MORNING UPDATE: The Muddy River dropped below flood stage, even if barely, so Riverside service is running this morning - although river levels have started rising again (hourly river-level data).

LATER MORNING UPDATE: The Muddy River got all floody again, so the T put the dam back and stopped Riverside service.

Around 9 p.m., the MBTA blocked off the Fenway portal used by the Riverside line to prevent a recurrence of the 1996 floods that left Kenmore station submerged in 20 feet of water and required $40 million in repairs.

The move means Riverside commuters can expect delays tomorrow as they ride shuttle buses instead of trolleys between Reservoir and Kenmore, the T advises.

A federal monitoring station on the Muddy reported the normally docile river reached flood stage around 8:45 p.m. A T alert announcing the suspension of service between Kenmore and Reservoir went out not long after.

No, that's not quite true, Paul Levy reports: They do warn you that fare evasion is a crime so you better pay your damn fare:

I have to give the MBTA something for truth in advertising. It describes this capital improvement project (or one like it) as follows: This project will install new LED information signs on the platforms and lobbies of busy subway stations. These signs will provide visual equivalent of audio information on train arrival times and destination information.

Another dead trolley, this time on the Riverside line.

Doug reports (with photos) that the 1,000-car parking lot at the Riverside Green Line stop was manned by just one worker today as Red Sox fans arrived en masse to get to today's game:

... In a minature version of the Easter 2009 turnpike toll fiasco, insufficient staffing at the Riverside Green line terminal in Newton at noon on Sunday jammed traffic all the way back onto I-95/Route 128. ...

David Harris reports on a Riverside Line grudge match Friday night:

... I tried to block out the sound of some girl screaming "Alaska!!' then again a few moments later: "Alaska!!" Then I got off the phone and what I saw was a girl and what looked like her boyfriend mocking a couple Obama supporters (though one in particular received the brunt of the rage). In between a lot of expletives, there was some talk about Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her stance on abortion. ...

The MBTA is looking at leasing land and air rights at the Riverside Green Line terminal for housing, the Herald reports.

The MBTA is continuing on their quest for more transit-oriented development by working to lure private interests into building a mixed-use development at Riverside station. Residents are naturally apprehensive about bringing even more cars to Grove St., but is increased congestion on the roads the real problem?

Bringing more riders to the D-Line may not be the best idea.