Blah, Blah, Blah

Received this email from the MBTA/MBCR about Monday's delays ...

It's kind of interesting to me that this apology email turns into "the fleet is old, we can't really do anything about it, even though we ordered new cars, it won't really help ..." where is the leadership in this organization that will affect change?

These issues are not new, heck, this blog has been complaining about the MBTA for at least five years and in that time, nothing has really changed except our fares have increased, parking fees have increased, they've changed the schedules to make the run times longer (and to meet their "on time" requirements) ... but delays are still occurring and impacting people's lives.

To all of our Worcester Line Customers,

We realize that many of our customers traveled on both train P508 in the morning and P523 last evening and that a large majority were impacted by, either one of these trains, or at the very least effected by residual delays because of their mechanical failures.

My personal acknowledgement is indeed sincere and we cannot imagine that we could say anything that you would want to hear. Many of you have written in to say that you are aware that the locomotive that broke down on your inbound commute was the same used for the evening return trip home; this is regrettably the truth. While the mechanical department staff repaired the problem that caused the failure in the morning, the evening brought with it a different mechanical issue. Please know that this locomotive has been removed from service and one of the two new locomotives will be added to the train set that leaves this evening as train P523.

This is indeed evidence that the lack of investment in the commuter rail fleet is becoming difficult to overcome with regular maintenance. The winter season certainly took its toll on an already aging fleet of locomotives. While the two new locomotives delivered recently is a positive note it will not have much of an impact on the 483 trains in and out of the city everyday and we welcome the delivery of the five additional locomotives which are enroute from New York; once tested, they will be added to the fleet.

We cannot offer any apology that would justify five additional hours of commuting time in one day; however we do deeply regret the impact that this had on you, your families and your employers.

Members of the MBCR management team will be on the platform in Worcester tomorrow morning, March 2^nd from 5:30am until the departure of train P508 to Boston at 6:55am. Please feel free to speak to us with your comments and concerns.

As always, we thank you for riding the commuter rail.

Sincerely,

Gillian Wood

Chief Customer Service Officer
Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail

Operating the Commuter Rail on behalf of the MBTA

One of the Worst Commutes this Year

What a wake up call! Thought I'd get on the train and go to work like nothing has changed? Thought I'd still be in vacation bliss, all relaxed and happy? Well ... not so much thanks to this morning's commute.

The p508 started off well enough ... until we came to a halt outside of West Natick. Then we were informed that the train in front of us (the p506) broke down and we had the pleasure of pushing them into Boston. So, that would likely result in a delay.

THEN, we had the pleasure of having our lights and AC shut off for 25 minutes while we tried to link up with the train in front of us.

THEN, we got the great news that we would be making all local stops, since, as you know, the p506 was a local whereas we were an express.

FINALLY, we also had to make two stops at Yawkey and Back Bay to let both the front and back train people off.

I don't think my butt has ever been so sore from sitting in one position for about three hours straight.

I think I might go back to driving!

More MBCR Mail

I guess this post is kind of moot since the delay was a week ago (and luckily I had driven in that day) ...

To All of our Worcester Line Customers

We would like to extend our apologies for the delays some of you experienced the morning of June 14th. There was a mechanical failure on train P508 at Framingham that unfortunately resulted in delays to subsequent service during the morning peak hours of operation today.
The on-board crew worked with our remote technicians but was unable to fully resolve the problem, requiring the train to travel at reduced speed. Upon arrival at South Station this train set was sent to the yard for immediate repairs. Again, we apologize for any delay or discomfort you may have experienced today.

Thank you for riding commuter rail.
Customer ServiceMassachusetts Bay Commuter Rail
Operating the Commuter Rail on behalf of the MBTA

Flooded Tracks and Speed Restrictions

Due to the massive rain storms and floods over the past few days, the Worcester/Framingham line has a 40 MPH speed restriction on the tracks, resulting in delays across the entire line, in addition to the subway.

On the commuter rail, the weather impacted yesterday's morning and evening commutes, as well as this morning's commute. In fact, when I got on the train this morning at 7:09, it was actually the P506, which is the local train. So we made all stops on the way into Boston and finally arrived at 8:45 AM. Not sure how much longer the speed restrictions will be in effect.

On the Lowell line, the Wilmington station was flooded, causing the closure of that station and delays on that line. All other lines were experiencing 15-20 minute delays.

On the T, there was a large sinkhole between the Chestnut Hill and Newton Center stations which shut down the Green Line's D train. Buses replaced the train service on the Green Line, as repairs are expected to take a few days. Flooding was also a concern at Park Street, among other stations.

The P508 was Late ... I Assume

This morning was quite an adventure. While standing at the Grafton T stop, I got a T Alert saying that the p508 which usually departs Grafton at 7:09 AM was delayed by 1/2 hour. A few minutes later, a train arrives, so we all board and we head into Boston.

Not until we're in Framingham do we hear that the train is actually the P506, which is running on the p508 schedule ... but making all stops to Boston. So really, it wasn't on the p508 schedule at all, because the p508 doesn't stop after Natick. Semantics! We arrived at South Station at about 8:40. I definitely submitted for reimbursement today.

I'm not sure what's been going on at night lately, but the P529 (the 6:15 PM departure from South Station) has been all single cars this week, which results in us being jammed into the train like sardines.

Hopefully this isn't a sign of bad commutes to come!

Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa

A few days of bad commutes means the arrival of MBCR Rail Mail with their apologies

==========================================================

To All of Our Worcester Line Customers

Please accept our sincere apologies for the delays you have experienced this week on the commuter rail system.

We are aware that the reasons for these delays to your commute are of little importance when you simply want to reach your destination on time. We fully understand that what you are looking for is the restoration of reliable, on-time service.

Our plan to make this happen will include providing additional resources at Worcester to monitor and assist with mechanical reliability, and increasing management focus on each cause of delay for the foreseeable future. As always, we have reviewed each delay incident with our operating staff to identify ways we can reduce passenger impact for similar incidents in the future.

Please be assured that we will continue to work to restore the service to a level of reliability that meets your expectations. Thank you for the opportunity to provide you with this explanation and apology. As always, thank you for riding the commuter rail.

========================================================

You know, I mentioned this last year around this time ... that there should be some staff either on site or on call in the Worcester area so when mechanical issues occur, we don't need to wait and wait until help arrives in order to even start working on the situation.

Switch Problems Wreak Havoc on the Worcester/Framingham Trains

Another morning, another 45+ minute delay on the Worcester line this morning. I got to the Grafton station at 7:03 and saw groups of fellow riders milling around by the pay boxes. They were all discussing the delays, it seems the p504 (departs Worcester at 6:05) was delayed over an hour and the p506 (departs Worcester at 6:30) was delayed over 45 minutes.

I looked on the MBTA website from my blackberry and it looked like the p502 had been cancelled and suggested that passengers seek alternate arrangements for transportation. The service alert attributed the delays to switch problems in Worcester.

At around 7:20 a train rolled into Grafton. As I went to get on the train, I asked the conductor if it was the p504 and he barked back at me "It's a LOCAL!" Um, thanks for the great customer service!

After Framingham, one of the conductors announced that our train was actually the p506, which is supposed to get to Boston at 8:11 AM. It was a local, making every stop all the way into the city, and we finally arrived at South Station at about 8:55.

One of my co-workers asked me if i thought the new MDOT agency taking over has anything to do with these delays. I can't imagine why that would be the case, but really, out of 5 commutes this week, 3 of them have been delayed by more than 1/2 hour. It's not even winter yet! I shudder to think what will happen if this is just the beginning.

Another Crappy Commute

Tonight's ride home on the p529 was delayed for upwards of 1/2 hour as we sat outside of Yawkey station due to a "police action" somewhere along the tracks. Both inbound and outbound trains were affected by the delay. So, out of four commutes this month so far, two of them have resulted in delays of 1/2 hour or more and thus, reimbursement requests.

Hope this isn't a sign of things to come!

Delays on the P508 and the PTIS

Not sure if the leaves are still wreaking havoc on the tracks or what, but we were about 10 minutes behind schedule this morning, arriving to South Station at 8:33 AM. At least this was somewhat "normal," as opposed to yesterday's awful commute.

I received some Rail Mail over the weekend touting the new Passenger Train Information System (PTIS). Funny, when I first read it, I thought it was called PITS. Here is the crux of the email:

The MBTA is pleased to announce that testing is in the final stages for the new PTIS (Passenger Train Information System). This upgrade will enable us to provide our passengers with real-time information generated directly from the train. Passengers will soon see train arrival information on electronic station signs ("Next train arriving in 10 minutes"). The system will also offer automated "next station stop" announcements on board the trains. Some of you may have experienced the new system during this testing phase and we ask for your patience while this necessary part of the process takes place. During this time there may be occasions when the electronic station signs could appear to be out of service. You might also experience testing of the on board announcement system, which could be misleading (naming stations that are not on that route). Please ask your conductor if an announcement is confusing. The PTIS technology will be introduced in phases beginning with the Greenbush and Old Colony lines. We anticipate that the system will be implemented on these lines by year’s end with a system wide roll out to follow. We thank you in advance for your patience while we make these enhancements. Thank you for riding the commuter rail.

My favorite thing about the email was "please ask your conductor if an announcement is confusing ..." yeah, because they're always so forthcoming with information! Regardless, it's sure to be an interesting roll out.

Not A Great Way to Start the Month ...

This morning's commute had to be in the top 10 worst of all time. I knew we were in trouble when I got to the Grafton train station and after paying my parking fee, noticed there weren't a lot of people on the platform. I took that as a sign of ominous things to come ... and I was right, because then the automated sign said that the p504 had been cancelled and all other trains were operating about 10-15 minutes behind schedule. The interesting thing, Commuter Alerts on the MBTA website said something completely different, that the delays were upwards of 30 minutes.

When the p508 finally arrived at about 7:30, it was pushing another train ahead of it. We traveled quite slowly through Westborough and Southborough, then spent about 20 minutes at the Southborough stop due to mechanical issues. We crawled along to Boston ... luckily, we were still an express, although for some reason the train stopped at Yawkey. We finally arrived at 9:45 this morning ... about 1 1/2 hours later than usual. Finally got to work around 10:00. Thank goodness my manager understands about the delays!

I talked to colleagues at work and they had similar issues on the Fitchburg line as well ... apparently the tracks were icy this morning and the trains had problems braking. Not a banner day on the rails.

Delays on a Monday

More RailMail from the MBCR today ... but this wasn't good news, just an explanation for the lengthy delays this morning.

To Our Worcester Line Customers;

We would like to begin by apologizing for the very lengthy delays experienced by our Worcester line customers this morning.

Train P502 experienced a mechanical failure when departing the Worcester station this morning. In the interim, it was determined that train P504’s equipment would be brought into the station, tie on to train P502 making a double draft and proceed into Boston making all stops. However, when this attempt was made it became clear that that there was a CSX switching problem that prevented any trains from leaving the facility. We then had to wait for CSX maintainers to come to Worcester to restore the signal. The MBCR mechanical staff had by this time made the necessary repairs to the disabled first train (P502) and it was sent on its way making all stops. Quite naturally, this cascaded into multiple delays throughout the morning commute.

We realize that this made many passengers late for the start of their work day and wanted to take this opportunity to both apologize and provide you with an explanation for this morning’s events.

We thank you for your patience and thank you for riding the commuter rail.

Customer Service Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail


My question is ... why is there not a mechanical crew out near Worcester? From the email, seems like they had to travel to get there?

Wednesday Delays

There were delays across the Framingham/Worcester line this morning due to police action at the Framingham station. This ended up delaying all of the morning trains. The P508 arrived in Grafton on time at 7:09, but we didn't pull into South Station until around 8:55, about 30 minutes behind schedule.

All is quiet on the news front ... for now.

Snowed In

I'm grateful that my firm allows me to work from home on days like today. I hadn't been plowed out by around 7:00 AM this morning, so getting from my house to the Grafton train station would have been an ordeal.

I checked in with the T this morning and there were delays on the Worcester/Framingham line. I'm sure it's as difficult for the trains to plow through the snow on the tracks as it is for cars to deal with snow.

I hope everyone has safe travels today.

Being Punctual Matters to MBTA/MBCR Commuter Rail Riders

Hello Train Riders! Both Train Rider and I have had a busy week this week. But we do not have any complaints about being busy - we're both happy to be employed. Plus, keeping busy means you can stay warm. It is brisk out there, huh? It was 5F while I was driving to the gym this morning and a balmy 8F on my way to work.

WBZ's "Conversation Nation" started a thread this morning about commuter rail punctuality. This thread was started based on an article in today's The Boston Globe about how late arriving trains could actually cause a decrease in ridership.

This is a topic, unfortunately, that Train Stopping is all too familiar with.

The Globe's article includes this stunning chart that compares on-time averages across all the commuter rail lines in 2007 versus 2008. Think about this:

• January 2007 - 93.0% on time
  
• January 2008 - 77.4% on time
• January 2009 - 76.7%

Those are not numbers that help commuters. Many of the people interviewed in The Globe's article indicated that they would prefer to ride the train for both financial, personal and environmental reasons, but they can't rely on it and need to drive themselves to work.

Over the past six months, during a time when the MBTA was trying to show new riders the wonders of mass transportation, one in five commuter trains arrived at least five minutes late, and many were much later. In December and January, the problem worsened - in part due to weather, maintenance problems, and track construction - with nearly a quarter of the trains failing to arrive within the five-minute window.

One in five trains are at least five minutes late!!

MBTA GM Dan Grabauskas, in his great fashion, of course places the blame for the on-time performance on factors ranging from the weather to the MBCR. This is Dan's way, huh?

The MBCR notes that the old equipment is owned by the MBTA and that the MBCR is considering purchasing their own used locomotives because the T hasn't bought any new ones.

The article also acknowledges that some lines are worse than other lines.

The Eagle-Tribune also wrote an article about this winter's train woes. This article focuses on the Haverhill line and the ungodly commutes that people have endured.

Well, maybe if the T managed their budget better, they would have some more resources to run the trains properly. Yesterday's Globe ran a front-page article on how different state agencies, including the MBTA, hire outside lobbyists. The T spent $48,000 on lobbyists last year alone. Governor Patrick has said that state agencies can no longer use lobbyists.

Finally, more on the Green Line extension.

Grafton's Sir Loin's Catering Inauguration Day Treat for Commuters

Happy Inauguration Day. Regardless of your political beliefs, I hope you are amazed that the United States has this wonderful tradition of peaceful transitions.

To many people, today feels very celebratory. Grafton Station commuters were greeted with free hot chocolate handed out by Sir Loin's Catering. Thanks Jeff for this wonderful morning treat.

Even better - the P508 was on time today. We were at South Station around 8:20 am.

I heard a lot of grumbling on the train this morning about the commute yesterday morning. At least for the Worcester-Framingham line, it sounds like switching / maintenance problems caused a lot of the morning trains to be late. This article from today's Boston Globe noted that yesterday all the commuter rail lines, except for the Greenbush and the Middleborough-Lakeville lines, experienced delays ranging from 10 minutes to 40 minutes. The delays were "weather related."

Today's Patriot Ledger ran an article about how AIM Parking Management has filed a lawsuit against the MBTA's parking lot increase. So why would a parking management company care if the T raised the parking rates? Because they have more work to do, but aren't being compensated for it. How can their be more work? Because commuters are paying the increased rate either with more dollar bills or more coins AIM contends that they need more employees to process the parking fees. Also, the MBTA didn't notify AIM that the parking increase was going to go into effect until October 16th. On October 29th, the T told AIM AIM told the T "that the fee increase would essentially cause customers to deposit twice as many dollar bills and coins at the lots."

Good planning, huh?

Finally, today's Hartford Courant contained an interview with the state of Connecticut's DOT Commissioner Joseph Marie. Originally from Boston, Marie is a proponent of commuter rail systems.

Train Rider is Back

Hello Train Riders!

My apologies for being offline for a few days. I had to drive to work on Friday, which proved to be fortuitous as I ended up going home early because I was sick. You will never believe this - I got sick from the E. coli bacteria in my town's water. It sure wasn't a fun way to spend the weekend.

Due to some post-work commitments, I also drove in this morning. Just think - supposedly by Friday we'll think that today's balmy temps are like a heat wave.

I did take the P508 to work yesterday. The train was on time - we arrived at South Station around 8:21 a.m. I noticed last night that the old train signs in South Station are gone. I wonder if anyone ever bought them on eBay? The new board with departure times is in its place. I'll miss the sound of the time changing - there is something very nostalgic about the clicking noise.

Commute-a-holic has been tied up with projects at work and thus unable to post articles. Here are some of the transportation related things in the news:

Before I get into the news round-up, can I just say that I'm thrilled that Jim Rice has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Woo-hoo!!

Two articles in today's Boston Metro: one about the continued increase in T ridership and the other about how parking revenue is up, even though the number of cars parked is down. AJ's comment about parking from last Friday was very observant. Here's a snippet of it:

Speaking only for the Grafton lot, the parking fare increase has definitely effected the amount of people who park their cars in the lot. Not necessarily ridership, but people who use the lot.

Almost three years ago, I regularly parked in the 2nd isle for the P508 train. As winter takes away a good number of spots, I move back to the 4th isle. This past spring, as gas prices rose, my regular spot stayed in the 4th isle. The summer saw a move back to the 6th. This was unprecedented! The week that parking fares rose, I was back to the 2nd isle. After that, I could actually find spots in the 1st isle as well.

AJ also explained why he is now not parking at the Grafton lot.

Progressive Railroading also reported on the T's increase in riders.

Today's Boston Herald reported that the Governor is serious about gas hikes as an alternative to Mass Pike toll hikes. Stop the Pike Hike is still actively campaigning and protesting toll hikes.

A press release posted on Saturday to TradingMarkets.com focuses on tonight's meeting to discuss environmental issues related to a project on the Fitchburg commuter rail line.

According to Sunday's Boston Globe, the Worcester line is not the only commuter rail line that has massive delays. The Fairmont line is also plagued by issues. Sunday's "Starts and Stops" column also reported on the Green Line extension, how much revenue the T is losing because the Pats didn't make it to post-season play, and that the Pike is now going to keep the West Newton entrance open (instead of closing it to test the traffic flow). Finally, there was an article about how the Pike may need to repay UBS $400 million due to a risky investment that went south.

Friday afternoon's Worcester line commuter rail delays were due, unfortunately, to a death on the tracks.

Where was the P504 Today?

Train Rider is back. I did ask Santa to make sure that the MBTA/MBCR commuter rail performs with a 95% on-time performance. That's all I wanted for Christmas. Too bad Santa didn't listen to me. Today was another fine Monday.

I had a very early meeting this morning. So, instead of taking the P508, I attempted to take the P504. Guess what - the P504, which departs Grafton at 6:19 a.m., was cancelled this morning. I have no idea why the train wasn't running - it seems par for the course on Monday's. Has the MBTA/MBCR been able to make sure the Monday morning trains on the Worcester line actually run when they are supposed to? It wasn't snowing this morning. It wasn't freezing cold. Monday's happen - so where was the train?

Based on feedback shared by one of my coworkers, I do believe the P508 ran on schedule today.

Total bummer about the Pats, huh? That's what we get for counting on the Jets. Stupid Jets. Stupid Brett Favre.

See if You Can Locate Worcester Line MBTA Commuter Rail Holiday Schedule

Talk about a bad way to communicate. The MBTA's Holiday Schedule was released last Thursday. I have a MS in Mass Communication and I can't, for the life of me, figure out the "special" Worcester line schedule on Wednesday. Here's the lead paragraph:

The MBTA today announced its service schedule for the upcoming holiday period. To accommodate customers traveling to and from Logan Airport, Silver Line service will be enhanced on Thursday, December 18, Friday, December 19, and Monday, December 22. Logan-bound Silver Line vehicles will depart from South Station every eight (8) minutes between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. each day. The one-way fare with a CharlieCard is just $1.70. In addition, schedule adjustments to Worcester Commuter Rail service will be made to accommodate customers departing Boston early on Wednesday, December 24.

When you go to read about the Commuter Rail, you just find this:

Commuter Rail
Commuter rail trains will operate on a normal weekday schedule.

Hmm. I wonder how many people it took to approve this press release?

If anyone has any idea what the Wednesday commuter rail schedule for the Worcester line is, please feel free to email either worctrainrider AT gmail.com or commuteaholic AT gmail.com.

Maybe the Worcester line is just the MBTA's/MBCR's "B*tch" (for lack of a better term). It was not a good morning on the Worcester line (or, really, anywhere else on the MBTA for that matter). Anonymous at 1:35 PM wrote the following in a "Reimbursement Request" about commuting on the P504 today.

Subject: I've really had it with you guys

Today's commute was a nightmare. I was willing to give you guys a little slack on account of the weather and the upcoming holidays.

However several things happened that I think were inexcusable:

• you didn't notify passengers about a 20 minute delay (to start, we ended up being almost an hour late at South Station) until the train was already ten minutes late. If we had known we could have been waiting in our cars or at home.
• when the train actually did arrive 25 minutes late it was smaller than usual - 6 singles rather than the usual 5 doubles, and because it arrived at the regularly scheduled time for the P506 that meant less equipment for twice the volume of people.
• you blame the overall problem on CSX. I'm sorry but that just doesn't fly. It doesn't explain why you sent us inadequate equipment for the P504. And with the storm over yesterday evening you had plenty of time to make sure things were ready for the Monday commute. CSX's role is irrelevant. You are responsible for our safe and reliable service.
• There was inadequate snow removal at Framingham. There was no way to get from the parking lot to the train without trudging through a foot of snow.

This all comes in the wake of major delays over the past two weeks, and a 20% back-door fare hike via the additional $2 a day on parking ostensibly to avoid having to "reduce service," though frankly this is happening anyways. Your system is broken.

You have to fix this. As fuel and environment issues are on the rise public transportation is a key issue in the coming years.

Thank you.

Meanwhile, Sarah J had this to say:

Today's commute was an absolute NIGHTMARE!!

1. Missed my usual P502 train out of Worcester due to poor plowing. Didn't it stop snowing at 9:00 last night? Way to go city of Worcester.
2. Went to park in my usual parking lot but the box for the money was missing. All that was left of it was it's metal legs.
3. Drove to a different lot that was completely covered in snow (bonus because I didn't have to pay the fee since I couldn't see the number).
4. Received text from my brother who was on the P502 out of Worcester. Said I didn't miss much because it became a local. Also, they were just inching along most of the way.
5. Asked conductor about the P502 being a local. Response, "I don't know. The local must have broken down. We're working on getting out of here on time. I'll let you know".
6. Still sitting at Union Station at 6:10AM, making us 5 minutes late already.
7. Announcement that our breaks aren't working properly. "We apologize for the delay."
8. Finally leave at around 6:17AM.
9. Inch along.
10. Start going backwards. The train passed the Westborough stop and had to back up.
11. At the Natick stop, people were packing themselves in like sardines. All cars were single level.
12. Waited a long time at each stop to pack more people in.
13. At the Newton stop people were denied boarding because there wasn't enough room.
14. The P504 finally reaches South Station approximately 20-25 minutes after the P502 train.
15. Get another coffee because it's already a hell of a day.
16. Sister-in-law calls the city of Worcester about the parking lot missing it's pay box and no one believes her.
17. I call the city of Worcester about the pay box at 10:00AM, left a message and still haven't heard back. great.
    

Love,
A Disgruntled Worcester/Framingham Line Commuter.

Tomorrow is Festivus. May all commuters, but especially the embattled Worcester line commuters, have good commutes. If you feel the need, you could always air your MBTA/MBCR commuter horror stories here at "The Airing of Grievances."

Winter in New England and the Train Blame Game

I am so happy that common sense dictated that I not stand around in the freezing cold waiting for today's P508 train. Which was delayed. Yes - that's right - for the third Monday morning in a row, the Worcester-Framingham commuter rail line was an absolute mess. Check out the comments made by Train Stopping readers.

• Framingham Rider said that the P500 (which departs Worcester at 4:45 a.m.) was canceled. This caused the P502 to be changed to a local. A pretty smooth commute until they hit Allston.
• Anonymous at 10:34 AM wrote about the P508.
• Richard, who normally takes the P508 out of Worcester at 6:55 a.m., isn't sure if he took the P508 or the P512, since the train he was on left Worcester at 7:35 a.m. At least Worcester riders can wait in Union station - waiting 40-odd minutes in the cold for the train on the concrete platforms is harsh. Richard said this, noting that the morning commutes have been particularly bad:

"As much as I'm angry at the MBTA, their website stated that the delays were due to CSX not clearing the switches. The snow stopped last night. Can't switches be cleared by the morning commute. We live in a snowy climate and these things should be taken care of. It was an upsetting commute and coming on top of all the other bad ones during December, this doesn't bode well for the MBTA."

• Anonymous at 11:15 AM was also on the P508, which was really the P506. Anonymous' comments are very similar to Richard's

"What I found irksome about this morning's commute is that this storm, and the snow and ice, was not a surprise. It wasn't a go to bed with clear skies and wake up to snow and a messy commute. It's been snowing for 3 days. Everyone at the MBTA/MBCR should have known what the track conditions would be like and should have been out there at 3am, not 4:30am, digging out the switches. They knew what the situation was before the last train run last night."

• Anonymous at 12:10 PM was on the P502 and noted "I want to know which part of the weather forecast the T and CSX didn't understand? If the first train is supposed to leave at 4:45 am then parking lots should be plowed and trains should be ready to move. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this stuff out. The T and CSX need to learn to work together and stop putting riders in the middle of their tug of war."

The mess this morning on the Worcester-Framingham line even impacted outbound commuters. AlisonD Tweeted about this morning's events, which Universal Hub picked up. If you're using Twitter, there is a whole section dedicated to the MBTA. Use #mbtasux in your Tweets and they'll be tracked on the MBTA Sucks Twitter round-up page. This page is organized by MBTA subway line. Perhaps they'll end up adding a section just for MBTA/MBCR Commuter rail riders.

Posted last Thursday, the T has their Guide to WinterTime Travel On The T press release up. I'm sure Dan and his crack team will either blame CSX or the MBCR for this one. Yes, it is probably CSX's fault - I mean - who the heck doesn't clean the switches after a snow storm? Sure, it snowed this weekend, but it stopped snowing in the Worcester area last night. So there was at least 8 hours to clean the tracks. But shouldn't the MBTA be providing some oversight? They seem to be able to step in and take the credit when ridership is up.

This is absolutely unacceptable. Lt Governor Tim Murray - if you care so much about the Worcester area and about mass transit, you need to step in and fix this. Three delayed Mondays is not acceptable. Multiple delays are not acceptable.

Outside of the Worcester line, Boston.com reported on an incident in Abington this morning. Tales from the Commute (another commuter-related blog we just found), also reported on this.

I guess it could be worse. We could have been stuck on this Amtrak train over the weekend.

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.