General MBTA Topics (Multi Modal, Budget, MassDOT)

ant8904 said:
Something that I've been meaning to ask. The last shutdown, it removed the last Green Line Slow zone, but what did they do outside of those removals? The only chatter I can find was this and it didn't really answer the question
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Per the social media recap, removing those last slow zones involved 3,235 feet of rail, 550 ties, 600 tie plates, tamped and resurfaced 1,040 feet of track, and 2,030 feet of full depth track replacement. Other than that, it appears they only completed minor signal, power and station brightening work.

 
The lesson of the past year: Fewer, longer, closures are best.

Those OL closures sound like they’re hemmed in by the coordination with the external construction. The RL closure makes me ask “could they extend it to a full week and make more substantial progress?”

I don’t want to return to the bad old days of Red Line floating slab shutdowns every weekend for months on end. I am definitely willing to give Eng the benefit of the doubt after the success of the TIP that we won’t end up there.
 
Delvin4519 said:
More Orange Line shutdowns next month

MBTA Announces January Service Changes | News | MBTA

Official website of the MBTA -- schedules, maps, and fare information for Greater Boston's public transportation system, including subway, commuter rail, bus routes, and boat lines.
www.mbta.com www.mbta.com
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I'm sure they will try to piggy-back on other work where safe, if possible, but this isn't more Orange Line shutdowns next month specifically for track/signal work - it's for a crumbling MassDOT bridge that already required one 9-day shutdown. I'm sure the T is footing the diversion costs...
 
In the MBTA house podcast, they recently did an interview with MBTA Chief Engineer Sam Zhou. He was asked about some upcoming projects and he talked about raising the speed limit on the Braintree Branch to 50mph. Interestingly, he also said they are doing work to raise the speed limit on a portion of the Orange Line, but didn't say where. The most natural spot would be Wellington-Malden Center, but who knows — this will be something to look out for.
 
Is the dining area at South Station ever going to reopen? It's been closed since the pandemic, but that was awhile ago at this point...
 
themissinglink said:
I agree that South Station desperately needs a makeover, but they should reopen the dining area even if there isn't a makeover (or open it in the meantime).
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Despite Ashkenazy's well publicized fiscal woes, given they haven't bothered to pay squarespace for its South Station website since at least June 2023, they're clearly not paying attention to it. A non-functional website isn't consistent with an active effort to find tenants, and thus they hardly seem interested in investing in the facility or reopening any of the vendors.


Given that, the T should consider trying to force them out, the same way Amtrak has in DC and City of Boston in Faneuil Hall. That said, Ashkenazy's finances appear to have stabilized, as they've recently focused on cementing control of their suburban NYC shopping malls.
 
Totally separately, I rode the Orange Line for the first time in about 3 years this weekend, and was completely blown away. I tapped to pay with my phone and the only time the train slowed down was to make station stops. It was like 2002 all over again, but with more convenient payment options.
 
fatnoah said:
Totally separately, I rode the Orange Line for the first time in about 3 years this weekend, and was completely blown away. I tapped to pay with my phone and the only time the train slowed down was to make station stops. It was like 2002 all over again, but with more convenient payment options.
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The orange line is excellent these days. It’s about up to par with subway lines in other countries as long as you ignore the degenerates smoking on subway platforms.
 
Kinopio said:
The orange line is excellent these days. It’s about up to par with subway lines in other countries as long as you ignore the degenerates smoking on subway platforms.
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As long as no one’s smoking on the trains I’m fine with this…
 
Just adding a data point. Had to get a 10:30pm bus at Alewife and hopped on the Red Line at 10:03 with a little concern. I shouldn't have worried. Arrived at Alewife in exactly 20 minutes. I can't remember the last time I got from Harvard to Alewife in that time.
 
themissinglink said:
www.cambridgeday.com

Coalition drops report on dire state of mass transit in Massachusetts - Cambridge Day

It’s not just an MBTA problem. A statewide report reported and backed by 40-plus organizations warns: “The current state of transportation is unsustainable.”
www.cambridgeday.com www.cambridgeday.com
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commonwealthbeacon.org

Healey task force on transportation funding will miss its December 31 deadline - CommonWealth Beacon

The task force Gov. Maura Healey created to propose a new funding model for transportation in Massachusetts is going to miss its end-of-2024 deadline.
commonwealthbeacon.org commonwealthbeacon.org

THE TASK FORCE Gov. Maura Healey created to propose a new funding model for transportation in Massachusetts is going to miss its end-of-2024 deadline, and sources say the concepts currently being bandied about fall well short of what some had been hoping for.

Task force members were notified by email at 5:37 p.m. on Monday that the report was not being issued on Tuesday. The delay comes as Healey is preparing her fiscal 2026 budget, which is due to be unveiled in late January.

In July, Hayes Morrison, the state’s undersecretary of transportation, briefed the MBTA board on the task force’s progress and lowered expectations about its eventual report. She promised a “tool kit” listing potential revenue sources and revenue uses with no actual recommendations. Asked if the final report would rank revenue-raising priorities, she said: “We don’t think so.”
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We're literally sleepwalking into disaster. Someone posted this below on zombie reddit. 100% agree with the post.

Are Governor Healey or the upcoming federal administration even going to actually save the T in full?

At the very least, Bus Network Redesign, is that thing still gonna finish out its phased rollout?

EDIT: deleted one of the screenshotted comments in response to one of the replies below.

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