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Ten injured when Riverside trolley derails just past Kenmore
By adamg on Mon, 03/10/2014 - 12:39pm
The first car of an outbound Riverside trolley derailed shortly after 12:30 p.m., hitting a tunnel wall.
Boston EMS reports ten people injured.
Three people with injuries were able to walk out of the tunnel near Fenway station; a third was put on a backboard to be carried out by firefighters. The rest were put on the rear trolley, which was disengaged from the front car and backed up to Kenmore station.
Among the injured: The driver of the first car, who was able to walk out through the Fenway tunnel portal.
The derailment happened just after Kenmore Square, where the D Line splits from the C Line.
Service on both the D and C lines was affected.
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Comments
And, once again, the MBTA feels the
need to hide the truth from the public. Consider the alert they just issued:
But hey, you soaked the taxpayers for only a few hundred thousand dollars to "upgrade" a perfectly good alert system that was actually more functional and useful before it was "improved." And it still boggles my mind that management actually believes that officially describing this incident as a "track issue" when the rest of the world is reporting it for what it really is - a derailment - will help with the MBTA's credibility.
well...
There's nothing actually wrong with their alert. Whether it was the fault of the train or the rail is not yet known, so it could very well be an aberration in the track. I agree that the MBTA generally does a poor job informing people of anything really, but this particular one was acceptable.
If there's a tractor trailer rollover
on Interstate 93, do the traffic reporters say "there's a lane closure due to a pavement problem". No , they report it as a truck rollover, even if it is later established that a pavement defect caused the truck to roll over. Not only is it the accurate way to report the facts, but it also tells drivers what to expect in terms of the possible duration of the delays.
You are correct in stating that we don't yet know whether this derailment was caused by the track or the train. However, the fact is that the train derailed. So, what is so wrong in being up front about that? Especially when a "track issue" could easily mean something that's ususally fixed within 20 to 30 minutes. A derailment with multiple injuries, and where the train hit the tunnel wall, isn't going to be cleared for at least two to three hours, if not longer.
The Ⓣ Chooses Their Words Carefully
Theoretically, calling it a "derailment" could possibly be imagined by some passengers as something scarier than a "track problem". For the same reason, when someone commits suicide by jumping in front of a train, the report will say "medical emergency". I imagine an army of lawyers and consultants determined the specific language to be used for various situations, way ahead of time, so nobody has to think about what to say when it happens.
In reality, there is indeed a track problem that caused and/or resulted from the derailment. That's the actual problem that is and will continue to impact service; for all the other trains; even after the derailed train is removed.
Regardless of what the problem is, what passengers really need, is simply an honest estimation of when service will be returned to normal.
How did you make the T thing
How did you make the T thing in your headline?
Ctrl + C => Ctrl + V
Well, at least, that's how I've always done it. But, I think Elmer uses the Unicode code (which I know nothing about how to do that).
On A Mac: Edit -> Special Characters ...
… type "circled" in the search field and you'll find it.
Or, as BostonUrbEx suggests, you can just copy and paste this one: Ⓣ
Unicode U+24C9
Circled Latin Capitol T.
To actually use it if you haven't a sample to cut/paste from, try Ⓣ.
Yes, I understand that it has been a long
accepted practice by both public agencies and the media to not use the word "suicide" in describing such an event. The rationale for this is obvious - to avoid inadvertently encouraging others from trying the same thing. Especially when the "suicide" involves jumping in front of trains or from high bridges
However, the notion that use of the words "derailment" or "accident" by the MBTA in describing such events to the public, especially when the media uses those very same words to describe the same events, will somehow incite a huge panic among their customers (or potential customers) is just another example of how the legal profession is accelerating the decline of average intelligence in this country. It also makes the agency look really really stupid in the eyes of the public and the taxpayers when the local press is reporting a derailment at the same time the MBTA's alerts are stating "track issue", "disabled train", or, as in the past two "update" alerts, giving no reason at all.
Now, I'm not implying the MBTA should immediately release every factor, major or minor, about their inevitable investigation about this derailment to the public as soon as they know it. However, given the number of serious credibility issues the MBTA has in so many other areas, I remain extremely concerned about management's apparent policy to foster even more distrust about the agency among average people by failing to openly acknowledge obvious facts and events that are already out in the public forum.
They are providing enough information
...to allow you to prepare alternatives. What else do you need from the alert?
Special report for roadman......
Due to hydrogen inclusion in one of the railheads causing a derailment, the D line will be out of commission for an estimated delay time of 4.4 to 30.6 hours.
And technically it was a track issue that caused the derailment. They could get that train completely off the tracks, but the trains won't run again until they identify and fix the actual problem. The actual train blocking the tracks is only a small part of the problem.
Special report for Mr. Nice
The train DERAILED, which is how the media and others are reporting this story. Why not just state the obvious to your customers instead of obscuring this established fact in the guise of "track issue" , which can mean anything from a switch not automatically throwing to a broken rail?
Would service be restored any
Would service be restored any faster if the web site alert were more specific? Would the shuttle buses run any more smoothly?
I didn't think so.
Point taken
However, the public might be led to believe that service will be restored faster by stating "disabled train" (to quote the latest alert) than stating "derailment".
And I still maintain (no pun intended) that it does the MBTA's public relations absolutely no good to state "track issue" when everyone knows a train has derailed. Changing the message from "track issue" to "disabled train" in subsequent alerts only serves to make them look even stupider.
Plus, as I noted in a previous post, what is so wrong with the MBTA providing truthful and accurate information?
The alert says train service will not be restored today
Personally, that's all I need to know in the alert itself.
Service wouldn't be restored
Service wouldn't be restored any quicker, but if I saw "disabled train" (which is what it said now), I might reasonably expect service to be restored pretty quickly. OTOH if I knew it was a DERAILED train, which it is, I'd definitely plan for a longer wait. So what's the harm in telling people what's really up?
Roadman
When was the last time you contacted any or every member of the MA House and Senate about the clusterfuck known as the MBTA?
Unless this is "recently", go do so and STFU here.
BTW, Pete, it isn't hydrogen but oxygen addition which causes corrosion.
Right. Because the Legislature
is forcing MBTA management to not accurately inform the public of the immediate reason for a serious delay on the Green Line. And I suppose you also believe the Legislature forced MBTA management to spend the money on the alert system in the first place?
For the record, as a daily MBTA user, I have been in communication with my representative and senator on multiple ocassions concerning the Legislature's inactions regarding resolving the MBTA"s funding issues.
Not corrosion
Embrittlement during manufacturing.
Train undercarriage exposed!
If its upskirting women on the MBTA, then the Legislature acts pronto! A train listing with private parts under its skirts for all to see isn't so much a priority!
This is the alert that I see:
This is the alert that I see:
Is "disabled train" more acceptable to you?
No, it isn't.
Because "disabled train" usually infers a problem that will quickly be fixed. Stating "derailment" leaves little doubt as to the seriousness of the problem, and that there will be significant delays to service. It's also accurately stating the FACTS of the incident.
A bit more informative on Twitter just now
The MBTA twitter account just posted links to where to get busing for the C & D lines with two posts like this:
"#MBTA Green C-Line: Srvc in the area will not be restored today. Buses picking up/dropping off at: [location] [link]".
So at least you can know that you shouldn't expect a fix today anyways.
News copters on their way
Quick, someone hold up a summary of the ways the MBTA is underfunded and mismanaged to block their view of what they hope is grisly footage of victims
I say fire the head of the
I say fire the head of the mbta, too many derailments and crashes in the last 5 years more so than any previous years, passenger lives are at risk,, There was a time long ago when an mbta worker took extreme pride in their work, today they get caught sleeping on the job, today mbta workers are suing the mbta for discrimination, not enough workers comp pay, age descrimination, most of these workers are hacks!! I say if you cant do your job right , give them the sack, and hire someone more competant.
The last 5 years, you say?
So, would you rather fire Grabauskas, Davey, or Scott? Those are the heads of the MBTA over the past 5 years.
Also, complaining about competence while spelling it "competant" is a work of art. You should frame that and put it on your wall.
Sorry Mr Kaz about my
Sorry Mr Kaz about my mispelled word!! I'm a product of the Boston School system during the White and Flynn years,,
So was I...
....and I know how to spell, in English, French, and Latin.
I knew I mispelled the word,
I knew I mispelled the word, before posting.
Misspell
n/t
Right
And that would accomplish ... what???
How about we lay seige to the Statehouse and don't let them drive their cars from the lot until the T is properly funded.
this +forcing all business to
this +forcing all business to be conducted in public view as part of open public record +1 gazillion!
Thank goodness nobody was seriously hurt...
...now let's get this upskirting legislation signed immediately!
Underfunding the T until it
Underfunding the T until it can't run anymore thereby denying upskirters their prime upskirting venue might just be the most effective piece of upskirting legislation imaginable. Too bad about the T though...
Underfunding!
I think you meant, fund mismanagement.
foreshadowing
and here I was thinking that you were going to link to my comment of the other day!
Darn.
Another one bites the dust.
C Line all kinds of messed up
A roving UHub commuter checks in:
And the MBTA: never failing
And the MBTA: never failing to make a big problem even worse.
Just glad that no one was
Just glad that no one was seriously hurt. Will we find out the cause of the derailment (i.e. can it be known)?
I'll Bet It Was A Track Problem
.
My vote is for
excessive speed. "Picking points" (to use the standard railroad term) alone wouldn't cause that type of impact at 6 mph, which is MBTA standard maximum speed to go through interlockings on the Green Line like Beacon Junction (name of the point west of Kenmore Station where the C and D lines merge/diverge).
Cause
Incorrect right turn.
"I was just following the GPS
"I was just following the GPS"