General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

as02143 said:
Yeah - I like BNR in concept, but, in implementation it's still the same old T, even under Eng (who is a railroad man through and through): robbing Paul to pay Peter. It's 1982s-era MBTA with modernized communications using appeals of "bus network has largely been unchanged since the Bery-era" (even if that's kind of a lie).

I have to say - the 83 being an hourly bus route to the largest concentration of poorer families in Cambridge doesn't seem to look good for equity but the T has never seemingly looked at things that deeply looking only to analyze at the system level.
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Yes, and the same goes for Somerville, Charlestown, and Malden.

Although, one thing to note, that it's generally better to have the fewest number of bus routes as possible per corridor, running in as straight of a line as possible, to maximize frequency. Plus, fewer routes with high frequencies concentrated in denser areas is better for maintaining ridership, than having lots of routes expanding outwards.

I've heard somewhere that the 90 is being rerouted to Washington St. by 2026. That would leave 3 bus routes on Washington which would result in massive frequency decreases west of East Somerville if routes like the 83, 91, 88, and 90 aren't consolidated.
 
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Delvin4519 said:
I've heard somewhere that the 90 is being rerouted to Washington St. by 2026. That would leave 3 bus routes on Washington which would result in massive frequency decreases west of East Somerville if routes like the 83, 91, 88, and 90 aren't consolidated.
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Tufts St reconstruction
 
BOS2BON said:
When is the fiscal cliff supposed to hit the T?
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Just after May 2025. The T typically flips from spring to summer schedules in June 2025.

Both state and federal funds would dry up at the same time. The incoming federal administration would likely send all federal transit funds to nil, so any state and local funding will need to make up both the operations shortfall and the federal funds shortfall.
 
The MBTA Audit & Finance Subcommittee finally reviewed FY24 Q4 numbers today, and while delayed there's some good news. The current year FY25 budget assumes that the deficiency fund will be depleted after a 307M transfer in FY25, following a 261M transfer in FY24. However, operational results for FY24 were nearly 80M favorable to Budget - meaning the deficiency fund didn't need to transfer that amount. Assuming similar results in FY25 would be foolhardy, but if they can manage it and their anticipated cost savings? That'd be about 50% towards solving the FY26 fiscal cliff, though it may just be pushing it back to FY27.
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Also, we finally know what's going into the building the T purchased in Quincy - offices for multiple departments, as apparently that building came fully renovated and with brand new furniture. They're also planning on installing a replacement OCC for that in 45 High St which will cost more than twice the purchase cost of the building. It'll feature a major expansion in desk count, but no more giant video wall.
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Stlin said:
The MBTA Audit & Finance Subcommittee finally reviewed FY24 Q4 numbers today, and while delayed there's some good news. The current year FY25 budget assumes that the deficiency fund will be depleted after a 307M transfer in FY25, following a 261M transfer in FY24. However, operational results for FY24 were nearly 80M favorable to Budget - meaning the deficiency fund didn't need to transfer that amount. Assuming similar results in FY25 would be foolhardy, but if they can manage it and their anticipated cost savings? That'd be about 50% towards solving the FY26 fiscal cliff, though it may just be pushing it back to FY27. View attachment 58764
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Doesn't factor in the Green Line derailment costs in Fall 2024, which was probably unforeseen and an unexpected expense.

Also, if you have 100s of bus operator vacancies (like the T still had in Spring 2024), then an understaffed bus operations with reduced service will mean less operating expenses at the expense of reduced bus frequencies for riders. That isn't something that's "good news", it's just austerity at play, to push the fiscal cliff as far away as possible, by forcing riders to go with a 15% service cut. The reason operations was under budget was because 100s of bus operator positions that were budgeted for, were unfilled.

Any extra revenues that is saved will probably be needed to replace the likely end of federal transit funds after this year anyways, so there's that too.
 

Mostly the usual kicking the can down the road but what stands out is the reinforcement of his desire to build capacity to perform projects more in-house. Also interesting are his words about electrification. Stating that "this doesn't mean there's isn't not catenary [on the Fairmount] it just means there's not going to be it for the full ten miles" and the wording "if I had to wait til I had the funding to do the full ten miles, we're not moving forward with that project right now" really suggest to me that he truly wants to deliver improvements fast, whether for political reasons or genuine personal desire to improve things for residents or whatever, and is putting pressure on politicians by spotlighting them as what're holding things up rather than the T
 
Koopzilla24 said:

Mostly the usual kicking the can down the road but what stands out is the reinforcement of his desire to build capacity to perform projects more in-house. Also interesting are his words about electrification. Stating that "this doesn't mean there's isn't not catenary [on the Fairmount] it just means there's not going to be it for the full ten miles" and the wording "if I had to wait til I had the funding to do the full ten miles, we're not moving forward with that project right now" really suggest to me that he truly wants to deliver improvements fast, whether for political reasons or genuine personal desire to improve things for residents or whatever, and is putting pressure on politicians by spotlighting them as what're holding things up rather than the T
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Interesting take here from the WCVB article, although I suppose it's important for the GM to have the optimistic tone, but from members of the general public like me, I'm still wary and extremely skeptical of this statement.

www.wcvb.com

Phil Eng goes 'On The Record' about MBTA milestone, workforce, deficit

While celebrating a major milestone for the MBTA, General Manager Phil Eng also spoke about plans for the future including working with a new Trump administration.
www.wcvb.com www.wcvb.com

"We are working very aggressively with our federal partners regarding operating dollar needs. And again, it's not just our agency," Eng said. "Even with the Trump administration, I think they are all going to acknowledge public transportation and transportation in general really is a quality of life issue that connects people. To be able to move people safely and efficiently is something that I think everybody will support."
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Eng was brought in to fix a broken transit system. He has proven to be the rare MBTA GM who has taken the public experience seriously. Just looking at a couple of accomplishments under his watch:

-- Removal of 22 years of slow zones on the subway lines. I just find that stat dismally astounding. WTH were the past governors, GMs and appointed directors doing over this period?

-- Replacement of the South Coast Rail project manager with someone new to establish a firm schedule for opening of phase 1, bringing some semblance of accountability to this project.

Now he is trying to build an internal, competent management team to keep the MBTA in a good state of repair.

For what he can control, I don't see any evidence Eng is kicking the can down the road.
 
Looks like some finishing touches are going in
 

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Looks like it’s going to be a few more days before the whole system is slow zone free…
 

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www.nbcboston.com

On-the-ground MBTA oversight part of Mass. DPU's ‘very, very big leap'

Two years appear to have made a world of difference for the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities. At this point in 2022, the DPU was in a harsh spotlight due to its work — or lack thereof — overseeing safety at the MBTA. Federal investigators concluded the DPU had been falling short on...
www.nbcboston.com www.nbcboston.com
DPU officials say, T safety oversight has improved to a point where the same federal agency that once offered sharp criticism now finds little to fault.

The Federal Transit Administration this fall completed a triennial audit of the DPU, finding no areas of noncompliance and no corrective action needed, officials said Thursday.

"This has been a very, very big leap in a very short period of time," Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt said in response to a presentation from Robert Hanson, who started in January 2023 as the DPU's first-ever rail transit safety director.

DPU officials took a victory lap about their progress Thursday, touting the FTA's audit as a sign of improvement.
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