ABP Out for My Wage Works Commuter Rail Pass

My first commute for the month of October was fine this morning. The P508 was on-time to South Station, arriving around 8:24 a.m.

The big commuting news for me . . . I still haven't received my Zone 8 commuter rail pass from Wage Works. The conductors were very understanding this morning. They didn't make people who receive their passes from Wage Works pay an additional fare for today's commute. Maybe they heard that the distribution of passes was delayed. I did walk from South Station to my office, though, as I didn't want to deal with the super huge lines of people trying to buy a Charlie Card to get onto the Silver Line.

Walking to my office, I couldn't get over the fact that it is October 1st and still tropical. I'm tired of the humidity. I wish the weather would just be cool or warm, not the in-between that it is right now.

The whole Wage Works thing is a cluster. I'm not alone in sharing this sentiment - check out the comment made earlier this morning by Sarah. This is the third time that people in my company haven't received their commuter passes at the beginning of the month. A couple of us called yesterday and Wage Works assured us that they sent the passes on September 20th. When I got home last night, the T pass wasn't in my mail. So, one of my coworkers got back on the phone with them. My colleague was then told that an email was sent out around September 20th saying there was a processing error, so the October 2008 passes would be delayed. Again - no one at my firm received this mysterious email. Now Wage Works is telling us that we should have our passes today. I guess I'll just have to wait and see until I get home later this evening.

On the train news front, all is pretty quiet. The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles announced the roll out of a new vehicle inspection program, effective today.

To ensure that vehicles with faulty emissions control systems are identified and repaired more quickly than under the current program, RMV and MassDEP will require model year 1996 and newer passenger cars, trucks and SUVs, as well as 2008 and newer medium-duty vehicles, to undergo annual on-board diagnostic (OBD) emissions testing.

Commissioner Burt said OBD emissions testing will also be introduced for 1997 and newer light-duty diesel vehicles (weighing 8,500 pounds or less) and 2007 and newer medium-duty diesel vehicles (weighing 8,501 to 14,000 pounds). Beginning next April, diesel trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles weighing 10,000 pounds or more but not subject to OBD testing will receive opacity tests that measure the density of the emissions they produce.

Cars, trucks and SUVs manufactured before 1996 - which, at less than 15 percent of the fleet, currently comprise a small and declining share of all vehicles registered in Massachusetts - are either not equipped with on-board computers or not uniformly compatible with the OBD test. These older vehicles will fail their safety tests if inspectors can see smoke coming from their tailpipes. Dynamometer tailpipe testing is ending for these vehicles because their declining numbers do not justify an investment of up to $80,000 per inspection station on required equipment and maintenance.

So, what happens if your vehicle fails this inspection?

As with the current inspection program, a motorist whose private passenger vehicle fails its Massachusetts Vehicle Check OBD emissions test will have 60 days from the initial inspection to get the vehicle repaired and bring it to the same station for a free re-test. When a vehicle is fixed by a state-registered emissions repair technician but fails again, the motorist may qualify for a one-year emissions waiver if repair costs exceed $750, $650 or $550, depending on the age of the vehicle. These financial thresholds will be adjusted annually based on changes in the Consumer Price Index.

Under the new program, a motorist facing major repairs of a private passenger vehicle that fails its emissions test - such as a transmission replacement or an engine overhaul - will also have the option of applying for an economic hardship extension. This will give the motorist a one-time, one-year sticker to continue operating the car, truck or SUV while deciding whether to fix or replace the vehicle.

Where's my Wage Works October Pass?

Tomorrow is October 1st. Yes, you are probably thinking "Train Rider, you are stating the obvious."

So why do I care that tomorrow is October 1st? Other than I love getting and giving Halloween candy on the 31st, I care because no one at my company has received their October 2008 MBTA passes from Wage Works. My company outsources the T pass process to Wage Works. This has happened a few times in the past. In fact, I think the same thing occurred last October. If I remember correctly, most Boston-based commuters (and not just at my firm) were affected. I heard someone asking the conductor about it this morning - if people who receive their passes from Wage Works will have to pay. But I was dozing so I can't honestly remember what the reply was.

Speaking of this morning's commute, it was fine. The P508 train was on-time. We got to South Station at 8:24 a.m.

Looking forward to finally receiving my October 2008 commuter rail pass.

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!

Outbound - Inbound

I took the 6:05 p.m. Boston - Framingham - Worcester outbound train last night. When I arrived at South Station, the 5:30 p.m. train was still sitting there. So while I got to ride home on the normal 6:05 p.m. train, this wasn't a good thing. Instead of the 6:05 p.m. being a normal express train (meaning it doesn't stop at Yawkey, Newtonville, West Newton, Auburndale, Wellesley Farms, Wellesley Hills, Wellesley Square, and Natick), it turned into a local train and stopped at these eight stations. Instead of my commute being a 1-hour train ride, it turned into a 1 hr., 15 min. train ride. Not fun.

The good news about this morning's commute - the conductors collected fares and checked passes. But the train reverted back to only opening a few doors.

I'll be submitting a reimbursement for last night's extra long train ride.