A lot of people seem to want to go to Salem tonight

To begin, I wouldn't block off any portion, let alone a third, of the waiting area to passengers. It only makes the remainder of the waiting area more crowded for everyone else.

Second, I would re-arrange how the trains on the Newburyport/Rockport lines operate on the evenings leading up to and including Halloween. Instead of normally running Boston to Newburyport and Boston to Rockport (and return), I would run trains Boston to Beverly (and return) and Beverly to Newburyport/Beverly to Rockport (and return). Although this creates some inconvenience for regular commuters going beyond Beverly, who have to change trains, it allows you to run service to and from Salem more frequently than with the regular schedule.

Third, I would require that trains for Beverly/Newburyport/Rockport service be comprised of the maximum train lengths permissible, and that ALL cars be opened to passengers boarding the trains. Too often, you have six or seven car trains, but passengers are restricted to the front two or three cars. Conversely, you will often have a four car train when the passenger load could accommodate a six car train.

Lastly, I would require that Beverly/Newburyport/Rockport service be announced for boarding at least fifteen minutes prior to departure. Of course, this should be the case for ALL trains on ALL lines. Back before the Make Believe Commuter Rail aka MBCR decided to totally reform the system, fifteen minutes had been the standard for decades. And it worked very well in terms of allowing passengers to board trains in a smooth and orderly fashion.

And, of course it goes without saying that you also eliminate "pre-boarding" ticket checks, special lines for specific trains, the "corn maze' barriers, and the like. Funny how the T, MBCR, and the like has always complained how it isn't practical to "assign" specific platform tracks for specific lines due to 'operational reasons", yet they always manage to do it on Halloween evening.