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Red Line a real mess; riders under extra duress
By adamg on Wed, 02/21/2018 - 6:19pm
Waiting for a bus at Broadway. Photo by Meaghan Carroll.
Broadway station on the Red Line descended into chaos this evening as a train line still out of commission due to the earlier Andrewgeddon forced riders into the street to try to get a bus, an Uber or a ride from a friend or spouse - if they didn't just decide to walk the mile down Dot Ave. to Andrew. Other stations were little better.
Chaos on the #redline #mbtafail @amazon @universalhub @masslivenews @MassGovernor pic.twitter.com/qhXgY5my2m
— mother of one (@madelinedtorres) February 21, 2018
Around 5:20 pm., the T issued a statement:
Train service has resumed between Broadway, Andrew and JFK/UMass Stations. The MBTA apologizes for today’s disruption and thanks its customers for their patience.
In a line waiting at JFK to get on the shuttle bus to go inbound. This is nuts!!! #mbta @universalhub pic.twitter.com/cOPUciwova
— Lisa Johnson (@AnaliFirst) February 21, 2018
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Comments
Save us Maura Healey.
Save us Maura Healey.
How?
Is she a mechanic?
The train's motor failed because it should have been replaced a decade ago. (Or entirely rebuilt.) Baker is coasting on the hope that the belated purchase made by Patrick will fix these problems in 3-4 years when the trains going into service.
If Baker cared (he doesn't) they'd be investing and preparing for what the T needs in 10 years, not jumping from crisis to crisis.
It was a derailment. http:/
It was a derailment. http://www.wcvb.com/article/red-line-motor-issue-creates-smoke-causing-m...
161D/39R
House Democrats have a 125 to 35 majority. Senate democrats have a 36 to 4 majority - 90%!
We should be holding them accountable. They control the expenditures, not Baker. They could easily override anything that Baker does if they so chose.
Perhaps these lines for the Red Line at Park should march up the hill and blockade the State House Garage?
MA Senate is 31 Democrat, 7 Republican, 2 vacancies
At the moment, the state Senate is 31 (D) and 7 (R) with two vacancies.
Slight Correction...
It's "Democratic", not "Democrat," which is a known slur. Thank you in advance for getting it right next time.
How on Earth is it a slur?
A politician who has a 'D' next to his name is known as a...?
Context
He didn't say 31 Democrats and 7 Republicans.
So, it's now a guessing game as to whether he left the pluralization off the words (which would be a weird way to state the numbers) or left out the word "Party".
He could have meant 31 Democrat Party and 7 Republican Party...which would be wrong and is often used by Republicans/conservatives to slur the party by not accepting that they are the "Democratic Party"...because Republicans think it gives up some weird lingual high ground implying that they are not democratic and thus not for the people.
Since it is who it is saying it, the latter is a safe assumption...but you knew all this because you're who you are too.
That's what I love about you Democratics
You love your word games so much, you word games are all there is.
Please, do enlighten me as to how it is that a political party being 'Democratic,' a member of said party being a 'Democrat,' and an ensemble of members being 'Democrats' is in any way distinct in meaning from party being referred to alternatively as 'Democratic' or 'Democrat.'
Incidentally, the Greeks, from whom we get many of our highfalutin words that Democrats (Democratics? Democraticals? Democraticalists?) like to bring out to make themselves seem smart, refer to their Republic (Latin-derived English word) as a 'Demokratia.' The '-ic' I think we get from French. So let's get all the Francophiles here to tell us...how does that suffix make one damn bit of difference.
Love Words games...
Thanks. But these aren't word games or lessons in etymology. Can we all please to use the word Democrats to refer to the people who vote for the Democratic Party? Great! I thank you for using 'Democratic' in the future when referring to the political party.
Just because it bothers you
no. I'll call them 'Dems' 'Democrats' and maybe 'Donkeys' on occasion, but when I'm talking to you, never 'Democratic Party'
It'll be a good way to throw you off balance, you see. That's one of them-there rhetorical tactics.
Rhetorical Tactics
OK. Well, I know where you stand now and I've been called worse than a 'Dem,' or a 'Donkey.' You can call me a 'Democrat' which is OK (but not perfect). And I belong to the Democratic Party. If you would please consider to use that terminology, I'd appreciate it. Thanks.
You belong to the Democratic Party?
I never would have figured. I assumed such zealous pedantry could only come from a spontaneous urge to educate and correct. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that it come from a corporate branding strategy!
Roman being Roman
Don't ever change, limbot.
Where he stands
See, that's the great thing about Roman. You don't need to know anything about his politics to know he's a fucking awful person here.
LOL
They both need a lesson in how meaningless rhetorical talking point fusillades are not the same as discussing the topic at hand, which was absolutely irrefutable even given the updated information.
Check Your History
I was referring to the subject line which uses the word 'Democrat,' an epithet that's at least 50 years old. To use 'Democrat' to refer to the political party is discourteous since it's been called the 'Democratic Party" for at least a century in case you were unaware. Thanks for referring to the 'Democratic Party' in the future.
Suffixes, pronouns
I'm waiting for you people to declare a jihad over definite and indefinite articles. Then the joke will be on you. In Russian there are no articles, definite or indefinite!
"you people"
Roman, you're really doubling down on the not-so-subtle insults today, aren't you? I guess that's just what you do on days ending in a y.
"youse guys?"
Better now?
I’m missing this beef
There are 31 Democrats and 7 Republicans in the Massachusetts Senate. Why aren’t Democrats referred to as Democrats anymore? Should it be 31 Democratics?
It's beef stew
I prefer Goulash myself when I make a beef stew.
Fry up some onions in olive oil, sprinkle pepper, salt, and paprika over beef, brown it, throw it all together in a pot with a couple crushed garlic cloves, some diced tomatoes, a bell pepper, some bay leaves, and a spoon full of sweet jam or preserves, let it stew for about two hours, serve over rice or noodles and you've got yourself a delicious main course.
Somewhere in there is political flame war...maybe it's the slow burn of the flame under the pot. And lefties don't seem to like the Hungarian prime minister, so there's that.
Are you being disingenuous or are you truly ignorant?
Dubya used this cute little illiterate jab at absolutely every single possible opportunity, and people took exception to it then. Were you out of the country at the time? Read and learn.
Given the choice, I’ll go with ignorant
Swirly notes the number of “Democrats”, too. Do you have a beef with her as well?
But I guess we can ignore the decades of the General Court underfunding the T and concentrate on important things like how to refer to the party that controlled that branch of government the whole time.
Yeah, no, "disingenuous" it is.
No, because (as has been pointed out numerous times) "Democrat" is a noun and correctly refers to a member of the Democratic(adjective) Party. Disingenous it is.
The word "party" was not used
By either 'Fish or Swirls.
If 'Fish has said that the "Democrat Party" had 31 members of the Massachusetts Senate, all this blabbering would make sense, but he didn't, so it does not.
I would image that none of the 31 Democrats in the Senate would have any problem with the concept that there are 31 Democrats in the Senate, except that they would want more, but that is not the semantic issue you guys are obsessing about.
"Minor correction"
s/obsessing/trolling/
And enjoying it too, I might add. Good fun all around.
Accusations of racism, ignorance, and all forms of intentional malice over two inconsequential letters of the English alphabet.
Literally. We could get rid of the letters i and c tomorrow and we'd still be able to communicate. We'd just be trolling over the 'Democratyk Party' instead.
75-80%
Thanks for the correction - I was probably looking at numbers from just after Baker put several in his cabinet.
Still a sufficient majority to carry an override on a party line vote - which was my point.
Yeah but Baker's a Republican
Yeah but Baker's a Republican, so he's to blame for everything.
o_O
. o O (And they want us to pay more for such service) O o .
(yes I said this under the other post. but it bears repeating. And I too, even tho I didn't use the red line today, was effected, as they pulled off buses off the 111 for the shuttle)
Sure
Making sure T revenues don’t keep up with inflation will definitely help create a better service.
I bet they wished they drove today
Their cars have been parked on the streets without moving since the last snow storm.
60F by 7:30 am
72F at 6:00 pm
I'm sure I'm not the only lucky person hugging their bike today. There were plenty of people out, so some must have dodged this shit show.
These folks all bought condo
These folks all bought condo's on the T and don't have cars. They have no other option but to endure the T.
No Other Option?
Too bad these won't be invented for another -200 years:
Romney / Deval did this.
Just a friendly reminder. Baker saddled the MBTA with big dig debt under the Romney administration, and Deval ignored fixing the issue because, like Romney, he knew the bill would come due later.
There's some justice in it coming due under Baker's watch. Sadly, no one seems to care enough to link the actions 15-20 years ago to the problems today.
It amazes me the University system didn't end up in the same position with the cuts they applied there as well. We lucked out there, but our transit/infrastructure is boned.
Stan the Man was in on it, too
Long before his husband was old enough to marry, let alone run around "lobbying", he bragged to his constituents that "we can't be subsidizing Boston", as if ...
And, so far, Chandler seems content to ignore the issue or point fingers at Baker, and do nothing otherwise.
The Great and General Court is complicit, too. They could override Baker. They could restructure the financing for ALL the RTAs. That they choose not to is telling - particularly when the Democratic Party of MA is putting out anti-Baker screeds on the subject.
Baker is a big part of the problem - but those who hold the purse strings according to the state constitution are completely complicit and have been for decades.
Wow, Swirls
Really, Swirls? Really? You couldn't just put a date?
Provide a breakdown of the numbers to support your "as if". Specifically, revenues and transportation payouts for Boston and Rosenberg's district. I'll wait.
You don't know this?
Sad.
Eastern MA is to Western MA as Blue States are to Red States.
We have an economy and we pay a lot of money to maintain their roadways for a handful of people. That's the major sink.
Add in the poverty of Western MA - who pays for that?- and you already are working a heavy subsidy.
Rural areas cost a lot more per person than urban areas. Urban areas generate a lot more revenue per person than Rural areas. This is absolutely baked into how the state apportions aid.
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/05/rural_western_massach...
Is gravity in question next?
So you don't have the numbers
All you have is a bunch of silly-ass generalizations about "Eastern Mass" and "Western Mass". Provide data or stfu.
There's a link to a report
Or do impoverished old people with broken well pumps produce lots of tax funding now?
Boston subsidizes all of MA
READ: http://www.bostonplans.org/getattachment/cb7ed639-177c-43f0-8f8f-a51fcdd...
Let the people of Utah know.
Let the people of Utah know.
Much Blame Can Be Placed On Ronald Regan
His 1981 proclamation "government is the problem" marks the point where our great social institutions— formed to uplift all Americans— were desecrated and sold off to the highest bidders.
Cowards still say government is the problem, because they lack the courage (and intelligence) to solve existent problems within the government. Such people should not run for office.
( and his wife )
Assumes facts not in evidence
Not every problem is a problem for government to solve. This much is obvious.
What's not obvious is what specifically is and what isn't. I'll give a single non-trolling example:
Young men in this country are unemployed at pretty high rates by historical standards. That's a societal problem. Is it a problem with a governmental solution or is the solution (that is to say the source of the problem) a cultural one? If it's a governmental problem, then bad government caused it and good government can cure it. If it's a cultural problem, then bad government did not cause it (it could certainly exacerbate it), meaning good government can't fix it all.
Extra points awarded for still blaming Ronald Reagan for stuff almost thirty years after he left office.
As "One Nation, Indivisible" Our American Culture Unites Us All…
... and as a democracy, ours is a government of the people, for the people, by the people.
You weren't alive then
And what you read in "special" places on the internet is not the same as understanding history or reality.
I was alive then. I know what things were like before and after for working people. You are very wrong. Radical nihilists are not conservative of anything.
#noteveryproblem
Public transit?
You're batting .1000 today, son.
You've never done a single non-trolling thing in your life.
That's a nice idea
Going to pave your own highways now?
I feel the worst for those going to Wollaston
Imagine having to deal with not one, but two shuttle buses on your commute.
On the other hand, at least the weather was nice today if you did have to suffer through this.
Wollaston
I live in Wollaston and last night's commute was actually super easy. I took the commuter rail from S Station to Quincy Center and walked the mile home (could have taken the shuttle, but it was so nice out...) I know not everyone has the option of the commuter rail, but given that the trains were making extra stops at JFK, Quincy Center, and Braintree, I'm not sure why more people in Dorchester and Quincy didn't take advantage.
It helped that it was school vacation week and the commuter rail was less crowded than it might have been.
The race for state senator
The special election for the senate coming up should revolve around one issue the failure of the MBTA.
Everyone keeps going around
Everyone keeps going around in circles about fixing the T and who's responsible and what should be done.
But those are just surface issues.
The only important question is where would we get the money?
Where?
We cannot afford NOT to spend money on the MBTA and RTAs. Our economy depends on it. We can't afford pollution. We can't afford stagnation. We can't afford obesity from forcing people into cars. We cannot afford NOT.
Great moral arguments, but
Great moral arguments, but you still need to say where you're going to get the money from.
Reinstate the non-earned income surcharge
Pay 13% if you didn't work for it.
Plenty of money, dear. Stop drinking the libertarian kool-aid and the poverty mouthing by greedy and short-sighted idiots.
Well dear
Well dear
The budgets of Massachusetts are not a secret:
https://www.mass.gov/lists/dor-annual-reports
https://www.mass.gov/lists/past-budgets
And you are either deluded or grossly naive to think that any lawmaker in the state (especially those out west) would vote for or implement the non-earned income surcharge.
Side rant
Caught a report about this on the news last night. As they were showing the insane crowd and talking about people waiting an hour+ to get on a bus, they cut to b roll of a bunch of people with decent sized backpacks getting on one, and of course not taking them off. This as they were interviewing a guy who said he had just missed getting on one because he was basically pushed off and stepped on.
This incident is clearly an MBTA issue, but in the grand scheme of things, inconsiderate people are a pretty big part of our transit system’s problems.
As a crusader for courtesy on
As a crusader for courtesy on the T and in all areas of civic life, I completely disagree that this "a pretty big part" of our transit system's problems.
I always call to mind what happened in 2015 when I saw people, despite waiting for long durations in the cold, helping the elderly and infirm, giving up spaces, making room, being conscious of the challenges of walking on sidewalks piled high with snow. There was a lot of humanity that winter, and we have it in us.
Of course, we can always use more general spatial awareness. But let's keep the real blame where it belongs!
There are definitely
great people out there in general.
But as someone who commutes through the last Blue Line stop before the harbor, to connect to the Orange Line at State every day, I disagree with your disagreement in general. The amount of backpack blocking, door-standing, line cutting, boarding as people exit, not giving seats to the people who need them, and general disregard for any other living being that I see on a daily basis, hell just in the 20 seconds between State and DTX (which is often the worst 20 seconds of my day) is unreal.
Wait
You work in DTX and connect to the Orange Line at State?
That's a 5 minute walk, tops - less time than you will spend making the connection.
Noooo
I do connect at State, but don't get off at DTX. Just saying that the 20 seconds between the two on the Orange line is the worst part of my day.
Winter 2015 was an outlier
In many ways.
As far as people banding together, I was an a-hole on day one for the T's winter meltdown(though to be fair, the guy who I elbowed was blocking my exit from the Orange Line train I was on, and he was boarding,) but as all of us became more understanding of what we were facing, people definitely became as civil as the situation would allow.
I'm lucky because 1) I'm a
I'm lucky because 1) I'm a bus-only commuter and 2) I work in Watertown and don't go near the hot mess that is the urban core of our transit system.