There are no words ...

I'm at my wits end with the MBTA. WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Again this morning, another train was cancelled. This time the p502. I thought I'd outwit the p508 and got up early to take the 5:40 AM train because I had an early meeting (and if you know me, this is a big deal, I am so NOT a morning person).

But no, forces were conspiring against me, again. The p502 was cancelled. No reason was given according to my T Alerts. But, they were nice enough to tell me that the p504 was going to become local and run 10-15 minutes late. This gave me just what I needed to drive in. Even though I stopped for gas, at the ATM and coffee, I was still at work in about an hour and 10 minutes ... this with Pike traffic.

On days like today (well, all week actually), not only am I pissed about late trains but I want a refund of my parking fee. Why should I have to pay $4 for a now empty spot because MBTA trains do not run on time? I think the On Time Service Guarantee should include a parking rebate as well as the train fare rebate, it's only equitable.

Interesting observation came in from one of our anonymous posters: don't rely on the train, take other forms of transportation instead like van pools, buses, etc. While these are excellent suggestions, I know they don't always work out schedule wise for people like myself, as I need to be flexible in at work in order to handle client requests or last minute project updates.

New Monday, New Schedule

Well the media was all abuzz over the "new" MBTA/MBCR schedules that went live this morning.

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette led their story off with a headline that said Worcester riders now have "pre-dawn" options. Of course, the media was attracted to the story because Lt. Governor Tim Murray was in Worcester this morning to ride the "new" 6:05 a.m. train. The Lt. Governor believes that the "new" 4:45 a.m. and 6:05 a.m. trains on the Worcester line will attract more riders. The other changes to the Worcester line include an outbound train that leaves Boston at 2:40 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

While it was great that the state/MBTA "heard" the Worcester line needed some midday trains, hopefully they'll be able to "listen" some more and add more express trains - especially express trains from Worcester stations.

Here are links to related stories about the new schedule:

• MBTA Press Release
• Boston Metro
• WickedLocal Danvers

Yesterday's "Starts & Stops" column from the Boston Sunday Globe touched upon the WiFi rollout across the commuter rail line. MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas was quoted as saying

"It's an investment that will make a big difference in riders' lives. It will allow people to work on their way back and forth to work and maybe even leave the office a little early to attended a daughter or son's sporting event."

Frankly, Dan, if the trains just departed and arrived on time, it would help a lot more than WiFi that may or may not work.

Yesterday's Globe also contained an article about the lingering effects of the movie "Speed Racers" ads visible on the Red Line between South Station and Broadway. The company who created the ads paid the T $450,000 a year for this special ad unit. The unit was temporarily turned on so some movie execs could look at it. Ads may seem like a nuisance, but they are a great way for transit authorities to increase their budgets. Even Advertising Age wrote about this in today's edition.

Also in yesterday's Globe, another article about train whistles.

The T is going to delay their bond sale until after the November election, according to an article from Saturday's Globe.

Finally, today's Patriot Ledger published an article about how suicides on train tracks impact train crews. How is this for a depressing statistic: an engineer who works 25 years can expect to witness at least three people die on the tracks during their career. There have been six fatalities on the tracks this year, with the most recent occurring in Braintree last weekend.