Michael Kritz posts photos of a C trolley driver with a couple of kids right up there with him:
... This guy's kid was at the controls. Pressing buttons. You see that big, round, red button? That's the emergency stop button. This kid's hand was three inches from it. To me, that's at least as distracting as a text message. And the green line has a history of deadly accidents. ...
The Herald reports T officials are not amused.
Free tagging:
Like the job UHub is doing? Consider a contribution. Thanks!
Ad:
Comments
An engineer once let me drive a commuter train
By Ron Newman
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 9:10am
Many years ago, an engineer on a Lowell Line commuter train noticed me intently looking in on the control cab, and he let me in and showed me how to drive it and how to bring it to a stop at a station. This was probably a very bad idea, but nothing bad happened to the train, to him. or to me.
This was long before the age of digital cameras and blogs. I'd hate to think I could have gotten the nice engineer fired because he was showing a railfan how he does his job.
What's our vector, Victor?
By Jiffywoob
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 9:16am
T Driver: Joey, you ever been in a Green Line cockpit before?
Joey: No sir, I've never been on the T before.
T Driver: You ever been in a Turkish prison?
*pause*
T Driver: Joey, have you ever seen a grown man naked?
Self-Righteous BS
By Pawtucket Pat
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 9:21am
The guy who took those pictures is a gigantic, self-righteous douchebag with too much time on his hands. For God's sake, it was a holiday! This guy was just trying to get a little quality time with his kid in, and now he's probably going to lose his job because this jackass wanted to feel like a credit to the community. I hope he loses his job for something stupid, too.
Are you kidding me?!
By BostonMatt
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 10:11am
The guy can have all the quality time he wants on his own time. He was endagering everyone on that train when he decided that the rules didn't apply to him. I suppose the cell phone conversation he had while operating the train (the one he got suspended for) was okay with you, too. As far as it being a holdiay, I don't think that means the operator needs to pay any less attention to his job.
Gigantic, self-righteous...?
By Jay Levitt
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:15am
As I wrote on the OP's blog, I'm trying to come up with a scenario where all three of the following are true simultaneously:
1. The driver was doing nothing wrong, as any layperson can plainly see in these photos.
2. The driver will be fired because of these photos.
3. #2 is Michael's fault.
Pawtucket Pay, maybe you can explain?
I guess he got in trouble
By ShadyMilkMan
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 9:51am
I guess he got in trouble for using a cell phone earlier...
Maybe it was wrong to have the kids up there with him, but I think the blogger is a jerk for turning him in like that. I remember spending time at my fathers job and my mothers job when I was a kid and I was well behaved and didnt cause any problems. So he makes 60,000 a year and has a pension, I dont understand why people always make a big deal about these salaries, thats not a whole heck of a lot of money. Were also supposed to be upset he has a pension? I wonder how much the blogger will be making when he is this guys age, and I wonder if the blogger has to work holidays with uppity people all day. Why dont you go knock over some old ladies at the senior center when your done going after MBTA employees for having the audacity to inject a little bit of real world education into their kids lives.
Hold on a minute here ...
By SwirlyGrrl
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 10:00am
I don't mind if T drivers have their kids up front, even though that is very likely against very clearly stated rules. I've noticed a number of kids up front of commuter rail and T trains with mom and dad over the years. I suspect that my husband got to ride shotgun back when his dad drove for the T, too.
I do, however, object strenuously to KIDS DRIVING THE TRAIN!
Anybody who puts children at the controls of a moving vehicle with passengers aboard lacks both professional and parenting judgement. Period. They are putting the kids at risk and the entire train at risk. There is simply no excuse for it.
Not to mention that this little stunt likely violates any number of federal and state laws, work rules, etc.
It doesnt sound like we have
By ShadyMilkMan
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 10:07am
It doesnt sound like we have proof the kid was driving the train, the blogger said he pushed a button and he was "near" another button. We dont even know if the kid really touched a button, the blogger didnt seem to have decent vantage points with his pictures. At no point does it look like, even in this guys picture , the guy is away from the controls, that the kid is in the drivers seat, or that the kid is doing anything more then just kind of standing there, maybe pressing an inconsequential button.
it doesn't matter
By Brett
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:46am
“In this case, clearly, with two children right next to him, that’s a distraction, and that would prevent him from giving the operation of the trolley his full attention,” he said.
That sums up why your comments are completely irrelevant.
Children have such poor judgment that they are not legally capable of making their own decisions until they're over 18.
I'm guessing the cars have interlocks (you can hear them when the train comes to a stop), but what if it were possible to open the doors while the train was moving? What if he reached over and hit the throttle while the train was stopped at an intersection and hit a couple of cars?
"what if it were possible to
By pierce
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 6:06pm
"what if it were possible to open the doors while the train was moving?"
and what if the kid had laser vision and one false glance could light the train on fire?
Since neither one is possible, I guess there is no point asking the question.
bad judgment, good heart
By Anonymous
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:33am
Distractions cause accidents. I'm all for "bring your kids to work day". The driver should know better than to entertain kids even if the kids love being there while he drives.
kids driving streetcars in the 70's
By bostnkid
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:39am
all our dads worked for the T. every christmas the greenline would have a party on the greenline. they would just drive a train around all afternoon with no stops, just T guys and their families.everyone was drinking beer and they always let us kids get behind the controls for some drive time. werent the 70's great?
The 60's were even better
By adamg
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:47am
Seatbelts that nobody ever used. Kids always rode in the front seat (anybody else have a father who'd use the arm technique when he had to slam on the brakes?). Checker cabs with these little jump seats that were always the highlight of any ride with our uncle (who drove one). Bicycle helmets? Hah!
Yes, most of us survived. But that's still not a good enough reason to ignore today's safety standards.
frank costanza's move
By bostnkid
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:58am
adam, your father stole the slam on the brakes/arm technique from frank costanza.that was his move.
Hah!
By adamg
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 12:10pm
My father's actually friends with Estelle Harris, the woman who played Estelle Costanza, so maybe you're onto something there. ...
Jumpseats!
By Suldog
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 12:15pm
I recall them with great fondness. It was always the highlight of a cab ride from my grandparent's place in Roslindale back to Dorchester.
(We weren't proto-yuppies. We took the el over. It was just considered worth the cost to be safer on the return trip at night.)
Always wanted to own a Checker Marathon as my personal ride. Sadly, they stopped producing them many years back.
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
What an ass
By Kaz
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 10:00am
Michael Critz isn't an ass for reporting the driver.
He's not even an ass for putting the pictures on his own blog.
He's an ass because he then felt the need to post the pictures and story all over the internet. This got attention because it was posted on Craigslist. He went out of his way to make as big of a scene as possible on the internet about this.
That's why he's an ass.
Exactly (What an Ass)
By catman
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:25am
He is an ass because he decided to slander the guy publicly. He could have sent the photos and identifying information directly and only to the MBTA instead of posting photos (especially of the guys children) all over the web.
Naw
By dmcboston
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 6:33pm
He's an a$$ because someone else's kids had more fun than his. Or him, for that matter.
Sending stuff to the MBTA
By SwirlyGrrl
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 6:59pm
It doesn't do any good unless it gets turned into media circus.
Nah
By Gregory
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 11:14pm
it's citizen journalism
ass status: CONFIRMED
By Spatch
Mon, 09/29/2008 - 4:15pm
He went out of his way to make as big of a scene as possible on the internet about this.
Exactly. The phrase "I've decided this guy needs to be fired" is the clincher. Whistleblowing is one thing ("Hey guys, this T driver's kids were hanging out in the cockpit with him, take a look") but with "I've decided", Critz's head suddenly grows three sizes. Look out, world! Here comes Michael Critz, the sole arbiter of who works and who doesn't! His proving ground is the Internet and his word is law!
Meh.
Ain't nobody coming out of this one smellin like roses. Not the driver, not the picture taker, not the MBTA, nobody.
Not that it matters but...
By Pete Nice
Fri, 09/26/2008 - 6:45pm
was he the conductor in the lead train? Or was he in one of the rear trains where all he is responsible for is opening and closing doors.
edit::: I just saw the photos and he was the lead driver.
*Update* returns to
By ShadyMilkMan
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 9:43am
*Update*
Jerkface blogger gets MBTA Trolley Driver fired, returns to drinking latte with smug look on his face.
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/17583766/deta...
The kid was ringing the
By Spatch
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 10:54am
The kid was ringing the bell. Aw, geez. The kid just wanted to ring the bell. How far we've come.
1958
KID: Daddy! Daddy! Can I ring the bell?
DRIVER: Sure thing, buddy, just pull that cord over there.
KID: Yay! I rang the bell!
PASSENGERS: Awww.
2008
KID: Daddy! Daddy! Can I ring the bell?
DRIVER: Sure thing, buddy, you just gotta push that button. Here, I'll show you which one.
KID: Yay! I rang the bell!
PASSENGER: OH MY GOD THAT KID IS TOUCHING A BUTTON THAT'S PRECARIOUSLY CLOSE TO THE 'EMERGENCY STOP' BUTTON WHAT IF HE DID THAT WHAT IF HE PUSHED THE 'MAKE THE TROLLEY BLOW UP' BUTTON INSTEAD OR IF HE PUSHED THE 'MAKE THE RED SOX LOSE' BUTTON OR WHAT IF A BLACK CAT CROSSED OUR PATH JUST AS THE KID HIT THE BELL I'M SO TAKIN PICTURES OF THIS AND PUTTING THEM UP ON THE INTERNET, GO ME, I'M THE BESTEST BLOGGER IN BLOGTOWN
Funny, but...
By liveinvt
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 10:59am
Whether or not the passenger is a dickhead shouldn't affect the severity of the employee's actions.
While they do not seem strikingly severe, they were certainly a violation of some safety measure.
No comment on whether or not he deserved to be fired, but some consequence was probably due.
Why he was fired
By Kaz
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:20am
He was fired because the MBTA can't figure out what went wrong on the D line. He was fired because the driver of a train in CA was texting and people died. This is totally asinine.
Exactly, gotta throw someone
By ShadyMilkMan
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:28am
Exactly, gotta throw someone under the bus! Those are words ou especially dont want to hear when you work for an organization that has hundreds of buses!
How often do people at the T get fired?
By Michael
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:37am
With all the deadwood in the MBTA, I've gotta believe they had pretty good reason (i.e., he'd already been suspended) to can this guy.
As a daily T rider who likes the idea of drivers driving undistracted, it's hard for me to feel a lot of sympathy here.
BINGO!
By Suldog
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:26am
We have a winner. On to the next game.
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
I hereby nominate Mr. Kritz....
By Michael Kerpan
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:28am
...for this week's winner of the "worst person in the world" award.
Wow, our internet filter blocks his site
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 09/30/2008 - 11:56am
Web Page Blocked
You have attempted to access a web page that may be in violation of [Big Company]'s Internet Usage Policy
URL: www.michaelcritz.com/2008/09/24/child-drives-mbta-...
Category: Pornography
To have this site unblocked, it MUST be a work related site,
If you believe this is a work related site that was blocked in error, please send and e-mail to:
The Helpdesk