: this is on one of the newest sections of the system.

Aren't you glad we have a federal government whose idea of transit spending is bag searches and surveillance cameras?

 

[mass88]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

When is the last time the signals were replaced/upgraded?

Looks like some track work is happening around JFK/UMass by a crew from New Jersey. I don't get why trains have to crawl into the station outbound once they exit the tunnel and inbound going from JFK/UMass into the tunnel.

 

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Has the London Underground ever prevented you from getting to your destination because of the fact that one of their lines lack the capacity to carry any more passenger during an event for a whole 1 hour+ period?

Kent -- actually I was stuck at Farringdon Station (one of the few above ground stations in central London and one of the first stations to open when the tube was begun) while a series of trains arrived and left without anyone being able to board

Not sure what caused the capacity problem -- but my solution after about 5 trains passed was to cross to the other side -- take the first train arriving and go somewhere to an interchange

I did eventually get to my destination -- about 1 hour after I expected to arrive

 

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Sox games happen at least 81 times a year. There is a rush hour breakdown on one of the four lines probably at least twice a week. The majority of the fleet is over 25 years old.

Just as I type this --



Why? T management can't pull out the "oldest subway in the nation" excuse: this is on one of the newest sections of the system.

Aren't you glad we have a federal government whose idea of transit spending is bag searches and surveillance cameras?

SaulB -- actually my I idea of Federal Transit Spending ====$0.0000

I don't think that the people working in the oil fields in North Dakota and living in their cars, should be taxed to pay for transit in a rich metropolitan area such as Boston

Boston and Massachusetts should fend for itself -- the only Federal contribution should be to fund R&D relevant to transit system improvements

 

[omaja]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Blade -- and which "World Class Transit System" were you comparing things to -- one in planet Eutopia where things never break.

Unfortunately, in the real world things break, extreme natural phenomena occur, special events happen, and people act irrationally, or maliciously.

All of the above can bring any system to its knees -- whether rail transit or roads

I've been delayed in reaching my destination, or detered from taking a particular route to a destination in World Class Cities all arounnd the world. Even the London Underground with its immense complexity and redundant routing can cease being useful with a couple of strategic failures.

Whigh, I realize you probably only think of the T in terms of novelty or occasional use, but for those of us that use it daily to commute to/from work/school/other activities, the frequency and extent to which Boston's rapid transit network falters or fails is incredibly alarming. It is past the point of "oh, shit happens sometimes".

The Green Line should not come to a grinding halt because of regularly scheduled, frequent games at Fenway. Likewise, the signal failures and switch problems should not be occurring as frequently as they are. We need more 3-car trains, upgraded Central Subway signals and better track maintenance. And we need it a decade ago.

Not sure what caused the capacity problem -- but my solution after about 5 trains passed was to cross to the other side -- take the first train arriving and go somewhere to an interchange

But that's just the thing - the T does not have the luxury of redundant routings (however circuitous or multi-transfer they may be) to detour the throngs of people when a breakdown occurs. The hub-and-spoke system is a fatally flawed one for rapid transit. Not to mention, the MBTA clearly does not have the appropriate communications systems and procedures in place to mitigate problems.

I don't think that the people working in the oil fields in North Dakota and living in their cars, should be taxed to pay for transit in a rich metropolitan area such as Boston

As if North Dakota actually pays for anywhere near 100% of its own infrastructure. The incredibly wealthy Northeast subsidizes the sprawling infrastructure of states like North Dakota more so than they ever contribute to ours.

 

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Whigh, I realize you probably only think of the T in terms of novelty or occasional use, but for those of us that use it daily to commute to/from work/school/other activities, the frequency and extent to which Boston's rapid transit network falters or fails is incredibly alarming. It is past the point of "oh, shit happens sometimes".

The Green Line should not come to a grinding halt because of regularly scheduled, frequent games at Fenway. Likewise, the signal failures and switch problems should not be occurring as frequently as they are. We need more 3-car trains, upgraded Central Subway signals and better track maintenance. And we need it a decade ago.

Omaja -- I've had an interest in the T going back to the era when both the Green and Orange Lines crawled out of the ground next to the Gahhden

I suspect that we are in agreement that the absolute first priority of the T should be on-going and critical preventive maintenance.

The next priority is the retrofitting and updating of the equipment, track, signals, power supplies, switches and stations. All of this should be built-into a long-term predictable capital budget -- so that plans for major rennovation and upgrade work can be predicted and forward funded by the Massachusetts Legislature.

The third priroity is improvements which will enhance the redundancy and resiliancy of the existing system such as:
a) the Red-Blue connector at Charles
b) passenger links of DTX to State and State to Government Center -- unifying and integrating the key downtown stations

The fourth priority are improvements which will enhance the performance and capacity of the existing system such as:
a) Digging under D Street to allow the Silver Line to loop from South Station to Silver Line Way without interference by surface traffic
b) 3 car Green Line trains and improved headways

The fifth priority is replacement of obsolete and prone to breakage operating equipment on the Red, Orange and Green Lines

Only after the existing T is brought to a state of good order as above should there even be the consideration of further line extensions tol the system such as GLX.

 

[whighlander]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

As if North Dakota actually pays for anywhere near 100% of its own infrastructure. The incredibly wealthy Northeast subsidizes the sprawling infrastructure of states like North Dakota more so than they ever contribute to ours.

Omaja -- That's not the relevant point

The relevant point is that no one in ND should be forced to pay for something in Boston or vice versa

I would take all of the transportation trust-funds from gasoline taxes, passenger facility charges, etc and rebate the funds back to the states

The only transportation funds that the feds should retain and spend directly are for R&D and standards development / implementation

The rest of the transportation networks should be managed by the relevant industry organizations, states and cities, etc.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Omaja -- That's not the relevant point

The relevant point is that no one in ND should be forced to pay for something in Boston or vice versa

I would take all of the transportation trust-funds from gasoline taxes, passenger facility charges, etc and rebate the funds back to the states

The only transportation funds that the feds should retain and spend directly are for R&D and standards development / implementation

The rest of the transportation networks should be managed by the relevant industry organizations, states and cities, etc.

And how exactly would that work? Practically. Not cooked up in some ideological vacuum or mental exercise. Cite some examples in the world where it actually works that way. Successfully. With no gimmicks or burst market bubbles.

 

[underground]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

Ironically, we could probably fund a lot more of the T if we stopped funneling money to North Dakota, Wyoming, etc. Oh, boy would those Red States be in for a rude awakening when they finally get their wish and Federal money from all those elitist Northeast states gets cut off.

 

[bbfen]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

All cabs accept credit cards.

I'm about to fucking burst at the hijacking of yet another thread into cars versus transit, or East Coast versus Flyover so I'll just pick on data instead and say "No. No, they don't all accept credit cards." As I unhappily found out about 3 months after the program started and I got screamed at in two languages.

I am very cautious about riding the T when I have to be on time for anything. It seems like it's been particularly bad lately. I always keep a 20 in my wallet just in case I need to abandon ship for a cab.

 

[Tombstoner]

Re: Driven By Customer 'Service' Parte Dos

I was also going to respond to datadyne by saying "maybe in theory." I have just now arrived at BOS and yet again the taxi could not take a credit card. They say "something's wrong" with the machine...dunno...in any case, I would say that I try to pay with a card 100% of the time and succeed closer to 75-80% of the time.