Greenbush dinky to Quincy. Those rich folks, and Weymouth, get their quiet train with no wires and higher frequencies in exchange for having a 2 seat ride. Could also actually have downtown stations in those towns with a short quiet FLIRT platform
A dinky could go back and forth between Greenbush and Plymouth and leave the OC track for frequent service to Brockton and beyond. TM believes that with a few minor changes, 6tph would be possible with electrification. The dinky could run every 15 min. It might require minor additional passing track. Maybe add a connector to the RL platforms with an escalator and elevator
A dinky almost-loop around the south shore could mean a potential good RL connection at Braintree even before anything that frequent on the Middleboro-Lakeville branch. Could also do a split service on the Kingston-Plymouth Wye if it's a relatively frequent dinky.
Nor should Greenbush (or Kingston/Plymouth) riders be happy if the state were to propose this. A quick search for commuter rail ridership by line found these February 14th figures (the latest I could find) for the three Old Colony lines on recovery.transitmatter.org:
And I m sorry you lack imagination
Additional Braintree service probably shouldn't come at the expense of (admittedly limited) through service, but if it would allow increased frequencies on all the OC branches I don't see why it shouldn't happen. I think some infrasturcture changes might be needed to make the transfer at Braintree easier, as well as the construction of at least one more platform, but those changes would probably be a lot easier/cheaper than double-tracking through Quincy which would require at least a full-rebuilt of Quincy Center and some land taking.
www.bostonglobe.com
I'm suggesting that the two platforms, which are 400ft apart, be connected with a tunnel
.Regular riders aren't going to remember the BNR by the time the T gets to making those changes. I already know a couple people at my bus stop in East Somerville who are shocked that they're cutting the 86 at Harvard and will be forced to transfer to get to Harvard Allston. All they want is a better 86, like the kind of 86 that we had before the pandemic, none of this BNR stuff.
I would suggest 15 min peak frequency, 30 minutes off-peak, if dinkied
commonwealthbeacon.org
I worry the T is doing a little “hands over the ears shouting la la la” about this. When asked about the signage including a clock with 15 minutes and how inflexible that seems, the T’s only comment has been “we are committed to 15 minute frequencies on these routes”.Some MBTA board members call for more funding
Normally, board meetings are highly choreographed affairs where everyone sticks pretty much to a script. At Thursday’s meeting, however, board members made clear that more money is needed for the T, even though Gov. Maura Healey has shown little enthusiasm for new taxes and fees.
In the last board meeting, the CIP was discussed (timestamp 1:56:10).
It was mentioned during the meeting that there was a suggestion for the MBTA to drop the Bus Network Redesign from the 2025 - 2029 CIP, to cut costs. The T has a 93 million shortfall next year, and at the rate that restoring bus service would go, the T would essentially be finally putting the new bus hires into service at tht turn of the calendar year, and then 3 - 6 months later, hit the uncertain reality that the rest of BNRD is not funded, and be forced to cut back on service.
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I'm so sad that 15 minute is our "best" effort here. That would be so laughable in so many countries around the world - from Mexico to Malta - and metros - Denver, Chicago, SF.
