The Globe reports on an internal MBTA report that shows "hundreds of MBTA properties - stations, garages, and parking lots - are in disrepair, from equipment that seems permanently broken to shabby surroundings that make the daily commute that much more unpleasant" (see the crumbling ceiling at Copley).
Stephanie Pollack is quoted, basically, as telling commuters to quit their bitching: They're getting new trains and the state can't possibly pay for both that and decent stations (see the pouring rain inside Forest Hills; but be heartened that the concrete-dropping Alewife garage is getting repaired).
The Globe quotes Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu, one of the few elected officials who actually commutes on the T: "We as commuters should not have to choose between healthy station conditions and functional service levels."
A few pics from my daily @MBTA commute. Just because we’re fighting for functional service levels doesn’t mean commuters should have to tolerate crumbling facilities that threaten health & accessibility. h/t @adamtvaccaro for covering: https://t.co/U0eXW7vgAK pic.twitter.com/pKxS255B3w
— Michelle Wu (@wutrain) September 10, 2018
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Comments
the government center roof
By anon
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 12:25pm
the government center roof was already stained by water damage two weeks after it reopened. it the ceiling was peeling paint and the cement was being compromised not long after that.
the renovations they did there were, outside of the headhouse and installing elevators, putting lipstick on a pig. they did not address any of the water issues which ultimately cause electrical problems which disrupt service. i realize the system is old, but they had completely opened up the ground to do the renovations, they could have done some waterproofing at that point.
But....but.. Charlie says
By One Day I'll Re...
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 10:31am
But....but.. Charlie says everything is fine!
BS Charlie
By anon
Fri, 09/14/2018 - 1:53pm
He spends more time putting stickers of trucks promoting T development than even riding the T
No surprise
By johnmcboston
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 10:33am
When any entity is told to cut their budget, the first thing to go is maintenance. Easy to quickly cut costs, and by the time the s* hits the fan, you can blame 'the other guys' for making those cuts...
Re-organize the T under Chapter 9 Municipal Bankruptcy Law
By Leviticus
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 10:48am
The T has tremendous structural issues. IMHO, the best solution is fierce: re-organize the entity under Chapter 9. Bankruptcy law gives you wide latitude to reject / re-structure contracts and put the T on a firm foundation.
Net payer of federal funds
By Will LaTulippe
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 10:59am
Imagine how prosperous MA might be, and how well the T might be running, if we didn't send a bunch of money to Washington, D.C.
Not for nothing but...
By anon
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 11:44am
The safety cones and whatnot could use a wash.
Michelle my belle
By anon
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 11:48am
Good job now if you and your city councilors would ride the MBTA and address the out of control school students who bully and beat up other students and terrorize passengers especially at Forest Hills station. At least you could demand the Transit Police come out of hiding in the back rooms and patrol the station.
What on earth are you talking about?
By KellyJMF
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 8:45am
I commute through Forest Hills, my daughter commuted to BLS through there for 6 years, and we have had Girl Scout cookie booths in there, including during after school hours. There are Transit Police in the station during those school commute times.
And I have been in that station at all hours of the day and never seen students terrorizing passengers. Not impossible, but not the pervasive scenario you paint.
I see more of that in Downtown Crossing, both above and below ground.
He lives under ground
By anon
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 9:22am
His mother is terrified.
Isn't that the same thing?
Function over form.
By section77
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 12:20pm
Of course they should make sure they have newer equipment to replace the aging cars, and worry about appearances later. That Globe article has someone from Winchester saying they deserved a station as grand as their town. Hard to believe such pearl-clutching nonsense gets printed.
Right?
By Will LaTulippe
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 1:58pm
The MA DoR accepts voluntary contributions. What an (expletive).
Winchester
By Ron Newman
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 4:22pm
deserves a station that isn't falling apart, and that is ADA-compliant. It's an elevated station that probably hasn't seen any major construction since the 1950s, and ought to be at least put into a state of good repair.
Wedgemere
By SwirlyGrrl
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 8:47pm
There have been some major repairs at Wedgemere.
Kix Tart
By Non-living Cond...
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 9:59am
Seems like the pearl clutches should fundraiser and prove Winchester worthy.
I mean, they certainly could do better than the Newton commuter rail stations if they raised $20,000.
Seriously.. Newton's got the school taken care of... their railroad-commute-to-working taxpayers deserve better.
Even better, the state DOT and Mass Highway could join in the project for Newton's rail stations.
Hard to imagine less pleasant stations than the three in Newton
By Ron Newman
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 1:03pm
Also hard to see what you can do to make them pleasant, given their location right against the Mass Pike.
South Attleboro
By anon
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 4:23pm
South Attleboro is less pleasant than the Newton stations.
This station has a rusting-apart rickety pedestrian bridge over the tracks. Only the ramps are open, because the stairs are so thoroughly rusted out there are holes through the steel plating that a person would fall through, should they be allowed to step on them.
I'm waiting for a good storm to see this thing collapse on the high-speed rail line.
Hasn't the MBTA said
By anon
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 2:22pm
Hasn't the MBTA said previously that they have the money, but lack other resources, (mainly the time it would take to make all these repairs while still keeping trains running, since they went so long without making repairs that we're not talking about regular maintenance, but large-scale projects)?
“If they are not unsafe, then
By Anon
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 4:32pm
“If they are not unsafe, then whether your stations are a little nicer or not nicer may not change the length of your commute or the on-time performance of the line,” Pollack said.
Translation: "Let them eat cake!"
Translation
By SwirlyGrrl
Mon, 09/10/2018 - 8:48pm
My boss is an idiot and until I pull him off the nearest Koch brother, this is all I got.
Adjective
By Non-living Cond...
Tue, 09/11/2018 - 9:42am
HEALTHFUL
Conditions and stations (and other inanimate things) cannot be healthy. They don't have health at all.
They can threaten the health of creatures in the stations, however.
A manchineel tree might be both healthy and unhealthful to those beneath it.
Up your vocabulary game, Ms. Wu!
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