USPS Complex | Fort Point

[Wonk]

Remember, Regional Rail is about much different usage patterns than conventional Commuter Rail 9-5 in/out to the burbs. It is getting people to use rail for a host of other trips enabled by better, frequent connectivity.

I guess I'm meaning that the Dukakis et al argument never focuses on regional rail. And, in my mind, a NSRL connection would be a nice to have in a Regional Rail system, but having a Regional Rail system isn't dependent on having a NSRL connection. Going back to the 10-20 billion project budget, I'd choose existing system electrification and crossing eliminations over NSRL if given that choice.

 

[JeffDowntown]

I guess I'm meaning that the Dukakis et al argument never focuses on regional rail. And, in my mind, a NSRL connection would be a nice to have in a Regional Rail system, but having a Regional Rail system isn't dependent on having a NSRL connection. Going back to the 10-20 billion project budget, I'd choose existing system electrification and crossing eliminations over NSRL if given that choice.

Electrification and crossing elimination are more urgent than NSRL -- but at some point Boston really should have thru-running train service as well. (Electrification is a necessary prerequisite for NSRL anyway.)

Thru-running Regional Rail is essential to unclogging the central transfer stations in the Subway in virtually every future use scenario. The system capacity gets choked by Park, DTC, GC and State.

 

[themissinglink]

Could the postal center next to South Station move at last? The US postmaster may be open to it. - The Boston Globe

A sale of Postal Annex alongside South Station could lead to more train tracks and large-scale new development, but many hurdles remain.

www.bostonglobe.com

For most of this century, Massachusetts officials have been debating whether, and how, to move the sprawling US Postal Service annex next to South Station. Now the future of the massive complex is once again up for discussion among state and federal leaders.
Representative Stephen Lynch this week told The Globe that US Postmaster General David Steiner has expressed willingness to sell the 1.3 million-square-foot mail sorting facility and relocate its operations. Such a move would clear the way for even more large-scale development alongside the region’s busiest transportation hub, and perhaps an expansion of South Station itself. Steiner assumed the top position at the US Postal Service last year, following Louis DeJoy’s resignation, and his openness to a sale came as a surprise to the congressman. Lynch said he and Steiner have even visited a property in South Boston near the Reserved Channel that could hold the vast sorting center.
[...]
Still, there is a long, and expensive, road ahead before any of this becomes a reality. The South Station Tower took around half a century to develop, from discussions in the 1970s until the tower’s opening last year. And moving the sorting facility to South Boston would likely require the support of the Massachusetts Port Authority, which owns large stretches of land off Summer Street beyond the Menino Convention and Exhibition Center.
The land long considered to be an option for a relocated mail-sorting center is tucked between E and Summer streets near the Reserved Channel heading into South Boston. Massport acquired a four-acre parcel at 525 E St. in 2022 and owns a combined 22 acres along that stretch, according to Boston assessing records.