The Herald reports state officials now think extending the Green Line through Somerville might cost upwards of $3 billion - and the federal government has only committed to $1 billion of that, and might take that away if state officials can't figure out how to pay for the rest, which apparently they're have trouble doing.
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Union labor anyone?
By Just a hunch
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 3:57pm
Raises costs and further constrains the market.
Not saying unions are all bad but they DO impact cost in MA.
Your right. In an era when
By MattL
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:54pm
Your right. In an era when unions have been decimated by the right wing, the problem is definitely the unions...
Tell that
By anon
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 5:07pm
To BPS students and the taxpayers of Boston.
Fine, just tell me where you
By MattL
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 10:17pm
Fine, just tell me where you'd like me to show up, anon.
Unions decimated by the right
By anon
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 5:11pm
Unions decimated by the right wing in MA?
What bizzaro world are you living in?
The "bizarro" world of actual
By MattL
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 10:23pm
The "bizarro" world of actual stats instead of rightwing talking points.
Except
By Just a hunch
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 5:11pm
There are still very strong unions in mass and mbta work is required to by union. So-- not sure what you're saying is relevant?
Are you defending public
By anon
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 8:40am
Are you defending public sector unions? Unions seem to be as strong as ever in the Massachusetts state and local government, and in all public construction projects.
I never saw the point of this Green Line extenson
By anon
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:27pm
The T already goes to Somerville at the centrally located Davis, and Sullivan isn't far away either. This thing was ill-conceived from the start.
1912: I never saw the point of this Red Line construction
By Saul
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:40pm
The BERy already goes to Boston at the centrally located Park Street (upper), and North Station isn't far away either. This thing was ill-conceived from the start.
If the Commuter Rail weren't
By anon
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:57pm
If the Commuter Rail weren't so wastefully expensive to run and horribly infrequent, it could provide the same benefits as a Green Line extension at a fraction of the cost.
Diesels operating on either
By KBHer
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 8:08pm
Diesels operating on either the Lowell or Fitchburg aren't good for the stop spacing of rapid transit. The only way the MBTA-CR can come close to mimicking the ridership profile/utility of a light-rail GLX would be for the MBTA to go full xMU on both those lines with the necessary terminal capacity and likely NSRL That obviously isn't happening, it's light rail or nothing.
So buy DMUs.
By anon
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 2:12pm
So buy DMUs.
Why is it obviously not happening? Because it would take time and money? Well, the GLX is taking plenty of those.
What exactly are the current diesels good for?
As far as terminal capacity, I suspect typical operating practices in Europe or Japan would allow the current North and South Station platforms to handle trains every 10 to 15 minutes and then some.
Well no one can snap their
By KBHer
Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:14am
Well no one can snap their fingers and then, poof, Japan-style ops. Takes time.
The DMU market is small, and because it's small, it's expensive. Anything Northside is not going to get a time-separation waiver from the FRA, so we'd have to buy yet more expensive and heavier compliant DMUs. Then you'd have to work them into the schedule, which are NS-destination CR is far more constrained than light rail. You'd probably end up with 15-20 minutes headways compared to 5.
It's not a bad idea, it has major drawbacks so I wouldn't call it a slam dunk, but the real issue here is time. GLX has under-gone all the necessary pre-construction steps, which took over a decade. The MBTA hasn't actually crafted a proper DMU feasibility study - and yet they've been hyping it up - but the study needs to come first, then the maintenance, and general ops considerations, then the procurement procedures, then the negotiations with the Feds about the minutia of certain regulatory waivers the MBTA might want....it's a question of time, GLX, despite the cost overruns, is shovel-ready (and in parts under construction), and will bring far better levels of service.
I'd strongly support more Red
By anon
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 2:14pm
I'd strongly support more Red Line-style lines. Especially if they could be built in the same amount of time as it took in 1912, at the same (inflation-adjusted) price.
Have a look at a map, buddy
By anon
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 7:52am
In what way is Davis centrally located in Somerville? Or is this some "clever" word play, centrally located... if you look at Somerville, Cambridge, Arlington, and Medford combined?
They think that's expensive?
By Neal
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:39pm
Wait until Somerville and Medford sue and the Court orders it to be built (the extension was mandated as Big Dig mitigation). That will be expensive.
Good luck with that
By Markk02474
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 4:52pm
Conservation Law Foundation won the lawsuit forcing the MBTA budget busting expenditures based on pollution projections. Now that there is actual data and pollution is less than before the big dig, they will have a hard case to prove.
Boston's still an air quality
By Nathanael N.
Mon, 08/24/2015 - 9:10pm
Boston's still an air quality nonattainment zone and the Big Dig can be proven to have made air quality worse... other things coincidentally making air quality better are quite irrelevant. The CLF would win easily, *especially* since the State can be proven to have shown bad faith in previous agreements.
Haven't you heard? Fewer people are driving
By Markk02474
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 3:49am
Livable Streets Alliance tweeted out report from new US Census ACS study. Must be true, so Big Dig with fewer cars and less polluting cars today must mean no damages to Somerville residents. Besides, the Big Dig mostly took vehicles off other routes like Rutherford Ave and McGrath Highway and shifted them to I-93 and didn't add any new traffic.
A good muzzle with a filter
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/26/2015 - 2:45am
That will certainly help air quality issues in Arlington.
Fill me in on the history?
By Bob Leponge
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 8:45am
I thought that the obligation to build the transit extensions was already in place, and the CLF lawsuit did not create any new obligation, but merely forced the gummint to honor its existing one?
$3 billion to extend our
By Chris77
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 7:29am
$3 billion to extend our slowest form of local transportation to an area that already has plenty of bus service. As if Somerville, Medford, etc. aren't "developed". Suggestion: add a commuter rail platform at Ball Square.
A large part of that $3 billion
By roadman
Tue, 08/25/2015 - 11:03am
has nothing to do with improving transit service. It's to bulild a fancy community pathway, and to build huge concrete walls to shield the - gasp - evil transit line from the abutters. Eliminate these UNNECESSARY and FRIVILOUS elements of the project, and you can greatly reduce costs.
The pathway is necessary
By SwirlyGrrl
Wed, 08/26/2015 - 2:46am
Shield walls are not - the diesel line already operates there without them.
Nope, the pathway is NOT
By roadman
Wed, 08/26/2015 - 10:27am
necesary to build a transit line.
A big-digging
By anon
Wed, 08/26/2015 - 7:54am
Masschusetts' taxpayers just got big digged again by the state and its contractors. Seriously, did anyone doubt this would happen?
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