MBTA says real-time train info to arrive on some South Shore lines tomorrow
By adamg - 1/6/10 - 5:57 pm
The T said today that riders on the Greenbush, Kingston/Plymouth and Middleboro/Lakeville Lines will see real-time arrival info on those platform sign boards tomorrow.
"Displayed in a countdown format on easy-to-read electronic message boards, the information will provide minute-accurate train arrival times to customers waiting for their trains," the T says. The Worcester/Framingham and Lowell lines will get the updates next week, the T says, adding plans are to have all 13 commuter-rail lines operating by February.
The MBTA is also promising special AM broadcasts at stations with the same information, so commuters can stay in their cars until the train is near. The Anderson stop in Woburn will be the first to get the new AM frequency, followed over several weeks by other stations with at least 50 parking spaces.
Meanwhile, the T says that by the end of this summer, it expects to equip all of its 410 coaches with WiFi, making it the first commuter-rail system in the country with full-train wireless.
Meanwhile, the MBTA also said it will begin looking for a new contract for somebody to operate its commuter-rail lines starting in 2013, after granting current operator MBCR a two-year extension.