Two For One Special! Today Only!

I was doing my rounds today and found myself at Ashmont Station. The original platforms have been demolished and the temporary ones in place are made from two by fours, plywood, and roof tiling. Sounds safe enough to me! The platform now extends towards Codman Yard, almost into it in fact. There is also a new exit on the outbound platform to a side street where Tower Q used to stand.
Anyway, I wandered over to the faregates and asked the CSA (Customer Service Agent, the folks in the burgundy shirts) how things were going. And then the trouble started...

You see, all four of the CharlieCard Fare Vending Machines were broken! A software glitch prevented passengers from adding value to their CharlieCards. Don't have enough to get on the train? Well, you're going to have to buy a $2.00 CharlieTicket then. Or walk to the next stop, Shawmut. I'm sure their machines are working. Your choice. Naturally, the riders were less than happy about it.


Note that the "Add Value" icon is gray. Tap it, slap it, punch it; whatever you do will be in vain. It just isn't going to respond. The CSA eventually decided to let two people split the cost of a $2.00 CharlieTicket and go in together. Of course, many people were still mad about paying the extra $0.30 (and rightly so) when there was no one to go in with them. The CSA told me it had been like this since the start of service. That's about 5:00AM. He had called downtown, however it was a software problem not a mechanical problem. Thus the "Charlie Crew" could not fix it. Guess those IT guys must be pretty busy with all the computers down at Park Plaza.

So I did my part and explained to the passengers what was up and what their best option was. After that, I went onto the Mattapan Trolley to see how things were going...

I really expected to get a trolley with the wrong farebox code. For you see, off and on someone has been telling the trolley operators to program their fareboxes as Route 831. FYI, the subway and trolley lines all have route numbers like the buses (Orange Line = Route 903, Red Line = Route 931 or 933, etc.). On the Green Line and Mattapan Trolley, the routes are programed into the fareboxes so they charge the right fares and accept the correct transfers. As I was saying, misinformed operators were putting in Route 831. The problem? That is the farebox code for the C Branch of the Green Line! Thus, when you get off the Red Line at Ashmont going to Mattapan the farebox charges you extra. Dude, Cleveland Circle is no where near Ashmont! You definitely had to have left the system to get here. Many an extra $1.70 was lost in the confusion. But they got hip and started putting in Route 899, the Mattapan Trolley route number. But none of that nonsense today. The farebox had the right route number, it was just not accepting anything. No coins, no dollars, no transfers, no coconuts. Other than car 3262 (remember this car? It derailed on opening day) coming off the wire, not too bad a day. I'll have some PCC photos coming soon!

The MBTA Fire Bus

So there is this bus out at Charlestown/Bennett Garage, Flyer (no, not New Flyer, Flyer Classic) #9471. From 1982 until about 1996 it was a regular transit bus. It was then transformed into its current incarnation. It acts as a mobile recooperation center for firefighters at the scene of a major fire. It has deluxe AC and "heat reflecting shades". Pretty cool, huh?

Here are some photos I took:

Don't Forget To Carry The One

For anyone who is curious, the current ridership for the Route 111 is 10,271 people per average weekday. That's 5300 going into Boston and 4971 heading out to Chelsea. Just a bit of random T knowledge for you.

The official MBTA 2007 Ridership and Statistics Book (latest edition) says: 8292 riders per weekday.

Keep in mind that that count was done during Winter Rating 2003.

So does that mean that instead of three passengers using the Route 431 (Lynn Depot - Neptune Towers) on Saturdays it is actually more like fifteen?

The Green Line Accident

Wednesday evening, 6:00pm. It is the height of the evening rush hour and commuters are heading home after a day of work on the Riverside Branch of the Green Line. A train has just left the signal near Woodland Station when it is struck from behind by another train. In one of the worst MBTA accidents in years several people are injured, one of them seriously, and one of the operators is killed.

The operator of the second train, 24 year old Terrese Edmonds, died in the crash. The cab of her car was crushed severely by the impact. It took rescue crews several hours to remove her from the wreckage. My thoughts and condolences are extended to her family.

She had been operating trains since last October, still a rookie. Rumors have been flying around that she may have been on her cellphone just before the crash. The NTSB is trying to get copies of her phone records to confirm these rumors. Others say she simply wasn't experienced enough to be on that line. Unlike the other branches of the Green Line, the Riverside Branch has a regular operating speed of 45-50 mph. I admit I have seen operators do 55-60 at times.

The NTSB has determined that the train was traveling at about 35-40 mph when it should have been doing about 10. The train it stuck had just began to accelerate, going barely 5 mph. Track geometry tests show that there were no problems with the tracks at the time of the collision. Any mechanical errors with the brakes have also been ruled out by the National Transportation Safety Board. It appears that human error may be to blame for the accident.

Unlike the Red, Orange, and Blue Lines, there is no failsafe mechanism in place on the Green Line. On the subway lines, if a train gets to close to another train (i.e. within 500 feet or so), the emergency brake is triggered and power cut. The train then comes to a halt. On the Green Line, however, it is up to the operator to keep a safe distance from other trains. Due to its unique operating environment (most trackage is at grade, headways between trains in the Central Subway can range from 10 minutes to 10 seconds, etc.), it does not appear to be very practical to install such a system on the line.

But what about passenger safety? I'm sure we all remember the "fender bender" at Boylston Station. It was no where near as terrible as Wednesday's accident, but several people were still hurt.

Cars 3667 and 3703 have been damaged beyond repair. After the investigation is over, there are plans to retire and scrap them. However, it may still be possible to splice the two undamaged ends together to create a new car.

But the MBTA can always buy new trains. You cannot, however, replace the dear person lost.

This section of the line was shutdown for three days. Buses from all over the system, Charlestown/Bennett, Albany, Arborway, Cabot, were called in to provide shuttle services. Regular bus service felt the strain. The MBTA does not currently have a contingency fleet of buses to provide shuttles in emergencies. On Saturday, Green Line service resumed through the area. It is expected to be suspended again for the NTSB to conduct a test on Sunday. Monday morning should see a return to normalcy.

The accident was eerily similar to one which occurred 28 years ago, also on the Green Line and on the Riverside Line, near Brookline Village Station.

Images Courtesy of Scott Ruffinen

Like yesterday's accident, the first train was waiting a signal when the second struck it from behind. Speed was a factor in the accident.


Do I still feel safe riding the T? Yes, do you? There have been shootings on MBTA buses, bus I still catch bus each day. A runaway box car stuck a Commuter Rail train, but I still grab a Fairmount Line train every now and then.

Hopefully, we will all learn something from this tragedy.

A Day At The Races

So I went to catch the 111 this evening at Haymarket. Even though everything is on a Sunday schedule for the holiday, I figured the wait wouldn't be that long. The 111 has a pretty good frequency even on weekends. To my surprise (I wasn't really surprised) there were three buses at Haymarket. What luck! All New Flyers, but still, having a choice between bus #0634, #0660, and #0741 made me feel pretty special. Again the MBTA underestimated ridership. Today is Memorial Day, a day of remembrance and reflection. Surely most people would be at home. Yeah, on a warm and sunny day with no school or work, I'm sure. Turns out we had quite a mass of people waiting for the 111 (~50-75 people).

The man in the red hat is watching the first bus (laden with passengers of course) pull away. Bus 660 would soon follow. My bus (in the corner) got the leftovers. Now today there are four buses on the Route 111, operating every 12 minutes. Hmm...Three of the buses are in Downtown Boston, so that leaves only one bus in Chelsea. Heading inbound I'm sure. But wait! On our way up North Washington Street (still in Downtown Boston by the way), what's that I see? Why it's the fourth bus! Heading towards Haymarket! So we have three buses that have not yet reached the Tobin Bridge and another pulling into Haymarket. Thus at that very moment...there was not a single Route 111 bus in all of Chelsea! Yes, I did do my math correctly.

Now that's what I call service, folks!

Sorry...

I also owe an apology to the Green Line's Type 8's.

The accident involving car 3879 was NOT the fault of the train (nor the driver!).

It was caused by a faulty switch.

Sorry about that, Breda.

A Blast From The Past

It has been one zany week in my transit travels this week. This, however, takes the cake. I went to catch the 111 Monday morning and got quite a surprise. I caught RTS #0216. What's so special about that?

Bus 0216 lacks...

...automated stop announcements

...the digital stop display (it still has the exterior destination signs of course!)

...GPS tracking and vehicle location

...and a TRANSITMASTER! The driver had no idea if they were on time or not. By the way, a TransitMaster is that little electronic device by the driver which gives information like schedule accuracy (it tells the driver if they are late, early, or on time), the next stop, etc.

Plus it still has the light up "Stop Requested" box up front! I haven't seen one of these on a bus in years. Rumor has it that #0216 was to be shipped off to Everett Shops where it would be retired and sold for scrap. However, someone accidentally mixed it back in with the regular buses and found its way back at the pullout lot.

The horn didn't work either.

I got RTS 0216 again on Tuesday during the PM rush hour. The driver told me it was all that was left at pullouts at Charlestown Garage.

What's next? A Flyer D901?

Flyer D901 #9471, Former MBTA Transit Bus, Current MBTA Fire Bus