Unpleasant News for Friday the 13th

For months, we've known that transportation related initiatives in Massachusetts were in a tail spin. The MBTA, in particular, has been in a fiscal crunch.

Reports are out today that Transportation Secretary James A. Aloisi Jr. has said that the T will need make a number of drastic measures to stay afloat. These measures may include fare increases of up to 25%, a cut back in services or employee layoffs. Aloisi told the T's Board that, if they don't make some decisions by June, the state will step in and make the decisions for them.

This message comes on ahead of next week's anticipated announcement of Governor Deval Patrick's transportation plan.

Essentially, Aloisi is asking the T to either do what is right for T riders or to see if the T is going to continue their coddling of employees. T employees have the right to a full pension after 23 years of service. No doubt the pension payouts have contributed to their $5.2 billion debt (this includes interest).

My personal T "perk" pet peeve is the fact that so many T employees have use of a vehicle. The state made most departments turn in state cars on January 1, 2009. The T was not included in this return, as they are a quasi-private entity and can do their own thing.

You can read all about this in the following articles:

• The Boston Globe
• The Boston Globe Thursday, February 12th article (good for the reader comments)
  
• The Boston Herald
• Boston Metro
  

I do enjoy reading the comments that are posted to some articles. Here is one that was posted to The Globe's article published today:

What makes this all the more infuriating is that the T continues to avoid making the right, ethical decisions regarding its notorious retiree gravy train. These are tough times for all, and present T-retirees should be required to sacrifice as much as present employees and, indeed, the rest of us outside the T's bastion of utlra-entitled hackery.

First things first: make current retirees pay more for their health care, eliminate their ridiculous choices in the matter, and start taking a hard look at those who've gotten away with "gaming the system" in their pensions. We shouldn't be demanding sacrifice only from active working people; those now sitting pretty with ludicrous retirement packages should make sacrifices too.

Of course there are the T unions to deal with. In crisis there is opportunity, and this seems to be an excellent opening to take the corrupt public unions down a few pegs.

Just a thought...or two.

WickedLocal Mansfield published a letter from a MBTA/MBCR commuter rail rider who has been ticketed for not paying the $4.00 parking fee even though it was paid.

Today's Globe also published an article about how the T will be leasing space at the Riverside MBTA Green Line station in Newton.

Finally, due to business in my personal and professional life (sorry!), I've been behind some news updates. The Boston Globe's local news sections recently wrote an article about Needham line commuter rail passengers. It was published earlier in the week on February 10th. The article was published on part of a new news feed for Needham, Newton and Waltham. The purpose of the local sections is to try to "identify readers and their needs." The Globe is particularly interested in regular updates and news about the Needham line. So if you are a Needham line rider and if you would like to provide commuter rail updates to The Globe, feel free to contact Regional Editor David Dahl at dahl AT globe.com.

Silver Line Backup

My commute on the P508 was fine today, we were at South Station for 8:22 a.m. However, the commute wasn't drama free. A weird thing happened on the Silver Line. There was a backup on the platform and the first bus that came through was a SL1 for Logan Airport. So a bunch of us get on the bus, then a MBTA manager starts yelling at us that "the bus is too crowded and it is only going to Logan, so anyone not going to Logan had to get off." Hardly anyone moved and then the bus stopped at the Courthouse and the World Trade Center. The whole Silver Line bus thing has been effed up lately in the morning.

Today's Boston Metro ran an interview with MASSPIRG regarding Massachusetts' transportation infrastructure. MASSPIRG, which published a study about the Bay State's transportation infrastructure back in the fall, released a press release yesterday praising Governor Deval Patrick's administration for wanting to use $233 million of a requested $783 million recovery package to repair and rehabilitate existing roads. Here's a snippet from the press release:

But Massachusetts looks the best compared to other state requests. According to the MASSPIRG report, the Executive Office of Transportation has presented a good balance of public transportation improvements, bike and pedestrian projects, money for ports and aviation, and road and highway maintenance.

“Governor Patrick and his state agencies have put forward the most comprehensive request, with more than half of the proposal dedicated to modes of transportation that encourage people to get out of their cars,” said Bourassa.

Massachusetts is also the only state requesting its entire road and highway funds for repair and maintenance, with no new roadways funded under the plan

Our roads desperately need some repairs. Commute-a-holic relayed a story yesterday about travels on the Pike between Worcester and Springfield this past Sunday. Commute has never seen potholes on the Pike as large as the ones encountered during Sunday's drive. Some of the potholes could literally swallow a car.

Yesterday's Boston.com The Green Blog ran two different yet interesting posts. One was about why there are so many announcements on MBTA trains. This was a pick-up of the Boston Metro's weekly Q&A with our favorite GM, Dan Grabauskas.

Also posted yesterday to The Green Blog, information about a new $20 per month reimbursement available to bicyclists who commute. This new program launched January 1st and it is available to bicyclists either as a cash reimbursement or a pre-tax deduction if their employer participates.

Refused to be Stuck on the P508 Today

Are the commuters who take the P508 even in Boston right now? I ended up driving to work this morning. When I arrived to the Grafton station at 7:07 a.m. and saw that people were milling around, I didn't think it looked too promising. I asked one of my fellow commuters if there were delays and he said "yes," so I checked the T alerts and it said that all inbound trains from Worcester were delayed 15 to 30 minutes due to CSX not clearing the switches in Worcester.

I turned right around, got into my car and drove into work. Which worked out well, because I do have a lot of errands to run tonight and I had a meeting that I can't miss this morning.

According to commuters who use Twitter, it looks as thought the outbound Worcester trains are delayed.

This is not a good way to start the week. I have a business trip tomorrow, so I won't be riding the rails at all.

Commentary from today's Worcester Business Journal focuses on how the Commonwealth needs to address transportation structure issues.

Yesterday's The Boston Sunday Globe contained a front-page story on how most Massachusetts residents believe a gas tax should be used to fund the transportation budget deficits. The article noted that many residents of the Bay State really question what impact, if any, the Big Dig had since it cost so much money. The "Starts & Stops" column in yesterday's Globe reported that the MBTA station lots have fewer cars in them. The T is still claiming a victory with the parking fare increase, since more revenue was brought in during November due to the fees. There was also this "Letter to the Editor" about the Silver Line Phase III project and an editorial about the T's drug policy in Sunday's Globe.

On Friday, the Governor named James Aloisi the new Secretary of Transportation. Many pundits do not agree with this selection. Read about it in this article.

Saturday's The Boston Herald contained this article about residents upset with how the T chopped down some trees along the Mattapan trolley line.

Similar to the Boston Metro's Q&A, the Examiner is now running a Q&A with MBTA GM Daniel Grabauskas.

Another Day, More to Pay

Train Rider is still away on business, so we do not have a Worcester commuter rail update this morning.

Based on comments received by Train Stopping yesterday, it looks like the first day of the new parking fees caused fewer people to part at the MBTA stations. It will be interesting to see if people find ways to avoid parking or if they just stop taking the trains all together.

Yesterday blogger Jeff Korzenik wrote about how the parking increase could cause people to not use the T in his blog (in)efficient frontiers. Jeff made some great observations and some excellent points on how consumers behave rationally.

This morning offered a good lesson on the rationality of consumers of energy and transportation. Today was the first business day that parking rates increased at MBTA (Boston’s regional transit authority) train station parking lots. My small station has a limited number of spots (about 150). As fuel prices rose earlier this year, drivers chose mass transit over driving in to Boston, and the lot filled earlier and earlier. When gas prices were at their peak, the lot generally filled by about 6:45 a.m. As gas prices have declined, the lot generally didn’t fill until about 7:00 a.m. Starting today, the higher parking fees will raise the annual train commute cost by $500. At 7:00 a.m. this morning, the lot was a third empty. As the relative cost of fuel-efficient mass transit increased, and the cost of driving has decreased, consumers have acted rationally and switched back to driving.

CommonWealth magazines CW blog used the recent issues plaguing transportation entities in Massachusetts as a reason to provide links to a number of current and past articles about transportation.

Over the weekend, the By any media necessary blog published an excellent letter written to Governor Deval Patrick, calling for the resignation of MBTA GM Daniel Grabauskas. The author Cara Lisa Powers, commutes from Worcester to Dorchester via the Worcester-Framingham commuter rail line and the Red Line. That's a super long commute, huh? She cited a number of reasons why she chose to commute via commuter rail, including the "new" Worcester line schedule and the T's highly touted free Wi-Fi. She points out that, if you rely on the Worcester line, there really isn't a good schedule if you do work 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and she even shared Customer Service's feedback:

I made this decision with two key MBTA advertisements in mind: (1) That the trains on the Worcester/Framingham line now have wireless and (2) that the Worcester/ Framingham line was adding four new trains to the schedule just days before my November 1 move. Since the beginning of my commute, just 2 weeks ago, I have been increasingly stressed, irritable and astounded at the MBTA’s blatant lack of regard for the needs of its riders. First, I found that the trains added to the schedule were at the beginning, middle and end of the day, and not at peak travel times like extending the 5:15 train from South Station to Framingham or the 8:00am train that runs from Framingham to Boston to run at approximately 7:19 from Worcester. Given that there seemed to be no practical commuter schedule for someone working a regular 9 to 5 schedule in Boston, I called Customer Service to complain. I was told by the Customer Service representative that they obviously could not cater to everyone’s schedule, he was not sure what I would like for him to do. After citing my 9-5 schedule, I recommended that the additional trains be revisited. I was given no way to follow up and see how my complaint was recorded or would be acted on.

Cara is singing Train Rider's song. A lot of us have thought the same thing and have voiced similar complaints.

However, unlike many commuters, Cara is fortunate to work for an employer who will create a flexible schedule for her. Even with her commitment to ride the rails, Cara noted:

With constant price hikes, little accountability, and continuously deteriorating service, I have to seriously consider driving to work. It would save me at least 2 hours a day, which in my line of work as a community organizer is precious. There are very few days that I am able to leave work on time, and on those days I want the dependability to know that I can get home when I plan to. Three times this week, a late train, either on the Commuter Rail or the Red Line which takes me from JFK/ UMASS to South Station has caused me to get home later than anticipated, today by a full hour because of a late train on the red line. This is incredibly frustrating when I already have a 12 hour day and little time to even eat dinner and shower before having to go to bed to get up for an early train.

She moves on to say that, in her opinion, the MBTA has forgotten it serves the people of Massachusetts. Cara continues to make some excellent points and I encourage everyone to read her full post.

Finally, a Live Journal post by Christopher Parker contains his post made to the Boston Metro's Q&A with Dan Grabauskas. Christopher is a bus rider who also had some interesting observations.

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.

Good Times Thursday MBCR Commute

Today has been a crazy-busy day. My commute on the P508 was fine. We arrived to South Station at around 8:23 a.m.

For one of my friends who commutes to work on the Pike (since his office is located outside of Boston), today's morning drive wasn't so smooth. He got into a minor fender-bender in the stop and go traffic. This is just another reason why I really don't dig the Pike during rush hour - it's accident central!!

Emerson College's The Berkley Beacon wrote another article today about the Silver Line project. If the Silver Line project happens, Emerson College will be directly impacted.

Now in the "really strange news" department, today's Boston Metro contained an article about how the MBTA is trying to sell the Solari station sign that currently hangs in South Station on eBay. Um, didn't Governor Palin try to do this with some plane in Alaska (and didn't it not really sell on eBay???)? Anyho, if you desire to own this sign, the bids start at $500. However, if you win it, you have to haul it. The sign weighs 2,600 pounds. I couldn't find it on eBay, but if you do, you know I'll link to it (you betcha!!).

Edited at 7:40 p.m. EDT: Check out the Solari sign on eBay. Thanks to Anonymous for sharing!

The T Desires to Play the Role of Emily Post or Miss Manners

A bit of a change with this morning's commute. I decided to take the P512 train, which departs Grafton at 7:49 a.m. I barely made it to the station on time. There were police officers all over Grafton this morning, so commuters were driving super slow. The commute was fine. We arrived to South Station at 9:05 a.m. or so, a few minutes ahead of schedule.

Commute-a-holic saw our favorite friend, MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas, being interviewed this morning on Fox 25's morning news program. Commute said that Dan provided a better workout, as he was his swarmy self on the interview. For whatever reason, Fox 25 does not provide code so bloggers can post or share video, so here is a link to the video segment with Dan's interview. You may wonder "Why was Danny G. being interviewed by Fox 25 this morning." Well, it is because the T announced a new marketing campaign - aimed at making riders more polite.

Can you believe it? The T, which is basically bankrupt, is spending money to communicate to their passengers that they need to be more polite while using the T. Good grief!! You know, Muni Manners already does this and they probably do it better. So why couldn't they just save the money and link to the Muni Manners blog off of the T's website? I am incredulous that the T is spending money on this campaign. This is utterly absurd.

Here's an idea - maybe if the T ran its services on time and actually had clean trains/buses, people wouldn't be as pent up as they are. I'm not advocating that riders have poor manners, but sometimes tempers flare because commuters are just frustrated.

It is stuff like this that causes people to want to see things like Question 1 go through.

If you don't feel like seeing Danny G. smirk in the video, you can read all about the T's latest marketing campaign in this article from today's Boston Metro.

Moving on. The Boston Globe ran an article today about the proposed Silver Line III project. Funding that project and other transit initiatives is the focus of two separate articles in today's Boston Metro. The Metro articles pick-up on the MASSPIRG report, announced over the weekend. One article is about how "Funding will decide the fate of Mass. transit," while the other focuses on "Shaping the MBTA for the 21st century." We all know that funding for mass transit and other transportation issues in Massachusetts is in dire straits. Here are some data points that the MASSPIRG report noted:

• 93,000,000 - amount of hours wasted in traffic delays in the greater Boston area during 2005.
• $4.3 billion - Massachusetts residents spent $4.3 billion more on gas in 2007 compared to 1998.
• 57% - the increase in vehicle traffic in the Commonwealth from 1980 to 2007.

SouthCoastToday.com also published an article about the MASSPIRG report.

Finally, Rep. Tom Sannicandro (D - 7th Middlesex District) wrote a guest op-ed piece for today's The MetroWest Daily News. Rep. Sannicandro details the pending purchase of the CSX tracks. His article states that this purchase will "will lower commute times and vastly improve the overall effectiveness of the Commonwealth's commuter rail program. The most dramatic and immediate changes of the plan will be enacted on Oct. 27 when the number of daily trains leaving Worcester will increase from 10 to 13, and the number of daily trains leaving from Boston to Worcester will increase from 10 to 12."

Yes, when we first heard the news that more trains were being added to the Worcester line, we were initially excited about this. But then when we saw the schedule, we noticed that essentially trains just got moved around.

From what I want and from what I've gathered from other commuters on the Worcester line, riders would like to see the following:

• More express trains from Worcester: Frankly, it would be great if trains could run express from Ashland to Boston.
• More express trains from Framingham: Commuters who live in Framingham and points East do not want to have to rely on the regular trains for their commutes into Boston.
• More train options for off-peak commutes: This includes riders who commuter from Boston and points west and more afternoon trains leaving Boston for Worcester-Framingham riders who may need to leave the office early.

I am hopeful that these changes will happen. However, I do not want to see our elected officials just rest on their laurels because they were able to purchase the tracks from CSX. Acquiring the tracks is one thing. Implementing a more vibrant train schedule is another.

For Sale: $350 million in Bonds Owned by the MBTA

Today's The Boston Globe reports that next week the MBTA is going to try to sell $350 million in bonds to help pay off short-term debt and fund its capital program. If the T can sell the bonds on the credit market, they plan to allocate the money as follows:

• $202 million would fund the MBTA's capital program.
• $100 million would let the T pay off their short-term paper debts.
• $37 million would be deposited into the account the T uses to pay down its debt.
• Anything left over would cover the cost of issuing the the bonds.

Overall, the T has $8 billion in debt.

Yesterday's Boston Metro reported that state and national transportation officials met in Boston on Wednesday to discuss the challenges facing federally funded transportation programs. A six-year federal transportation bill is up for re-authorization in 2009, but US Rep Michael Capuano said the House and Senate may not even get to this next year.

The T's Green Line extension and Urban Ring projects are both slated to receive federal funding.

Overall, the state's current transportation structure could cost $19 billion to maintain, which doesn't account for any new projects.

Even though the T has incurred a great deal of debt, today's Boston Metro reports that the transit authority is planning on building out the pilot WiFi program throughout the commuter rail line. Today, the T's Board of Directors will be asked to authorize $1.39 million to equip 258 train coaches with WiFI. This would include upgrading equipment on 50 Worcester line cars. If approved, this project will begin in December and the plan is to upgrade 30 coaches a month.

Call me crazy, but if the T is running out of money shouldn't the use whatever money they have to improve the on-time performance of their trains? Does the T ever listen to commuter feedback? Train Stopping has received a lot of comments this week from Worcester line riders who are frustrated with the "new" schedules. For commuters who's trips originates in Worcester through Ashland, they would like to see more express trains. For commuters who ride in from Framingham and points East, they would like to see express trains remain that originate in Framigham. And riders who do the "reverse" commute would like to see other options. Sure, some more trains were added, but in the scheme of things the schedule was just shuffled around. The Worcester-Framingham riders continue to be frustrated by their how much longer their trips take today compared to 2 or 3 years ago.

Finally, WickedLocal Hingham reports that the T's plans to cut the commuter boat service are currently on hold.

MBCR's Chief Stepping Aside

After virtually no news, the latter part of the week has turned out to see some major commuter rail stories.

James O'Leary, the head of the MBCR, is leaving his post. The new head of the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail Co. will be the Richard A. Davey, the 35-year deputy who has been with the MBCR for five years, The Boston Globe reports.

The air conditioning problems have generally been fixed, but tardiness continues to be an issue for many of the 72,000 commuters. In August, 17.5 percent of trains were at least five minutes late, which managers attribute to heavy track construction. Despite significant problems with delays, O'Leary's company won a three-year extension of its contract last December, worth $227 million per year, the largest private commuter rail contract in the country.

Davey, according to The Globe, "Davey promises to focus on customer service, safety, and identifying areas where investment can improve reliability."
Obviously, for Worcester line riders, the big news was yesterday's announcement that the state is working out a deal with the CSX. Five new trips have been added. Starting October 27th, the first train will leave Worcester at 4:45 a.m. instead of 5:43 a.m. Two other inbound trains have been added: 6:05 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

For outbound trips, the first train will arrive in Worcester at 5:19 a.m. and an earlier afternoon train will leave Boston at 2:40 p.m., arriving to Union Station at 4:13 p.m.

One of yesterday's comments is something Train Stopping is in agreement with - not just more trains, but faster and more reliable trains. Obviously, this situation is unfolding and we'll have to see how it all pans out.

Here are links to some coverage about yesterday's announcements:

• Telegram & Gazette 10/3/2008 article
• Telegram & Gazette 10/3/2008 editorial
• MetroWest Daily News 10/3/2008 article
• Boston Metro 10/3/2008 article
• SouthCoastToday.com 10/3/2008 article

In other news, it looks like the new Beverly commuter rail parking garage will be built in one of two locations, according to today's The Salem News. Also, today's The Daily News Tribune reports that some bus routes in Newton may be changing so the MBTA can conserve fuel.

Finally, in the better late than never, WCVB-TV's Chronicle program ran a piece on commuting on September 17, 2008. Unfortunately, Chronicle's website does not include the ability for video to be shared. The MBTA is running a clip of the segment, but it is in a Windows Media Player (so if you use a Mac, you maybe not be able to see it). The below graphic is on the MBTA's website. You need to click the graphic to see the clip.

Back to the Swing of Things

Welcome to September. The summer seemed to zip by and now we're into Labor Day. At least there weren't too many steamy days riding the rails this summer. Remember how hot and sticky it was a few summers back, well at least hot and sticky on the Worcester line?

The weather the last few weeks has been gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous. Although, I guess we'll get more humidity if the hurricanes/tropical depressions out there come up the coast.

Take a super fast Friday evening commute home add in the beautiful weather combined with a holiday plus the hoopla over McCain's VP selection (I'm scratching my head over that one) and you have one super fast holiday weekend. Well, this morning brought me back to riding the rails.

My commute on the P508 was fine. We seemed ahead of schedule at the stops and waited a minute or two to depart (once the passengers had loaded). We were at Back Bay at around 8:16 a.m., but waited outside of South Station for about 10 minutes for a track to open. From my window, it looked like other trains were in the same boat, so I'm putting the arrival to South Station at 8:28 a.m.

While the commuter rail was fine, the Silver Line was a cluster this morning. The platform was already packed when I got there and the buses were bunched up on the other side. I didn't get on a bus until about 8:42 a.m. Eeecks! Not a great way to start a Tuesday morning.

Today's Boston Metro reported that the T will be holding public meetings beginning next week for proposed bus route changes. This is part of the MBTA's 2008 Service Plan. Every two years the T evaluates the bus routes and makes changes based on rider demand and comments. I went to the T's website but didn't see anything about this program.

Also from today, The Eagle-Tribune wrote about repairs that will be made to a bridge that runs over the Merrimack River. This will benefit the Haverhill commuter rail line.

In other news, Boston.com ran a story the other day about poor air quality at the Back Bay T station. Yuck! This is a known problem - the T doesn't have the money to fix it.

Yesterday's Daily News Tribune published an editorial on merging the MBTA Transit Police with the State Police.

Empty Friday Morning Train

My inbound commute on the P508 train was fine. Which is good, because I heard there were some cancellations on some other lines this morning. The train wasn't very crowded today, people must have taken the day off for a long weekend. We were at South Station at 8:25 a.m., we would have been earlier, but we sat on the tracks waiting for a track to open for 3-5 minutes. I hate that!

The Boston Metro reports this morning that a number of transit projects have received approval from the EPA. These projects include the MBTA's Green Line extension to Somerville and Medford and the Fairmount commuter rail improvement project. The latter initiative will add four new stops between Readville and South Station. Also in the works is a connector between the Blue and Red lines, the only two MBTA subway lines that do not connect. Finally, the T will be adding 1,000 parking spaces at various stations.

NHBR.com published an analysis today of the commuter rail that ran from Southern New Hampshire to Boston in 1980.

Finally, Progressive Railroading made mention of the T's all-time-high ridership numbers.

Ashland Bottlenecks and News from Lincoln

Train Rider is working from home today, due in part to an overnight conference call.

I saw a news report this morning on WCVB-TV Channel 5 about how train operators are trying to promote the use of trains versus tractor-trailer trucks for moving products in the US. I can't find a comparable article about this online. Essentially, train operators are saying that it is cheaper and more environmentally friendly to ship products via the rail than in trucks. Tractor trailers can cause gridlock, meaning that consumers are hit with a double-whammy between spending money on gas sitting in traffic and the higher cost of products. The truck lobbyists noted that most of the US is structured so that shipping by rail can't totally eliminate trucks.

Along the lines of rail companies, there was an article in today's The MetroWest Daily News about officials from the town of Ashland telling CSX officials that they need to be more careful about triggering traffic signals at downtown rail crossings. When the traffic signals accidentally go off, traffic in Ashland bottlenecks. There was one incident earlier this month when downtown traffic came to a standstill for 25 minutes.

WickedLocal Lincoln published a story yesterday about the dire financial straits of the MBTA. Caroline Conner, Lincoln's representative to the MBTA Advisory Committee was quoted saying the following:

Connor said she believes the state should assume the debt to allow the MBTA to present a balanced budget.

“It’s putting a band-aid on the problem. It’s not going to improve anything. The simple objective is really to get back to square one,” she said.

Lincoln Selectperson Sara Mattes noted the following:

(T)he commuter rail project was of particular interest to Lincoln given all the development and traffic activity around Route 128. Mattes said the state needs to make “a real commitment to mass transit” and called upon Gov. Deval Patrick to show stronger leadership to solve the state’s transportation problems.

“One would think at some point a light bulb would go off that it’s more cost effective to invest in the MBTA,” Mattes said.

Finally, a great comment to yesterday's Boston Metro Q&A post came in this morning. Here is an excerpt:

Here's one thing I wish the MBTA (or MBCR or whatever agency is responsible for it this week) would do with their present resources: schedule trains with the appropriate number and type of cars. Many of the rush hour express and local trains are usually one car short or they do not have enough double-deckers. Lately, I've noticed more single than double-decker cars. What's frustrating is that I also notice that the reverse traffic trains are ALL double-deckers and not missing any cars. Next time you get off the train in the evening, hang around a few minutes for the next inbound train and count the number of double-deckers. I usually wait in the parking lot until all of the demolition derby drivers have left the lot (yes, I've seen accidents and hit-and-runs at the Southborough and Westborough stations in the last year, but I digress).

If the appropriate type and number of train cars were properly scheduled, then overcrowding can be alleviated.

7/28 Boston Metro Q&A with MBTA GM Danny G

We forgot to add this yesterday and this morning.

The Boston Metro published yet another Q& A with MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas. I could start to use some adjectives to describe my own personal feelings about "Danny G," but in the interest of good karma, I'll just skip over that.

Inal Olmez submitted the latest question. Inal is a commuter rail rider and the question is most pertinent to those of us who ride the rails to and fro the 'burbs.

I am curious why the same system for collecting fares on the T system has not been implemented for the commuter train. It seems at least twice a week I am on a train that is so crowded that the conductors are not able to walk the aisles. As a result none of the fares are collected. As a person who purchases a monthly pass it is frustrating to know that many people are getting a free ride while I pay regardless of the situation.

What's Danny boy's answer. I won't go into the boring details. Dan seems to pontificate instead of just answering Inal's question. Danny G. proceeded to talk about the stupid new program, "Buy Before You Board," which many people don't think too highly of (and apparently neither do the conductors).

Maybe Dan knows that people don't love "Buy Before You Board." Instead of attributing the campaign to the T, he made sure that readers know the MBCR came up with the new program. Nice way to continue passing the buck, Mr. MBTA GM.

I know some people may come back and comment that "Buy Before You Board" is perhaps the best transit marketing campaign of 2008. Or that Danny G. is great at his job. If so, that's great. That's the spirit of this blog - personal opinion. My opinion of Dan Grabausakas happens to be pretty low. It's hard to respect someone who doesn't even attempt to use the services of the agency he's the head of. And its even harder to respect someone who just seems to pass the buck.

21 Million More MBTA Riders in FY 2008 vs. FY 2007

The MBTA released ridership numbers for its Fiscal Year 2008. It was a good year, ridership wise, for the T. Nearly 375 million people used the T, the highest ridership number in the MBTA's 44 year history. There were 21 million more riders in this fiscal year compared to last year, a 6% increase.

You can read all about it in an articles from today The Boston Globe. The article mention that the T is just only starting to look at ways to accommodate more riders. The Chicago Transit Authority is considering removing seats from their train cars to fit more people. The MBTA's own SUV-riding GM Dan Grabauskas made the following statement:

It is too early to say, Grabauskas cautioned, whether the MBTA would consider a similar move. "Literally," he said, "I only learned of it in the past week."

But at a time when people are forced to squeeze into rush-hour trains in Boston, the agency is willing, Grabauskas said, to consider just about anything, including, possibly, seatless cars. "It certainly is an idea with some merit."

Dan - way to be thinking ahead. I won't get into a bashing session, but boy do you open yourself up to criticism.

The Massachusetts Public Interest Group noted the following:

"This is an opportunity where people are experimenting with public transportation," Bourassa said. "And if the T does a good job and provides good service, more people are going to use it and we're going to keep those riders. But if the T has to raise fares because of high debt costs and high fuel costs, or if they have to cut service because of that, then we will have missed that opportunity."

The Boston Metro reported that 67.8% of the T's subway riders are using the CharlieCard to pay for their trips in June 2008. Overall, 90% of riders either use a CharlieCard or a discounted monthly pass. Next year, the T will be rolling out a pilot program where commuter rail riders can pay for their parking using the automated cards. By 2011, CharlieCards are expected to be used across the entire T system - subway, bus, commuter rail, and commuter boat.

Finally, a typical Boston Herald article about T salaries. Unreal!

Mass Transit Demands Have US Cities Scrambling

Driving to work this morning, I heard on the WXLO traffic report that there was an accident at the Rt. 140 - Rt. 30 intersection in North Grafton. I hope none of the Train Riders who use the Grafton station were involved in the accident. I also hope no one was delayed as a result of the accident.

Yesterday CNN.com published an article titled "U.S. cities scrambling to meet rising mass transit demands." Even areas of our country that are very car-centric have been reporting a surge in the use of mass transit. The MBTA was mentioned:

For example, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which is currently operating at capacity during peak periods, ordered more subway cars, buses and coaches for its commuter rail.

The article didn't really share anything new, but it is interesting to see transportation become a major issue. The article did reference iReport, which is interested in having commuters across the US share their commuting stories.

It is really a shame that mass transit has taken a back seat in public policy over the past 50-55 years. Our nation was so focused on using the automobile to get to and from places, that we ignored public transit. At least Boston is lucky - they didn't remove all of our train lines (though Worcester and Greenbush are new versions of older lines).

Along the lines of Boston's retirement of some train lines back in the 1950s, The Weekly Dig has a current article about how some South Coast cities and towns have been trainless since 1959. It gives the history of trying to resurrect train service to New Bedford, Fall River and other South Coast localities.

While we're on the subject of the South Coast Rail Project, SouthCoastToday.com reports on the ongoing evaluation of station sites for the line.

Today's Boston Metro had an interesting article regarding the state's bailout of the Mass Pike. The question: "If the Pike gets bailed out, what about the T?"

Finally, if you're looking for a fee-less ATM when you get off the train, then the Select-A-Branch ATM Network is your answer. Ten S-A-B ATMS have been installed in MBTA commuter rail stations around the Boston area. Read about it in this press release from Tuesday.

Sleepy Wednesday Commute

I have returned from my one-day business trip.

I took the P508 train in from Grafton. I totally slept on the train this morning. Oh, the train was on time. We arrived to Back Bay station at 8:14 a.m. and I got off to take the Orange Line to my office.

Keith sent in an article that I didn't see in yesterday's "Earth Day" edition of the Boston METRO. The MBTA is embarking on a number of green initiatives. Click here to check the article out.

Keith - thanks for sharing the article!

Assorted (Boston) Metro MBTA News

Today's Boston Metro published an article about the MBTA commuter rail corporate pass program. According to the article, the T claims that more corporations are interested in participating in the corporate pass program. Currently 1,318 Boston-area businesses participate in the program, which gives the businesses a tax incentive. Employees are able to purchase their pass through a deduction from their pre-tax paycheck. Along with the tax savings, the employee can also obtain auto insurance discounts if they can prove to their insurance company that they have a T pass.

This is a wonderful program - this is how I obtain my commuter rail pass. However, I wish more companies thought of working to make sure the T's trains and the MBCR commuter rail trains arrive on time. I wonder if any companies think "gee, why are some employees who live in a specific area always late." But I digress.

The last paragraph of the Metro's article is interesting:

The T has seen cost savings in the corporate pass program since the launch of the CharlieCard. The T no longer has to mail out 113,000 passes every month, saving the authority approximately $200,000 on postage and handling every quarter.

As I've mentioned, I've been an active participate in the Corporate Pass program. My current employer offers this benefit, as did other firms I've worked at. However, the Corporate Pass program at my past or current employers was not handled directly by the MBTA. Rather, an outsourced company called WageWorks managed the Corporate Pass offering. In fact, I don't know anyone enrolled in any Corporate Pass program who has a Charlie Card, unless they have a subway only pass. The Charlie Card does not apply to commuter rail riders. So why does the T still refer to all passes as Charlie Cards? And if a majority of the Corporate Pass programs are managed by outsourced companies, what does the T actually do?

In other Metro news, I saw that there was a letter to MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas in the Metro I read this morning on the train. A reader had a question about the trash near/from South Station ... in typical MBTA fashion, Dan G. blamed Amtrak, as they technically "own" South station and the tracks. I can't find a copy of this article online, but if I do I'll post it. Can Dan ever give an interview or answer a question without blaming someone else? Unreal!

Thursday Morning On Time Commute and Boston Metro's Q&A with MBTA Head Honcho Dan Grabauskas

My commute this morning on the inbound P508 train was fine. We arrived at South Station at 8:21 a.m., again a few minutes ahead of the 8:23 a.m. scheduled arrival time.

Commute-a-holic and I have both noticed that the Boston Metro has periodically run a Q&A with MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas. The most recent Q&A was published on Monday, March 10th.

A Boston Metro reader wrote in about the discrepancy between actual on-time arrivals for the Newburyport-Rockport line and "published" arrival times listed at North Station. Read Dan's answer - can the man ever answer a question and assume responsibility instead of passing blame?

The information at North Station is posted by MBCR as one of their efforts to update customers of on-time performance on Commuter Rail lines. The on-time performance percentages on these posters are reflective of the total number of trains operated on a service line in comparison to all service delays of five minutes or greater.

As you have noted, the total on-time performance for a line will be higher on average than the on-time performance during peak periods. It is also important to note that the peak period on-time performance may vary significantly for the on-time performance for each train within that peak period.

Using the Newburyport Line as the example, please note the following: A total of 868 trains were scheduled to operate in February, 2008. Of these trains, 140 (16.1 percent) were scheduled in the a.m. peak period, 120 (13.8 percent) in the p.m. peak period, 500 (57.6 percent) in the daily non-peak period, and 108 (12.4 percent) on weekends and holidays. For those trains scheduled in the a.m. peak period, 118 arrived at their final destination on-time or within five minutes of their scheduled arrival, resulting in an on-time performance of 84.3 percent. In the p.m. peak period, 85 of the scheduled trains in this time period arrived on time with an on-time performance of 70.8 percent. For the largest block of trains, the 500 non-peak daily trains, 441 arrived on schedule, resulting in an on-time performance of 88.2 percent. Finally, 92 of the 108 weekend trains arrived on time for an on-time performance of 85.2 percent. Add these totals together and the result is that 868 trains were scheduled in February, of which 736 arrived on schedule with an on-time performance for the month of 84.8 percent. This is an increase in on-time performance of nearly 10 percent over the month of January (75.1 percent).

In presenting the data for February, the posters displaying information will show on-time performance for the Newburyport Line of 84.8 percent and 85.3 percent for the Rockport Line. In the a.m. peak period (which you specifically inquired about), on-time performance on the Newburyport Line was 84.3 percent and 75 percent on the Rockport Line.

While monitoring on-time performance for every train is a priority for the MBTA, the statistics posted at North Station are reflective of the overall service. And although the on-time performance rates have been trending in a positive direction recently, the MBTA and MBCR are strongly determined to lift these rates to higher and higher levels.

Worcester Commuter Rail Line Critics

I noticed two more blogs about the ineffectiveness of the MBTA/MBCR commuter rail trains of late, in particular the Worcester-Framingham line.

Hudi wrote a great post that not only mentioned that the Worcester-Framingham line is never even close to the "on-time-performance" mark, but how even the parking lots on this line haven't been cleared of snow/ice.

It appears as though Hudi boards the train from the Grafton station (just like me). Either on Tuesday or Wednesday, when I got to the parking lot my space was covered over with snow and ice so I couldn't determine the parking space number. Throughout the day, the snow/ice melted, so instead of getting a snow envelope (where you just pay the $2), I got the surcharge, but it's the principle. Clear the parking lot and shovel the sidewalks!

As Hudi notes:

"There are 373 parking spaces in Grafton, assuming that 350 spaces are used per day at $2 each that's $700 per day x 20 days per month x 12 months per year = $168,000. There should be more than enough money to pay for the upkeep of the parking lot and pay the attendant who picks up the money."

Amen!

The other blog about the Worcester-Framingham line has a great title (that should pull up in search engine results): MBCR Worcester Line - Daily On Time Performance.

I am loving all the activity around publicizing the performance issues plaguing the Worcester-Framingham line. I hope that if the noise continues, people who can make a difference (such as business leaders and elected officials) can start to institute some improvements.

In other news, the Boston Metro reports that the Greenbush line's ridership numbers lag behind other lines. The T is still so proud that this line launched. I still think they would have been better off spending money on improving existing commuter rail lines or establishing commuter rail service to New Bedford/Fall River.

Boston.com reported that the commuter rail delays on the Newburyport/Rockport line are probably a result of the commuter rail bridge connecting Beverly and Salem being knocked out of alignment last month. Yikes! At least those riders know why they've endured delays.

MBTA out thousands in refunds

This morning's Boston Metro published a lengthy article about how the MBTA has had to issue thousands of dollars because of ongoing service issues.

For September and October 2007, the T refunded $262,142 to commuters mainly because of the dismal performance of the commuter rail lines.

As part of the T's "On-Time Performance Guarantee," 10,570 commuters received refunds in October and 12,659 commuters got refunds for September. I'm one of those commuters who has submitted refund requests! I would gladly trade in my refunded fares for better on-time performance.

The bad buzz for the T continues. Along with shelling out $262,142 in refunds, the T has had to deal with irate commuters (this blog is just one example of how angry we are). In today's article, the Metro noted that they are receiving hundreds of emails from commuter rail riders just in the past month. Commuters have said that the delays range from 10 minutes to over an hour.

Unfortunately, if your delayed train is only 25 minutes late, you can't receive a refund. The "On-Time Performance Guarantee" is only good for trips delays longer than a 1/2 hour. And the T has been very slow to process the claims.

Overall, the T is running at a 9 billion deficit. That's crazy money, huh? To help manage their debt, the MBTA fines the MBCR (the lovely organization that runs the commuter rail) each time commuter rails are delayed. Since July, the MBCR had to pay $782,324 in fines for poor on-time performances. In October and November, about 30% of all commuter rail trains ran late.

Everyone has an excuse. The T has excuses for having such a large deficit. The MBCR is blaming the new Greenbush line and "aging" equipment for train delays. Blah, blah, blah.

Of course, I don't understand why they needed to add the Greenbush line. Residents in Hingham and other South Shore towns were against it and commuters South of Boston already have a wonderful ferry service and they are in driving distance to both the Red Line and other Commuter Rail lines. If you ask me, Greenbush was one big waste of money.

As a Massachusetts tax payer and a commuter who would like to rely on public transportation, I would obviously like to see the deficits go away and the services improve. Please do this without raising my already outrageous monthly commuter pass!