Slight Delays on the P508

The p508 was running about 10 minutes late this morning. I received a T Alert while waiting on the platform at the Grafton stop that the train was going to be delayed 15-20 minutes. It arrived in Grafton at 7:15 AM (just 8 minutes off the scheduled time of 7:09 AM). Due to those schedule changes implemented last year (you know, where the MBTA built time into every schedule to deal with their poor performance) we were "only" 8 minutes late upon arrival at South Station, pulling in at 8:32 AM.

I noticed at article in the Metro this morning that touted improved on time performance stats for the commuter rail. I thought this part of the article was quite telling:

The month of March got off to a rocky start for commuter rail travel after yesterday’s storm dropped up to a foot of snow across the region. However, despite the weather hiccup, MBCR officials say on-time service has significantly improved after a dreadful December and January.

Schedule changes on lines north of Boston and the Fairmount line helped boost overall on time service to 87.8 percent in February, compared with 76.5 percent in January, according to the MBCR.

So, on time performance has improved, not really because the trains are on time, but because schedules were extended across most other commuter rail lines (this happened on the Worcester-Framingham line a year ago) instead of addressing the issues at hand like old equipment and signal issues, the MBTA/MBCR. I can't say I'm surprised though.

MBTA/MBCR Greenbush Commuter Rail Line is Empty

Due to being busy at work, I didn't have time to post an article about the new Greenbush line that ran on the front page of the printed Boston Globe newspaper yesterday.

Why the Globe is writing about the underused Greenbush line instead of all the on-time performance issues plaguing other lines is beyond me. Perhaps the MBTA actually has a stellar staff of PR professionals that are good at pitching stories.

For $513 million, the Greenbush riders get to ride an empty train. How sweet for them! In December the MBTA said there were 1,368 rider. A third of the riders of this line weren't new to mass transit commuting. While the line was built to try to get more cars off of the traffic plagued South Shore highways (like Route 3 and Route 93), the riders seem to be converts who used to take the commuter boats out of Hingham.

Since the T is so fantastic at managing and initiating strategic planning, this didn't surprise me at all:

The line was projected to attract about 4,300 daily commuters within three to five years of opening, but the T says it never estimated how many riders the line would attract before that.

Fantastic!! Shouldn't they have estimated ridership before spending all the time and money trying to build a line no one really wanted in the first place?

The T doesn't want to be held accountable to any "conclusions" about the effectiveness of this line until 2010. Where can I get a job where I can launch a massive project and not be held accountable until 3 years after the projects go-live date?

Ultimately the Greenbush line's performance could impact whether communities like New Bedford and Fall River gain a commuter rail line. Honestly - the T and the state of Massachusetts should have launched a commuter rail line where (1) a line didn't exist before and (2) where the only commuting options really consist of driving a car into Boston.

MBTA/MBCR P508 Inbound Commuter Rail Train 22 Mins. Late Today

My commute this morning can be described in one word: (it) sucked.

I think the P508 inbound train was 1 to 2 cars short, so everyone was jammed on the train.

We were 22 minutes late into South Station (the train's scheduled arrival time is supposed to be 8:24 a.m.; the actual arrival time was 8:46 a.m.). The train was going 10 miles an hour from Wellesley through Newton and into Boston.

So I'm 0 for 1 for a late commute this week. Since it is January 22nd, I cannot imagine that the Worcester-Framingham line will hit its "on time" performance guarantee for January 2008.

All Inbound Morning Rush Hour Commutes are Delayed on the Worcester Line

All morning trains are delayed due to a "roadway" problem. What is that? An accident?

I hate the commuter rail today!

So, the 7:19 a.m. showed up to Grafton at 7:55 a.m.. I was on my way to my car to drive in, but heard the train so booked back to the platform.

All of the doors were shut, so passengers had to open them to board the train. There were no conductors to be seen to either explain the delay or collect passes.

The biggest issue is the fact that NO ONE made any announcements the entire trip, but especially to say the train became a local, so we've stopped at every station, including all of the Newton stops. No doubt the P508 turned into a local train because the P510 was delayed due to the P508 delays.

I am beyond irritated. Sure, I'll get $15.50 back in 6-8 weeks, but really, I just want to get to work on time.

I'm curious about what the "roadway" delayed in. In chatting with friends who drive to work, the Mass Pike, 495 and 128 were all "fine" this morning.

Thank you MBTA and MBCR for such fantastic service!

Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Device