"When people talk about our system and how bad it is, it is really not that bad." @marty_walsh on the MBTA
— Boston Public Radio (@BosPublicRadio) December 15, 2015
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Forest Hills actually does have a bus monitor
By adamg
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:45pm
But does anybody use it?
When it's not surrounded by a
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:49pm
When it's not surrounded by a 20 odd pack of teenagers with nowhere better to hang out, yeah. A nice big mounted one up high with good visibility would be fantastic
Oh my goodness
By Mjolnir
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:51pm
[quote][url=http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/jamaica_plain/... bus way at Forest Hills Station in Jamaica Plain will be the first bus location to get the electronic message boards, according to T spokeswoman Kelly Smith.[/url]
Signs are also planned in bus ways at Dudley Square and Ruggles stations, she said. Eight other stations have been "tentatively" chosen to receive the signs: Harvard Square; Haymarket, Ashmont; Kenmore; Maverick, Wonderland, Jackson Square, and Central Square.
The signs should be operational by summer, Smith said.[/quote]
Posted... February 6, 2014. As we're approaching the 2-year anniversary of this article, does anyone know why this never got off the ground?
Dudley
By blues_lead
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 2:19pm
Dudley has them
Ah, The Bus Countdown Clocks...
By Div2Supt
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:55pm
I have seen them installed at Ashmont, Mattapan, Haymarket, Maverick, Central, and a few other stops. They have been there for months; but when they have been turned on (usually the screens are turned off) the only information they have been displaying is that they were manufactured by Solari. Now as to when the next 22 to Ruggles or 450 to Salem is due...
The signs at Dudley Station have been active - and actually displaying bus route info! - for a few months. Alas, it seems someone loves hurling bricks at the one affixed near the Dunks.
And whatever happened to the one at Ruggles? There was even a whole ceremony - with special guest star Lt. Governor Tim Murray! - to unveil and activate it. I cannot remember the last time it was active and displaying, you know, useful information.
Forget the low-hanging fruit, MBTA, just look at all the fruit rotting on the ground...
The one at Ruggles is usually
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:44pm
The one at Ruggles is usually off or displaying an error message.
actually it does
By cybah
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:53pm
The T starting putting these TV screens in that do the bus routes also.. I think I saw one at Forest Hills that had real time information on it. Whether people use it is to be determined.
The one at Haymarket has never worked.. it's had a plastic bag on since the day it was installed earlier this year.
I've used it
By KSquared
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:58pm
It tells me the same information as my phone app, which doesn't help when you are expecting a bus to arrive and it doesn't show and none of the T employees can tell you anything.
same data
By cybah
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 2:19pm
it's the same data anyways which is why it's the same.
yep
By KSquared
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:46pm
So I'd rather wait closer to the actual bus stop than inside the station with the crowds, waiting for the page to cycle to the bus I am interested in.
The last time I got angry at a supervisor at Forest Hills for a bus that may or may not show up, he told me that the way they schedule buses at FH doesn't make any sense and it's a wonder they are on time at all.
It'd probably be cheaper
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:19pm
and certainly more helpful to provide bottom-of-the-line smartphones to everyone who doesn't already have one than to pay for signs that provide the same information but in a less useful way. And I'm not entirely kidding.
Blue Hills
By Ari O
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:25pm
There's really no need to take an Uber to get to the Blue Hills. The 240 runs every 30 minutes or better on weekdays and Saturdays from Ashmont and is a free transfer from the Red Line, so there's no extra cost. Stops at Chickatawbut Road which is right on the trails. Sunday schedule is far more anemic, but can still work. Other buses (238) runs to the east side of the park from Quincy, and you can run/hike from one to another. And the 32 isn't too far from the northwest side of the park.
Timing & start point
By Mjolnir
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 10:30am
This is good to keep in mind. But coming from the center or west of the city, the Red to 238 to the far eastern edge of the reservation is about 1h15, while the Franklin line from Back Bay to Readville then an Uber to the summit trail on the western edge is about 38 minutes. Expense is higher, but it's half the time of the trip.
Signs are neat and all, but
By anon
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 9:20am
Signs are neat and all, but anyone with a smartphone can download free apps from the T website to see this exact same ETA data. With the T having a $7B backlog on maintenance, I'd rather they spend their money on that than things like this.
Perspective
By bostonkid_316
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:49pm
I'm not sure how much Marty takes the T, but I will say I think that depending on what line(s) you take, how you use it, and when can influence your view on the T a lot. I take the 132 bus and Orange Line to work daily. That bus is rarely late or "missing" (compared to when I lived in Everett and used to take the 110, 112, or 97). I work 8-4 most days so I am *just* missing peak rush hour on the train where there are no seats, or no room at all. And there are sometimes delays but they are usually minor. Last Winter was probably the worst commuting I ever experienced thanks to the track issues between Oak Grove and Wellington. But all in all, the every day is pretty uneventful in my experience. That said, if I was a Green or Red Line commuter I would not feel the same way--they seem to have constant problems. And it seems like when something goes wrong, it goes wrong hard (ie ghost train or when multiple lines all have problems at the same time in the morning).
What's most disappointing for me is that the MBTA just can't move forward and dig out. No more late night service, no GLX, waiting years and years for new trains that are way overdue, etc.
When I used to use the T
By anon
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 9:38am
When I used to use the T daily, it was typically "uneventful" too - but that's because it was so all-around, consistently miserable! I posted above about riding the OL outbound one stop just to be able to fit on the returning inbound train and about the 77 bus being worse than walking. These were daily situations. I also used the Red Line for a while to make connecting trips to the CR and the intercity buses at South Station and I'd have to plan for an hour's ride from Harvard in order to make sure I'd get there in time. When moving, I had turned down more than one apartment after looking at it and realizing what I'd have to "rely" on for "rapid transit" service. (For example, imagine trying to use the Blue Line to get to a destination on the RL during rush hour. Hah!)
No, no trains catching on fire, no derailings, not even daily breakdowns. But the breakdowns happen enough that you have to plan for them anyway. And nearly daily there would be some mysterious stop and wait for ten minutes, with no explanation, either at a station or in the tunnel somewhere. So no, not really "eventful" but still so consistently awful that the only people who use this thing are those who absolutely need to.
"..it is really not that bad."
By Kaz
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 2:41pm
Define "that".
Well, SEPTA and MARTA and
By Verbal
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 2:48pm
Well, SEPTA and MARTA and BART are probably worse? So it isn't literally the worst in the country. It's behind NY and DC, I think.
(No subject)
By erik g
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:03pm
[youtube]VakU20APPdw[/youtube]
Bad
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:19pm
I don’t use the T on a daily basis, but having grown up here I am used to its quirks. Until recently I didn’t think much about its deficiencies and thought it wasn’t “that bad.”. But, in the last year or so I’ve changed my mind. After last winter and now that a family member is using it on a daily basis I see it really is rather pitiful. Horribly overcrowded cars in the same places at the same times day after day. Constant delays even in the nicest weather. Green line cars that creakily limp through tunnels below ground and have to stop continually above ground. Trains always stopping in the middle of a tunnel for unknown reasons. Announcements about stops on the trains that are often unintelligible and sometimes completely wrong. This is really not acceptable. A modern city that cares about public transportation really has to do better.
"It is really not that bad"
By chaosjake
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:25pm
"It is really not that bad" = ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
[img]https://media.giphy.com/media/Q5wEEjz5qx5rG/giphy....
[img]https://media.giphy.com/media/ALvdHigd2gBqw/giphy....
A tone-deaf statement
By Greg L.
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:29pm
Things are that bad and only getting worse. I regularly ride the Orange Line and 39 bus and both have noticeably declined in recent years. Rush hour headways frequently drop to 15+ minutes on the Orange Line. The 39, which normally runs with 60' articulated buses, frequently gets stuck with shorter 40' buses these days. When I emailed the T's customer service I was told there was a backlog on repairs to the 60' fleet so they had to switch to the shorter buses to maintain service.
GLX is delayed again, possibly for good. Late night service is ending. Signals are shot on the Braintree branch to the point we're bypassing them just to keep trains running. In what other situation would this be considered "really not that bad?"
In what other situation would
By anon
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 9:46am
I would say "it's better than nothing," but in some cases, it's actually not. The T is so awful and so unreliable in some places that it would be better to actually not have it; people's commutes would be more reliable if they didn't keep trying to rely on the T and keep having it shit all over their day again and again. At least if you walk or bike for example you can determine the length of your commute after one shot, and it'll be the same +/- 5 min, each day, rather than 10 min one day and an hour the next like it can be on the T. At least if you drive, the traffic jam delays are more-or-less consistent and you are responsible for maintaining the reliability of your own vehicle rather than relying on the clowns that run the T and over which you have no control.
Someone ask him the cost of a
By J
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:46pm
Someone ask him the cost of a token
No Fair!
By Tricky Dickie
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:27pm
That's a trick question.
I'll be the apologist
By Waquiot
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:25pm
Every day, I take a bus from Roslindale Square to Forest Hills, then the Orange Line to Back Bay. I cannot claim I do the exact commute home, since I walk from Forest Hills to get the exercise. I will say that the commute is not that bad. I never experience a wait for a train of more than 10 minutes peak (aside from that clusterfuck back in February)
You cannot compare the T to New York, London, Toronto, Tokyo, or other cities of that ilk. For an old and underinvested system, it does well.
And according to reporting when he was elected, Walsh used to take the T to the State House.
yes but
By Malcolm Tucker
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:55pm
To a certain extent, yes - it's all relative. The MBTA isn't as bad as MARTA, and it's not as bad as one might expect, given its age and years of neglect. But that's sort of the point: why shouldn't we be able to have transit as good as what they have in London, Tokyo, Paris, even New York? We may be a small city, but we're a reasonably prosperous one, and we're home to some of the best schools in the country. Why shouldn't our illustrious governing officials have prioritized a truly world-class (uh oh, there's that word) transit system? It's not just one administration, of course; it's years and years of terrible policy.
Anyway, yeah, sure. Some days, the T works about as well as I expect it to - but I'd love to be able to expect better.
Not a fair case
By markk
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:20am
Sure, right at Rozzie Square you can take one of 9 different buses to FH. But let's say you live a mile further down Washington St. Now you only have 3 routes (4 if you're above Metropolitan Ave.) and the frequency goes way down. Sometimes 25-30 minutes between buses during the day. And don't even get me started about service from FH after 7PM (walking not really an option). Imagine having to get to Norwood or Walpole and not being able to get on a 34E because its already jammed full and the next one isn't for 45 minutes and it too will be jammed full.
Fair enough
By Waquiot
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:30am
I just gave my opinion, just like the mayor (who has never had to take a bus, bustitutions notwithstanding) did. There was a comment here about regular 15+ minute waits for the Orange Line, which is utter BS.
That said, the frequency of the 34E hasn't really changed, but they did bring back the limiteds. And after 7 (when I am a lot more inclined to walk) the 34E is hourly, as it has been for decades.
More than a SIGNAL PROBLEM
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 5:14pm
TODAY, there was a signal problem delay on the Green Line from North Station. The other day, on the Red Line, there was a signal problem at Braintree. Therefore, delays.
The luxury apartment construction in the city is extraordinary. Residents will no doubt take Uber and have a personal driver like the Mayor.
Yes, it is that bad.
THERE IS NEARLY ALWAYS A
By M
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 6:51pm
THERE IS NEARLY ALWAYS A GODDAMN SIGNAL PROBLEM down here on the braintree line. And the rush hour headways frequently top 10-15 minutes. Rigoddamndiculous. Marty could not be further out of touch.
Per https://twitter.com/red
By Lynne
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 9:36pm
Per https://twitter.com/red_line_alerts: between December 1 and December 14, the reasons for the 28 acknowledged delays of service on the Red Line during that time period were: 8 disabled trains, 7 signal problems (all at or near Braintree, one of which led to runaway train never comin' back), 5 medical emergencies (which caused 2 evening rush hour commute rounds of bustitution lasting well into the night), 4 "police actions," 2 additional start-to-end-of-service shuttle replacements, and 2 "other" delays (1 blamed on the BFD, 1 blamed on "switch" problems).
And half of these delays occurred during rush hour!
"...and a partridge in a pear tree."
By noahproblem
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:29am
Seriously, if it hasn't been done already, someone needs to do a "12 Days Of Christmas" parody for MBTA delays.
Ask and ye shall receive
By Lynne
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 3:52pm
Winter on the MBTA
On the first day of winter, the T did give to me
A runaway train from Braintree!
On the second day of winter, the T did give to me
Two cars impeding service
And a runaway train from Braintree!
On the third day of winter, the T did give to me
Three switch failures
Two cars impeding service
And a runaway train from Braintree!
On the fourth day of winter, the T did give to me
Four trains on fire
Three switch failures
Two cars impeding service
And a runaway train from Braintree!
The rest of the song.
This is an argument nobody
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 5:33pm
This is an argument nobody can win, because "really not that bad" is not a quantifiable claim.
However, I will point this out: in many American cities, the vast majority of people don't bother with public transit at all. In Boston, people do, because it's often more convenient than the alternative.
it's often less horrible than
By Scratchie
Wed, 12/16/2015 - 8:36am
Fixed that for you.
How Ironic
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 5:44pm
We are having a debate on the daily disaster known as the 'T' before the first snowflake falls.
Or the city council
By anon
Tue, 12/15/2015 - 8:35pm
Get real. Only thier subjects do.
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