Mandarin Oriental | 776 Boylston St | Back Bay

Patrick said:
Walking along Newburry Street...
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This reaction to the city is quite different from one I remember from you a while back. Also, I think Providence's street life occurs mostly, if not only, on a particular stretch of Thayer Street on the east side in the Brown University area away from downtown.
 
Well, I am at work all day, in front of a computer, with some down time here and there...


also, to the bostonian: it was exactly a year ago I was in boston and became unimpressed with the place, but boy oh boy what a difference some nice weather can make!
 
TheBostonian said:
Also, I think Providence's street life occurs mostly, if not only, on a particular stretch of Thayer Street on the east side in the Brown University area away from downtown.
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Also on Atwells Avenue in Federal Hill, and Wickendon (sp?) Street. And all over the river banks whenever Waterfire is occurring.
 
Thank you for answering my question, kz1000ps, what a cool place that would be to live. And I understand, Bowwest, I just feel like there isn't much more you can judge a city on with limited time at your disposal, and that's all I was trying to do--give a very quick impression. Clearly, as a resident, an interpretation of the city must rest on much deeper criteria. And if I were a resident, or lived closer to the city and visited much more frequently, I would agree with you. Unfortunately, it is hard to "take it all in" in an afternoon, and I was left to draw on very superficial characteristics, which apparently is at the root of everyone's sensitivity to my impressions with Boston.

Also, its not that I didn't notice the other city-features you listed--I did--there just wasn't enough time to appreciate them in full. architecture was phenomenal for the most part, the restaurants I saw were very nice, and the park (commons) was awesome, seeing as how it doubled as a parking garage. The train was pain in the butt, though...I preferred the tokens instead of the paper pass/slip, but I guess if you put a bunch of money on one, for a month or so, it would be more convenient in the end.

and Bobby, I agree with you wholeheartedly.
 
The train was pain in the butt, though...I preferred the tokens instead of the paper pass/slip, but I guess if you put a bunch of money on one, for a month or so, it would be more convenient in the end.
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You have to ask one of the T attendants for a CharlieCard (they're free). You don't have to worry about maneuvering it into the slot - it uses a touchpad system - and it's actually cheaper - $1.70 a ride compared to $2 for the tickets.
 
Smuttynose said:
You have to ask one of the T attendants for a CharlieCard (they're free). You don't have to worry about maneuvering it into the slot - it uses a touchpad system - and it's actually cheaper - $1.70 a ride compared to $2 for the tickets.
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Wouldn't it have been great if the T had made such a succinct explanation readily available at T fare machines? And, wouldn't it have been great if the T had installed a Charlie Card dispenser in each T fare machine?
 
i didnt even ask for a card when i first used it... some lady just walked up to me and gave me one and showed me how to use it... pretty helpful if u ask me. and this was at about 9pm.
 
Bobby Digital said:
i didnt even ask for a card when i first used it... some lady just walked up to me and gave me one and showed me how to use it... pretty helpful if u ask me. and this was at about 9pm.
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That's pretty helpful, but I would argue that it's not a very good use of resources. I think for the first couple weeks (maybe that's when you got your card) it makes sense that the T would proactively and personally hand out the cards. But after that, why pay a full time staff person to hand them out when you could dispense them at the machines with a succinct printed explanation?

Also, to get my Charlie Card, I had to wait at Downtown Crossing while a T employee finished a 5 minute personal conversation on a T phone and then went to one booth to get keys to get into a storage bin that had about 10 Charlie Cards on top of a bunch of stuff. Whatever proactive hospitality system the T started the Charlie Card roll-out with had long since decayed, and I don't think any tourist or non-everyday T rider would have stuck it out that long to save $.30 on their rides.

Incidentally, this is a misplaced conversation. Maybe it should be split into the Transportation and Infrastructure forum.
 
yea ur right perfect, but i think the paper system is good for tourists/ people that dont ride hardly ever... they dont care about paying a little extra, hell make em pay extra. it saves the regular users money and essentially taxes people that dont frequent the T. it raises T revenues without flat out raising the price for everybody. good economic principals right there. good idea IMO. if you ride the T once every year, what do you care about paying an extra 30 cents?
 
CharlieCards cost 22 cents each to produce. They make it marginally harder to get them to prevent people from using them as CharlieTickets (use and throw away), which infrequent T riders would most certainly do if they were readily available from machines.

Of course, it doesn't help their cause when their own employees give them out like candy. I had a T employee give me three when I got mine. I told the woman that I only needed one, as I would keep it in my wallet and had no need for the two others. She then told me that they were eventually going to start charging $5 a card and that I should keep them in case I lose one (would never happen because i keep it in my wallet, and i keep extremely good track of my wallet) or give them to people I know.

The solution? Dispense them from the machines, but charge $5 for them.
 
I've found at least 15 discarded CharlieCards since the beginning of this year. Most of them had no value, but a few had as much as $1.60 left on them.

(That's leaving aside the 100 CharlieTickets I've found this year, with a total value around $119. About time to make another donation, I think.)
 
The better solution is return to a token system.

Put money in machine- Get tokens.
 
hay u guyz, chek it owt: bEIge PrEcaSt OMG!!!!!!!!!

img4864lg6.jpg
 
Are you sure that's not limestone? Odds are it's precast, but limestone looks very similar.
 
That's a good question. Here's the image at twice the size..

 
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