Green Line Extension to Medford & Union Sq

chrisbrat said:
Those are all fair points, but I guess I just don't immediately see the differing heights to, in and of themselves, denote "poor quality."
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I can read what you're saying clearly

chrisbrat said:
To me it'd be like beng upset that the intake manifold of a perfectly functional, high-powered BMW engine isn't designed with perfect symmetry in mind. If it gets the job done and is reliable and efficient, who cares?
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High end car companies spend ridiculous amounts of money on the aesthetic of their engine compartments, and customers absolutely do care. There's gorgeous symmetry and organization beneath the hood of a BMW.

Raw galvanized steel chain link fences are also highly functional in/around train stations, but we revile such an aesthetic.

Why? because, inevitably, design tells a story. There's no such thing as purely neutral design. All design is judged, whether we want it to be or not, and all design affects our senses of quality, security, robustness, resilience, maintainability, etc. There's a centuries old tradition of institutions "looking their part" to assure clientele. Would you put your money in a bank that looked like it was built of cardboard, even if the cardboard were some space age kevlar that were even more secure than granite?
 
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chrisbrat said:
Those are all fair points, but I guess I just don't immediately see the differing heights to, in and of themselves, denote "poor quality." As an example, I live down the street from the Gilman Square station -- a part of Somerville which still has above-ground telephone/utility poles (off-topic, but I'd be ecstatic when all those wires get submerged, as in other parts of town).

ANYway... much like the poles being discussed relative to the GLX, these telephone/utility poles are not at all of the same (or, in some cases, even similar) heights. If you pick a stretch of fairly level-grade sidewalk (the side of the street with the poles) and look off into the distance, the heights to the top vary widely. To me, that's because neither the GLX poles nor the utility poles are there to "look pretty." Would both look a little better, if they were uniform? Sure. I guess I just think that if they're serving their pupose -- be it supplying power to Green Line trains or sending internet and cable tv to my apartment -- then: mission accomplished.

I think something like the "fence around a home's yard" analogy -- while fine and good at illustrating JeffDowntown's point -- is a little flawed from jump. The aesthetic demands applied to exterior viewponts of one's home, even when discussing features that are certainly "functional" (such as fences), are... I dunno: different. To me it'd be like beng upset that the intake manifold of a perfectly functional, high-powered BMW engine isn't designed with perfect symmetry in mind. If it gets the job done and is reliable and efficient, who cares?
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If a utility company was putting in a new row of poles along a street, I’d expect them to all be the same height.
 
All good points. My eagerness for the T to run smoothly, first and foremost, and for GLX to finally open is likely leading me to be less-than-objective about this point (the catenary poles being/not being homogeneous in height). Apologies if I derailed this thread.
 
bigpicture7 said:
I can read what you're saying clearly
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The purpose of text is to convey meaning and enhance comprehension. So letters should only vary when needed to convey meaning, as at the start of a sentence, for proper names or for emphasis. We get that.

The purpose of OCS poles is to hold a wire at a certain height ( but need not be that height). They are not telling a story so it is unfair to try to impose some kind of meaning on them.
 
chrisbrat said:
All good points. My eagerness for the T to run smoothly, first and foremost, and for GLX to finally open is likely leading me to be less-than-objective about this point (the catenary poles being/not being homogeneous in height). Apologies if I derailed this thread.
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Ha, I hear ya!
 
The EGE said:
At Ball Square.
View attachment 28528
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What's up with the lights on this bridge? They look like they were left over from the reconstruction of the bridge 2-plus years ago, and someone forgot to take them down. And the thing is, I think they look really cool from afar, but up close present a temporary, construction-zone/mine-shaft aesthetic. I'd love if something similar, albeit more permanent, were installed (hell, even remove the yellow cages, and presto you've got jumbo string lights). I don't recall there being any other lighting on this bridge.
 
There's a pair of really tall streetlights at either end of the bridge, but they're not in use yet (in fact, last I looked they still had their protective plastic wrapping).
 
Alright, someone's gotta say it (and I apparently don't mind posting unpopular things on this forum):

I am pretty sure the Lechmere viaduct speed restriction was not lifted when the union branch GLX reopened this weekend.

I really do hope I am wrong and what I experienced was just a fluke.
 
bigpicture7 said:
Alright, someone's gotta say it (and I apparently don't mind posting unpopular things on this forum):

I am pretty sure the Lechmere viaduct speed restriction was not lifted when the union branch GLX reopened this weekend.

I really do hope I am wrong and what I experienced was just a fluke.
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They specifically called this out as having been successfully fixed in this video:
https://twitter.com/x/status/1572322239152025600

Hopefully they’re just waiting a week to actually lift the restriction like the OL? Otherwise the GLX is in for a lifetime of poor performance.
 
Badusername said:
They specifically called this out as having been successfully fixed in this video:
https://twitter.com/x/status/1572322239152025600

Hopefully they’re just waiting a week to actually lift the restriction like the OL? Otherwise the GLX is in for a lifetime of poor performance.
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^That is definitely cause for optimism, thank you for sharing.

My train, and another that I looked back at from the street, distinctly hit the brakes and then proceeded slowly over the viaduct. (I even intentionally turned to watch the other train just to be sure I wasn't being unfair in my first assessment)...

Let's hope this is just really temporary. And I very much welcome anyone else's better news that this is no longer what's happening!
 
I find it crazy how the T are so bad at messaging on this.
I thought, during the close down, they were actually getting better at it.
But no. Even the orange line slow downs, seems like their message didn't get out broadly enough,
and no messaging on any GLX slow down.
 
E82910DF-ACCC-40DE-BD8D-08AED0B967C1.jpeg

Lights are now working on the new path.
 
Ugh. The latest GLX construction update talks about targeting “late November”. I will assume it will be end of December, so that Baker can get one last photo op.
 
Dr. Rosen Rosen said:
Old Lechmere station. Looks like quite a few gallons of drainage/flood tanks. Also - is there a new thread for this new project?
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Does anyone know what will be built here? The layouts I've seen are conceptual only and show a building planned where these flood tanks, as well as another one west of the forthcoming 1st Street tie-through road.
 
I think that there was or still is a plan that was illistrated & talked about several pages back in this thread. :unsure:
 
The variable message signs were powered on and displaying the time at a couple of stations today. I didn’t see any messages when the test train approached one of the stations, though.
 
Charlie_mta said:
Does anyone know what will be built here? The layouts I've seen are conceptual only and show a building planned where these flood tanks, as well as another one west of the forthcoming 1st Street tie-through road.
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Looking at https://www.cambridgecrossing.com/, it looks like that area with the flood tanks will be a small park, not the greatest location for one, wedged between Cambridge Street, First Street, and O'Brien Hwy. Here's the conceptual layout from the website:

CX-Site-Overview.jpg
 
Seems a good place for a bikeshare station (walk across the street, then start riding). I'm OK losing the greenspace because it allows them to have a nice right-angle intersection at 1st & McGrath.
 
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