General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

devnull said:
The derailed train is still there:
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(The Type 7 in the foreground wasn't there last night IIRC; maybe they were using that to shuttle personnel around?)
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They were forced by the NTSB to leave the derailed streetcar in place. The full shutdown might last longer than today, since I highly doubt they will be let go after tonight, plus the cleanup & repair process that needs full access to the site. The NTSB or FTA could issue safety orders or standdowns, so those are also possible.
 
Shuttle buses were a mess this morning…they're serving Union Square as a deviation off the main route to Medford/Tufts. That added at least 20 minutes to my trip from Gilman to North Station. Hopefully they figure out how to streamline things a bit.
 
alewife said:
Shuttle buses were a mess this morning…they're serving Union Square as a deviation off the main route to Medford/Tufts. That added at least 20 minutes to my trip from Gilman to North Station. Hopefully they figure out how to streamline things a bit.
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This is so annoying - Union Square continues to get the shaft during planned and unplanned GL closures.
 
I know the MBTA really likes to get as many passengers onto rail transit, which is good cause it has more capacity, but there should be more bus routes that extend more into downtown despite paralleling rapid transit for better full-time alternatives in events like this and everyday. 80s to Haymarket, 60 to Tufts Medical, etc. Just spitballing examples not exactly these routings
 
The T is currently only running a fraction of service on the Huntington Ave. streetcar route, compared to the B, C, or D branches. Service levels on the Huntington Ave. route has decreased by ~37%. What was previously 8 streetcars per hour, is now down to 5 streetcars per hour, but only on the Huntington Ave. route.

The B, C, and D branches all have 7 - 8 minute median headways.

The E? 11 minute headways.

On Monday, September 30th, the Huntington Ave. line saw 7 minute headways, like the B, C, and D branches.

55-59% of trips are on time on the B, C, and D branches, but only 25% on the Huntington Ave. line. It is down from 45% back on Monday, September 30th. OTP on the Huntington Ave. line has essentially halved in the wake of the GLX closure.

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commonwealthbeacon.org

75 municipalities now on board with MBTA Communities law

The event came after the town of Southborough, a Worcester County community that has a stop on the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line, narrowly voted to approve its multifamily zoning plan, making it a total of 75 communities “acting in good faith to follow the law,” according to Campbell.
commonwealthbeacon.org commonwealthbeacon.org
 
www.wcvb.com

MBTA employees on leave amid maintenance yard investigation

The MBTA, which has struggled with maintenance for years, is now faced with an unfolding investigation at a major maintenance yard that has already resulted in numerous employees being placed on leave, 5 Investigates has learned
www.wcvb.com www.wcvb.com

"... an unfolding investigation at a major maintenance yard that has already resulted in numerous employees being placed on leave ..." at Cabot Yard
 
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cubbe8 said:
Why are they shutting down the Union Square branch for a week if there are no slow zones?
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Just a guess, but I wonder if it has to do with how they're staging materials or equipment for the shutdown the following weekend from GLX thru Park St (presumably to work on the speed restrictions between North Station and Government Center)? maybe somewhere on the Union Sq branch is a convenient place to get materials and equipment onto the tracks?
 
Regular service resumed on the Orange Line yesterday, after track work suspended service between Back Bay and Forest Hills for a couple of weeks. The work appears to have been very successful, with all slow zones cleared. The Orange Line is now slow-zone-free between Community College and Forest Hills!

Some highlights from yesterday's (10/21/24) data:
  • At 3:01, the Orange Line had its least slow zone time since February 20, 2023, weeks before The Great Slowdown of 2023.
  • At 16.8 mph, the Orange Line had its highest average speed since March 6, 2023, days before The Great Slowdown of 2023.
  • Forest Hills -> Community College averaged 23:41, the fastest for that trip since December 6, 2022, months after the full, monthlong closure of the line.
  • Forest Hills -> Downtown Crossing averaged 16:51, the fastest since December 4, 2022, a Sunday, months after the full, monthlong closure of the line.
Overall, the Orange Line is the fastest its been in 20 months.
 
bigeman312 said:
Overall, the Orange Line is the fastest its been in 20 months.
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Which begs the question -- how did it get so bad so quickly if it was essentially slow zone free 2 years ago? There has to be some way to keep these lines in state of good repair without multiple multi-day shutdowns every few months.
 
HenryAlan said:
Which begs the question -- how did it get so bad so quickly if it was essentially slow zone free 2 years ago? There has to be some way to keep these lines in state of good repair without multiple multi-day shutdowns every few months.
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I thought the documentation and diligence on repairs was so poor that the track has actually been in poor condition for a decade and they were just running trains over it at full speed with no knowledge of that.
 
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