MBTA Construction Projects

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

Oh, they think it's not crowded when school's "out of session?"

Sigh. It would be nice if the managers ever actually rode their lines.

Well...people also gotta have summer vacation. The operator/inspector and mechanic ranks are at their thinnest in Jul./Aug., and summer is when they train new employees or re-qualify Red/Blue/Orange employees to work on Green...stuff they refrain from doing during cold weather months. They'll wait until they're back at full strength, blitz the repairs on the out-of-service 8's, and be ready for the annual post-Labor Day schedule increase. This is standard operating procedure at most employers. They're never at full strength during the dog days of summer.


Summer's also heat kink season for the rails, peak electrical load, and peak A/C load for the cars. So they don't push their luck on schedules during a heat wave when the shop and track gang staffs have to be on high-alert and speed restrictions start popping up for all that spaghetti rail (which was really bad last month with how long-duration those heat waves were).

 

[Matthew]

Re: T construction news

Someday I hope the T realizes the major advantage of light rail over buses is that you can run 3 train cars with a single operator. MUNI already did.

Last I checked, the Green Line replacement trolleys are not currently budgeted in the transportation money that was just attained. Anyone know more?

 

[ant8904]

Re: T construction news

Someday I hope the T realizes the major advantage of light rail over buses is that you can run 3 train cars with a single operator. MUNI already did.

Last I checked, the Green Line replacement trolleys are not currently budgeted in the transportation money that was just attained. Anyone know more?

I think the T does realize that. I'm pretty sure the Union don't allow it to happen. In this case, it is so obviously against their self-interest for such to happen.

 

[Matthew]

Re: T construction news

You think MUNI is free from union wrangling?

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

Someday I hope the T realizes the major advantage of light rail over buses is that you can run 3 train cars with a single operator. MUNI already did.

Last I checked, the Green Line replacement trolleys are not currently budgeted in the transportation money that was just attained. Anyone know more?

They're not budgeted, but they did request bids in Spring 2011 for 24 cars and a +30 (54 total) option with specs for 70% low-floor cars matching the length of a Type 7 and 8 that can trainline with both 7's and 8's. The big specs changes this time is that they want bus-like plug doors instead of folding doors for easier door closing on packed trains. Good idea if they are generics like the bus ones...but, uh-oh, the Boeings had plug doors and they sucked ass so bad they had to be replaced with folding doors at considerable expense.

Two undisclosed bidders submitted competitive proposals, although it's the worst-kept secret in the world that Kinki was one of them and Breda was not (I'm guessing the other was one of the usual trolley suspects: Bombardier, Alstom, or Siemens). Since GLX has slipped so much and the Somerville maintenance facility won't be built with Phase I they're in no rush to place the order. There's not enough storage to hold them all now. They will probably approach the two finalists for refresh bids in 2015, and if any drop out they'll request new open bids.


My guess is if they get a solid design they'll buy the 24 to supply GLX and quickly exercise the option for the full 54, then:
-- Roll out 4-car trains on the D/GLX and permanent 3-cars on the B/C/E.
-- Use that as the opportunity to send a half-dozen 7's to Mattapan to retire the PCC's (which would have to be rebuilt again by that point to stay in regular service, something the T says it won't do because there's too few employees left qualified to service them). High-floors are ADA-compliant on the M with all the new mini-high platforms and bridge plates at each stop (except Valley Rd. where the station stairs were impossible to retrofit with ramps).
-- Retire a couple more 7's to buff out the work fleet.
-- Accelerate the request-for-bids for the Breda replacement and stick that order as an unfunded mandate for FY2019-2023, so they can order a 100+ more of the 9's when the unit cost on that model come way down the second time around. Then move to an all-Type 7/9 fleet and forget the Bredas ever existed.

 

[Matthew]

Re: T construction news

Any idea how long it will take to figure out and upgrade the power system for the GL?

 

[DominusNovus]

Re: T construction news

Is this why there doesn't seem to be any 3 car trains anymore?

I see 3-car trains on the D line with some regularity.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

Any idea how long it will take to figure out and upgrade the power system for the GL?

There's a funded power needs study ongoing now, and there are semi-funded line items for rehab and upgrades to the still-active A line draw that connects the B with the Watertown end of the TT network. There's not a whole lot they have to do. They did a lot of substation upgrades in the mid/late-90's in anticipation for the Type 8's and 3-car trains. And when the Causeway St. El got relocated underground the GC-Lechmere end got switched over to a big new substation in the Garden basement that provisions for all GLX traffic past GC. All that stuff was done while current plans were well-scoped out. They just thought at the time that all this service expansion would've happened by 2005 instead of 2018.


Plus, if they actually got @#$% POP and signal priority deployed on the surface they could beneficially reduce headways slightly with the higher per-train capacity and sharply lower dwell times using same number of cars on all 3-car ops. Current levels of schedule density on the B are rather pointless and bug-not-feature symptom of a problem when there's so much bunching on the crapshoot schedule that they have to flood the thing with so many 2-car trains to cover the fudge factor. The per-train boardings are wildly inconsistent with sardine packing on a long schedule gap, seats available on the bunched-up train immediately following, and crowds poorly distributed front-vs.-back of car. The whole thing would operate much better under same or greater load with wider spacing that stayed consistently spaced, especially in the subway where fewer schedule adjustment pauses would be needed.

They do that stuff and there's little need to increase the power draw. Bunching puts a heavier load on the circuit breakers than length of trains or # of simultaneous trains when they're well-spread.

 

[ant8904]

Re: T construction news

You think MUNI is free from union wrangling?

Basing on F-Line post's about the Union with Brookline's efforts for signal priority, previous resistance to reducing staff the other lines, and management previously making efforts of service improvements (which indicates they aren't as dense as when Daniel Grabauskas was in charge resisting any change), I would say this is plausible evidence that MUNI less weighted down than the MBTA.

Of the possible reasons - which the top two are Union resistance which have a plausible self-interested reason to resist or management remain so dense to remain unable see the value of only a single operator. I'm learning to Union resistance. Especially given we have seen the union publicly resist when they reduce operators on the other lines (indicating both likely union desires and management awareness).

 

[davem]

Re: T construction news

-- Use that as the opportunity to send a half-dozen 7's to Mattapan to retire the PCC's.
-- Retire a couple more 7's to buff out the work fleet.

This has me dreaming of traction orange and creme Kinki's. That color scheme even made that one Boeing look good.

 

[EdMc]

Re: T construction news

From yesterday, this news may be of interest to rail fans (is the MBTA involved with multi-state locomotive procurement?):

Illinois Takes Next Steps in Procuring High-Speed Locomotives
SPRINGFIELD, IL, (SWI-News.com), August 11, 2013 - Illinois has taken the next step to procure approximately 35 high-performance diesel-electric locomotives for several Midwestern and West Coast states, to be funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is leading the multi-state locomotive procurement, with a notice of award expected by early 2014.

The rail procurement news comes as passenger rail ridership in Illinois is experiencing a tremendous upswing. Ridership on key Amtrak routes in the state has surged over the last seven years. Passenger volume on the Chicago to St. Louis route is up 225 percent; Chicago to Carbondale is up 154 percent; Chicago to Quincy is up 95 percent; and Chicago to Milwaukee is up 42 percent.

"Several years ago, with ridership on passenger trains continuing to climb in the U.S., I saw an opportunity to bring the rail car manufacturing industry back to the U.S. and back to Illinois," U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin said.

"I spearheaded an effort in Congress to repair Amtrak's aging fleet of passenger cars, bring rehabilitated cars to Illinois and revive the train car industry in the United States. While a century ago the domestic railcar giant Pullman Company provided a strong manufacturing base in Illinois, today Illinois is home to the nation's largest rail supply industry. I applaud FRA's decision to name IDOT as the lead in the multi-state locomotive procurement process and to bring good paying jobs to the United States while advancing cleaner, cheaper, and greener transportation options," stated Senator Durbin.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

From yesterday, this news may be of interest to rail fans (is the MBTA involved with multi-state locomotive procurement?):

Illinois Takes Next Steps in Procuring High-Speed Locomotives
SPRINGFIELD, IL, (SWI-News.com), August 11, 2013 - Illinois has taken the next step to procure approximately 35 high-performance diesel-electric locomotives for several Midwestern and West Coast states, to be funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is leading the multi-state locomotive procurement, with a notice of award expected by early 2014.

The rail procurement news comes as passenger rail ridership in Illinois is experiencing a tremendous upswing. Ridership on key Amtrak routes in the state has surged over the last seven years. Passenger volume on the Chicago to St. Louis route is up 225 percent; Chicago to Carbondale is up 154 percent; Chicago to Quincy is up 95 percent; and Chicago to Milwaukee is up 42 percent.

"Several years ago, with ridership on passenger trains continuing to climb in the U.S., I saw an opportunity to bring the rail car manufacturing industry back to the U.S. and back to Illinois," U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin said.

"I spearheaded an effort in Congress to repair Amtrak's aging fleet of passenger cars, bring rehabilitated cars to Illinois and revive the train car industry in the United States. While a century ago the domestic railcar giant Pullman Company provided a strong manufacturing base in Illinois, today Illinois is home to the nation's largest rail supply industry. I applaud FRA's decision to name IDOT as the lead in the multi-state locomotive procurement process and to bring good paying jobs to the United States while advancing cleaner, cheaper, and greener transportation options," stated Senator Durbin.

These are for the state-sponsored Amtrak routes. The Blue Water and Wolverine routes share a stretch between Kalamazoo and Indiana of the only current 110 MPH track outside the NEC, Keystone, and between Albany and Rensselaer on the Empire. And the only track outside the NEC that's got its PTC system finished, up, and running. There's an extension of 110 MPH territory about to begin construction out to Dearborn, which will qualify >two-thirds of the Wolverine route as "fast diesel", leaving only the part in IL shared with Metra commuter rail and 30 miles of freight track between Dearborn and Pontiac as slow-speed.

I don't know what other parts of the Chicago hub are imminent for 110 MPH upgrades, but the planning's underway for pretty much all of it.


All Amtrak diesel rolling stock is already certified for 110, so the Genesis locos and whatever assortment of coaches they use on these routes are already taking advantage. But these would be state-owned locomotives, and NC, CA, and NY (because of the need for dual-modes into Penn) supply their own differing fleets and don't use the Amtrak-owned P42's. None of the articles say what the states are buying here, but it might be the new EMD F125 (latest generation of the series that includes the T's and ex-Amtrak F40PH) due to roll out to L.A. Metrolink in 2015. Those things are the first generic diesels that can hit 125 MPH, and put out a beastly 4700 HP so they accelerate a lot faster than the P42 Genesis. That's probably why they opted to stray from the regular Amtrak fleet on their own corridor routes. They'd perform a lot better on routes like these with greater stop density than your typical Amtrak LD.

Will be interesting to see how this works...if it is indeed the F125. EMD developed that thing not only as the bestest commuter rail diesel available, but also to crack the corridor market for when Amtrak does its next diesel order. This might be the first trial towards mass acceptance and standardization on that model.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

Lipstick on a pig!:

 

[DominusNovus]

Re: T construction news

I like it even more.

 

[Semass]

Re: T construction news

As long as it runs in the winter and makes a/c in the summer it don't care what it looks like. Paint it brown and call it the flying turd - i don't care.

 

[MBTAddict]

Re: T construction news

Who cares what it looks like so long as it operates efficiently? For things like light rail and buses, yes, I think design matters as they are a more visible part of the areas they serve, but for commuter rail just gimme a workhorse that doesn't break down, looks don't matter.

 

[Matthew]

Re: T construction news

The "flying turd" would befit the commuter rail very well.

 

[datadyne007]

Re: T construction news

Is it me or does the Commuter Rail purple get pinker every iteration?

 

[Arborway]

Re: T construction news

Is it me or does the Commuter Rail purple get pinker every iteration?

It's not just you. I was thinking the same thing.

 

[F-Line to Dudley]

Re: T construction news

Is it me or does the Commuter Rail purple get pinker every iteration?

It does. I think the original commuter rail loco color scheme, used on the original F40 delivery and with the old-timey FP10's they refurbished and employed from '79-91, looked very stately with the darker purple and deep yellow stripes:

I do like the black underside on the HSP-46's. That'll wear winter grime way better than the silver on the rest of the fleet. But they need to cap the front of the roof with black or something higher-contrast because the all-purple nose looks weird.

And sorry...nothing is going to hide those hideous rickety toolshed screen doors on the side. Why in the hell did they insist on that as a T-special design customization???