Dukakis, Weld: Connect North and South Stations

By adamg on Wed, 08/19/2015 - 9:48am

The former governors say it's last time to connect the two terminals with a rail link.

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That is true but

By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 1:59pm

How many people need to actually do that? The vast majority of the beneficiaries of this link are people who live north or south of Boston and work in the opposing station area.

Where would a trolley go?

By issacg
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 1:58pm

Are we going to take vehicle travel lanes or are we going to put rails down the middle of the park? As I see it, those are the only options.

There's No Place To Safely Put An At-Grade Rail System

By Elmer
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 1:59pm

These trolleys run at street level

By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 2:06pm

The tracks run down the existing road with lights timed for the trolleys. They share the road with other vehicles. It works really well in Europe. The distance is not that far. At most a mile and a half. A simple shuttle that runs back and forth.

http://www.simplonpc.co.uk/Tram_Dublin/AbbeySt_080...

The shuttle/trams in Rheims...

By Michael Kerpan
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 2:18pm

... were both convenient and cute:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reims_tramway

Ah, European transit.

By issacg
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 2:42pm

Yep, I agree that these seem to work in Europe (my favorite is in Zurich), but in Europe, you have to know more about driving to pass a driving test than what shape the steering wheel is.

Our own local example of shared road trolley track (Huntington Ave.) is not encouraging. Hell, we're coming up to that time of year when a car with piss yellow license plates (replete with driver saying, "what a quaint old city Boston is - look at these old trolley tracks!") drives in front of an oncoming B-line trolley in the semi-separated right of way on Comm. Ave.

Simple solution

By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 4:44pm

Intersection cameras on the route. Instant $100 ticket for blocking the box. Cameras on board that record the view ahead. Again instant tickets for blocking a train. It happens in Europe too. But after a few tickets people get the message.

Why Doesn't That Work On The So-Called BRT Silver Bus Corridor?

By Elmer
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 4:59pm

because

By cybah
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 5:11pm

because it doesn't exist (yet)

A trolley could not carry the

By Baker-Christie 2016
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 1:46pm

A trolley could not carry the present number of people that need to get between north and south station, the silver bus, as inadequate and slow as it is, has been overcrowded for years and there is much more still being built (more capacity would be needed if it was adequate now). Commuter rail trains carry so many people (plus the orange and green at north and Red line at south) a full red line style train at least is needed, from north station to south station through the south boston waterfront. We cant keep doing the cheapest minimal thing that isnt even able to carry current capacity much less when it would open. The current solution, every office tower having thousands of parking spaces, is making the city unworkable. So what is Boston/the state doing? Opening up the bypass road to encourage more drivers, raising T fares, and keeping 93 and the 90 extension to the waterfront toll free.

Huh?

By FredQuimby
Wed, 08/19/2015 - 4:42pm

A trolley could not carry the present number of people that need to get between north and south station

But the current system does?

Interesting.

They sell more than one trolley. They even hook up like regular trains.

Is a North Station-South Station link practical?

By necturus
Sun, 08/23/2015 - 9:10pm

Connecting the two stations really means connecting two new stations underneath the present ones, unless we want to run tracks down the Rose Kennedy Greenway. That means digging a couple miles of tunnels under the present rights-of-way, then tunneling under the Greenway, but on top of the highway tunnel. It might be doable, but is it worth the money? A one seat ride from Fitchburg to Middleborough shouldn't go through Boston at all, it seems to me. As for passengers bound from Portland to points south, is it really so inconvenient to catch the Orange Line to Back Bay?

I do think we need to add somewhat to the state's rail infrastructure, but question whether a North Station-South Station link is more important than, for instance, adding service between Boston and Springfield.