Wachusett

Oct 1, 2016 | | 1 Comment

Well…this was unexpected, wasn’t it? The MBTA gave this station practically no advertising at all! Admittedly, it has very limited service at the moment – Wachusett is only getting two trains per day. But hey, since it’s open now, what say we give it an ol’ review? Sam and I only had around 15 minutes here, but let’s take a look at the newest station on the MBTA!

The platform.
I really like the open part of the platform. It’s reminiscent of Weymouth Landing, with a high wall on one side (featuring a nice concrete design) and a single track on the other. Each station sign features a historical photograph, and every other one has a bench. The platform stretches on for quite a while – a lot further than any train would ever stop.
The ramp.
However, there is a purpose to the long platform, in that it leads to a ramp up to the exit. It feels like any other modern Commuter Rail ramp, including a “break bench” in the middle. It takes passengers up above the train tracks and under some pylons before arriving at the station “lobby”.
The “lobby”…or whatever you want to call it.
The “lobby” area of Wachusett doesn’t have much, and it doesn’t need to. The first thing to notice is the electronic station sign – my gosh, they’re awesome. And sure, they don’t say anything other than “Welcome to Wachusett Commuter Rail Station” yet, but it’s cool that this place has new signs. The lobby has bike racks, too, and some wastebaskets to finish it off.
Now we’re talkin’!
Of course, I can’t forget about the busway and shelter! The busway is just a loop for MART vehicles to turn around, but I’m really glad they’re bringing service here – they have one route to Fitchburg, and one to Gardner. And that shelter! Oh my gosh, it’s so nice inside. Hearing the rain pitter-patter on the roof while sitting on a brand-new bench…I could’ve stayed there for hours!
The parking lot under construction.
Wachusett’s parking isn’t complete yet, but eventually the station will have 360 spaces. Right now, the lot is mostly just a big expanse of dirt, traffic cones, construction vehicles, street lights, and patches of soil. I’m sure that come completion, though, this lot will look great!
And finally, the shelter…from above!
From the lobby again, a set of stairs takes us full circle back down to the platform. The station shelter is modern, and basically what you would expect from a newer Commuter Rail stop. Beyond the shelter, another ramp rises up to another part of the parking lot, so there are accessible entrances on either side of the platform.
It’s a new station, so here’s a bunch of train pictures!
Station: Wachusett
Ridership: This evening, the place was practically empty aside from a few folks coming to take pictures or check it out. Once full service starts, though, ridership should increase as people start to realize the station is open. It’s slated to get around 400 people per day, which would be average (maybe even above average) ridership for the Fitchburg Line.
Pros: This station is very appealing aesthetically, for one thing – the platform, bus shelter, and scenery all look great. Commuters from Gardner will definitely appreciate Wachusett, as coming here and taking the train will be faster than just driving to Boston (and I’m glad MART is providing bus service to Gardner, too). Also, when winter rolls around, the ski trains that run here should be great for day trips to Wachusett Mountain.
Cons: The only negative aspect about Wachusett is that it has the potential to become another Wickford Junction (i.e. a new Commuter Rail station in the middle of nowhere with low ridership). For now, the station’s emptiness is just because of the timing of the limited trains, although they’re only running them in the first place because they had to open the station by the 30th or else incur fines from the grant that funded a large portion of it. Once full service begins in November, we’ll be able to see what Wachusett’s true ridership is.
Nearby and Noteworthy: Unless you’re going skiing, there’s nothing of note here at Wachusett. It’s essentially in the middle of nowhere…
Final Verdict: 9/10
From a purely aesthetic point of view, Wachusett is near-perfect for the Commuter Rail. The platform is like a more rural version of Weymouth Landing (another fantastic station), and the MART bus shelter is top-notch. This station also offers a lot of parking, and is right next to Route 2 for easy commuting. Honestly, the only worry I have for Wachusett is low ridership, but this place has a lot more potential than Wickford Junction – there’s a reasonably-sized city close by (Gardner), and come winter, it will hopefully be packed with skiers!
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

Silver Hill

Sep 29, 2016 | | 5 Comments

This is one of the least-served stations on the entire Commuter Rail! With only two trips in the morning and three trips in the afternoon, clearly Silver Hill is a station for commuters only. But what it lacks in service, it makes up for with lots of charm!

The road leading to the station.

As you walk toward Silver Hill (which my friend Nathan and I were doing), the area has a certain…feel to it. You know…all the houses around are huge, and there are long-ish sections of woods between each one. This is Weston, after all – one of the wealthiest towns in Massachusetts.

Wow…such glorious amenities!

So…the parking here is a bit dubious. The MBTA website says it has none, but that patch of gravel next to the station is most definitely used by cars. Of course, there’s no rhyme or reason to it – some people park forwards, some park backwards, and some just use it as a pick-up area. The station also has a bike rack, which is locked to the fence (arguably not a necessary precaution in Weston, but I digress).

How charming!

Yes, the platform is unpaved. Yes, you have to cross the outbound track to get to the inbound side with no crossing whatsoever. But…it sure is a lovely place, isn’t it? The wooden road bridge over the station adds lots of character, while the shelter is awesome. It feels so rustic inside, and it may only have a single bench, but it gets the job done really well! There’s a great sign on the shelter too, saying that the station has had continuous service since 1844. Wow!

A train blazing through!

Station: Silver Hill

Ridership: Oh boy, get ready for this: a whole 15 people per day! Don’t get me wrong, it makes perfect sense since it gets so few trips. On another note, Nathan and I got an outbound train from here and went one stop to Lincoln – quite possibly the first time such a trip was ever made in history! The conductor gave us a strange look…

Pros: Ahh, it’s just so charming. It really feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere when you wait here, right down to the wooden bridge, stairs, and shelter. Also, the parking here is free, and I’m sure that lot will never get full!

Cons: This place is still in really bad shape. The platform isn’t paved at all aside from the shelter, and even the tracks are in subpar condition here. Having to walk across them to the inbound side is annoying without pavement, as well. Yes, we’re talking about 15 people per day here, but it doesn’t change the fact that this is below the minimum one would expect for a Commuter Rail station.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Do you like big houses? Great! That’s basically all you’ll see out here!

Final Verdict: 3/10 (sorry!)
Look, I’m gonna admit that I fell in love with Silver Hill’s immense charm while I was here. It really is an awesome place to hang out. But…you guys understand why I gave it a 3, right? It’s just so basic and it gets so few trains that it’s just…a 3. However, I will say that the limited service it gets makes the station a true hidden gem, and it’s most definitely worth checking out.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

Sam’s Operational Oculi: Running Time, Layover, and Cycle Time

Sep 28, 2016 | | 9 Comments

In this Operational Oculi, I decided that I’d take a quick break from garage walkthroughs and begin to tackle the subject of how a public transportation schedule is made. Some terms that I am going to try to define today are “running time”, “layover”, and “cycle”. I am hoping that this post (along with my others coming up later) will give you an appreciation for why your bus arrives at a certain time (and how in most cases it’s not random).



Almost every route in the area has an “inbound” and an “outbound” direction. Even routes like the MBTA 201 and 202, which for the most part are loops, run “outbound” and “inbound” (and change directions at a given point in the route). At most times of the day, especially during rush hour, most people want to travel only one of those two directions. This can prove to be challenging, since there is a bigger demand for service in one direction than the other. Transit agencies strive to keep their buses comfortably full at all times. Since buses can’t just magically spawn at the places that they are needed, equal service is usually given to both directions of the route. This isn’t always the case, and we’ll go over those special cases some other time.



For the purposes of this post, we’ll assume that every route has its own buses that run back and forth on it. In another post, I’ll try to explain what “interlining” means and how most buses will run several routes in a given day. However, there are plenty of routes on the MBTA and elsewhere that follow this model of having their own buses that run back and forth and don’t run on any other routes (such as the 111 and 352). In order to build a schedule, you need to determine: a) how often the bus should come (the headway), and b) how long it will take from Point A to Point B (running time). The running time heavily influences the headway; it can affect how quickly a bus can do a round trip and therefore how frequently the bus can come. On routes that aren’t interlined, the running time is probably one of the biggest factors of what can determine a headway to ensure that service runs on time and also frequently, efficiently utilizing all of the buses that could be given to run that particular service.

Running time is calculated by taking archived, real-time data from buses, discarding outlier sets of data (that one day two weeks ago when traffic was gridlocked shouldn’t be built into the schedule), and finding the median amount of time from there. It is a very delicate science to assign running time: too little running time and the bus runs late, too much running time and the driver will drive slower than is necessary to avoid running early. This is where layover time can come in handy. Layover time is the time between when the bus arrives at its destination until the time it has to leave on its next trip. Layover time is crucial to keeping buses on schedule. The MBTA requires a minimum of 20% layover time after every trip (so, for a 25 minute one-way trip, 5 minutes must be designated as layover time. This means that during the 25 minute trip, the bus can be delayed up to 5 minutes and still be able to leave in time for its next trip. The scheduled running time for a round trip plus layover on each end is called the cycle time.

So let’s try to apply all of this into an example route. Let’s say that there’s a route 63, running from Alewife Station in Cambridge, to Central Square, Waltham, running via Waverley Square in Belmont. Running time data suggests that the trip takes 25 minutes on Saturdays. Service every 30 minutes has been deemed optimal. We can determine the minimum layover time by taking 20% of the 25 minute running time, which is five minutes. Adding up the running time in both directions, plus two six minute layovers on each end, means that we have a 60 minute minimum cycle time on this route. This works out perfectly, since 60 is divisible by the 30 minute headway that we were striving for. The cycle time divided by the headway equals the number of buses required to run the service. Since 60/30 = 2, two are required to run the service. Most of the time however, the optimal headway is not evenly divisible by the cycle time. In these cases, three things could happen: the layover time could increase, the headway could change, or the route could interline with another route. The last scenario mentioned has become increasingly common, and I hope to get the interlining post that I mentioned earlier up in the near future.

That’s it for this post. Please be sure to stay tuned for more posts from Miles and some more stuff by me in the future!

Kendal Green

Sep 26, 2016 | | 3 Comments

Kendal Green, Kendal Green, Kendal Green…yup, this is a station, all right. I think I’ve exceeded the number of interesting words I can possibly say in this intro…

Looking down the platform. By the way, that speck is an unfortunate presence on my camera lens…I really need to get that fixed.

Okay, the first thing to note about Kendal Green is that it’s a pretty small station. In fact, when my friend Nathan and I got out here, we were let off in the middle of the grade crossing! Another thing to note about this place is the fact that in order to board inbound trains, you have to cross the outbound track. They have pavement on the tracks to make it easier, but it’s certainly not an optimal setup.

Underneath the shelter.

This station has a rather charming building that provides a bit of shelter. Underneath it is a bench, a wastebasket, a bike rack (very convenient), a schedule, and…polls? Yes, for some reason there were election polls hung up on the wall. Is this really a place where people come to vote?

Looking the other way down the platform.

The rest of the tiny platform isn’t particularly noteworthy, and thus we move on to parking. Now, I actually didn’t know this place had a lot when I was here, so I’m basically relying on Google Street View and the MBTA website for my information. But yes, Kendal Green has a small lot with 57 spaces. It seems like it gets pretty full on weekdays, which could be bad if people can’t get in, but at least the parking’s free!

A train heading into Boston.

Station: Kendal Green

Ridership: Oh dear, not much at all…Kendal Green only gets 162 inbound riders per weekday. It’s the fourth least-used station on the Fitchburg Line.

Pros: This station definitely has charm to it, especially with that building. Its amenities are fine considering its ridership, and the free parking is nice, as well as the bike rack. Finally, I like the way this station is scheduled – outside of the peak, it’s always a flag stop. This is a good way of letting people get on if they’re there, but not having to hinder other passengers on the train if the platform is empty.

Cons: It’s just a very basic station. The platform is tiny, and there isn’t even one on the inbound side! That being said, I guess it does match the ridership.

Nearby and Noteworthy: No, the surrounding area is basically all houses. It’s only a mile to the closest 70 stop, though!

Final Verdict: 5/10
I dunno, it’s just…Kendal Green. I certainly see its charm, and it has a good amount of it, but the lack of an inbound platform is really bad. Even then, giving this a 6 would mean it’s better than Concord, which it most certainly isn’t. Kendal Green does its job fine, but it definitely has its fare share of problems.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

MBTA Bus Roadeo!

Sep 25, 2016 | | 5 Comments

This year, I got the chance to attend the 40th Annual MBTA Bus Roadeo, and it was an absolute blast! My friends Jordan, Nathan, Nick, Sam, and I met up at Sullivan at around 6:30, and then we walked over to Charlestown Garage where the Roadeo was taking place. When we got there, breakfast sandwiches and coffee were available, and people could go inside buses 1459 (an Xcelsior that’s barely been in service), 291 (an RTS converted to a work bus with trolley wires), and 2600 (an ancient GMC from 1957!).

The view of all three buses from across the yard.
A shot of 291 after it had been moved.
The inside! Slightly different from a regular RTS, eh?
A better view of 2600.
The inside! Those seats were comfy.
A look at the driving area.
Oh yes, they also had this tiny train-bus thing on display!
Ah, the MBTA’s failed Nova Bus prototype…

At around 7:30, the main event began. The Roadeo is a competition between the best drivers on the MBTA – there are a bunch of requirements just to be eligible to enter. It involves a course through Charlestown Yard, where drivers are tested on a variety of different criteria. Additionally, they are tested on uniform and posture, as well as being able to find defects on a bus.

Operator 68014 at the start of the course.

Also, I ended up volunteering as a “runner”. This meant that as the buses went around the course, I would go to each judging station and collect the scoresheets to bring back to the scorers. It was a really fun job, and I’m really glad I was able to help out!

Getting the handoff from judge Lorraine Landsburg! Photo credit to Sam.

But you guys want to hear about the course itself, don’t you? With humorous and energetic commentary blasting over the speakers, buses had to traverse 11 challenges in the course (there were also three more that I’ll discuss at the end). The first vehicle challenge was getting the bus’s wheels through tennis balls without knocking them over. They got closer as it went along, and they were already tight to begin with!

Operator 71340 about to head through the tennis balls, with judge Jay Orlando looking on.

After that, buses had to take a left-hand turn. This one was incredibly difficult, since the cones on either side were so tight! Each challenge was graded on a scale of 50 points, and with this one, 25 were lost from hitting one of the entrance cones leading into the turn. Buses also lost points for shifting into reverse.

72113 making the turn.

The next challenge was also a tough one, where buses had to reverse leftward into a narrow alley of cones, then come out again. It was hard to get through without hitting at least one! After that, buses would do the same thing but on the right, and then make a right-hand turn with more narrow cones.

69646 backing up.

Buses had to make a “stop” after that, judged by how far they were from the curb and whether they made ADA announcements or not. From there, the next challenge was a slalom, where vehicles had to navigate their way around a set of cones. They had to face the “Offset Street” challenge next, which involved running through a straight set of cones, then doing an s-curve to another set of cones.

A bus (not sure about the operator number) making a stop.

Buses had to make a second stop after the Offset Street, and then we got to the most exciting part of the course: the “Diminishing Clearance” challenge. Here, buses had to go at least 20 MPH while not hitting any barrels – then they had to stop as quickly as possible to avoid hitting one final cone. It was exhilarating seeing buses speed through, and cheers from the crowd and commentator would erupt every time a barrel was sent flying.

72019 about to barrel through the barrels! That’s a pun or something.

Another aspect of the Roadeo that was just as important as the course was finding bus defects. These were more behind-the-scenes, taking place at the garage, and involved drivers having to find eight defects on a vehicle. There was even a “bomb” on board! Drivers were also scored on their uniform -every aspect had to be absolutely perfect.

The Maintenance Roadeo.

Also happening in the garage was the Maintenance Roadeo. This was where members of maintenance teams would have to perform challenges on various bus parts, such as starting up an engine. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to spend a lot of time back there due to my “running” duties, but it seemed pretty cool!

Inside the big dining tent.

Once the events were over, it was time to eat! There was some absolutely fantastic barbeque at the Roadeo, and more than enough for everyone to dig in. They also had popcorn and cotton candy, a DJ, and a bounce house for the kids. Finally, the results were announced: in 1st Place was Reynaldo Beato right from Charlestown Garage!

Announcing the results.

Overall, the Roadeo was super fun! It was great to see the buses navigate around the course, and meeting a bunch of instructors while collecting sheets was a blast. Finally, I want to give a huge thanks to Justin Grizy and Lorraine Landsburg for inviting us in the first place and making this all possible. Hope to come back again next year!

Some buses lined up.
And with the Roadeo over, the Charlestown buses came back to pull out!

GUEST POST: Service Change: Transit in Madrid

Sep 22, 2016 | | 1 Comment

Here is Part 2 of Gabe W’s international transit journey. Great job as usual, Gabe!

Gabe here again! When I was last with you guys I was leaving Israel. Now, for the second part of the journey, we stayed in Madrid for five days! So, of course, our plane landed at Madrid-Barajas Airport, which is the main international airport serving Madrid (which is the capital of Spain). Now, all of the international departures and arrivals went through the HUGE Terminal 4 (there are other terminals). The reason the terminal is so big is because it is actually two terminals (T4 and T4S), which are connected by a two and a half kilometer long underground driverless people mover, aptly called the Airport People Mover. The system was built a lot like a subway shuttle line, so I counted it as a public transport system and took some pictures.

A map of the shuttle system. Terminal 4S contained “terminals” M, R, S, and U, while T4 contained H, J, and K.
This is what the front of each shuttle car looked like. It looks pretty similar to the Madrid Metro cars we’ll see in a little bit.
The interior of the car in front of us, packed with people. Also, if you look to the top of the picture, you can see a reflection of the car we were in. Of course, after we left the main terminal we just called a taxi to get to the new apartment.
The Madrid Metro is complicated. Not as much as NYC, but it still has 16 lines. Before we left Boston, dad printed out a map of the metro, and I spent about an hour pouring over it, trying to figure out how to get to the center of town. The good news is that the station closest to us (about half a mile away) was a transfer station, between a circular route that ran around the city surrounding the downtown area and one of the routes that cut right through the center. The Station’s name was Legazpi, and it was about 2 miles from the downtown area.
Now, Legazpi was a pretty innovative station. It was built around a rotary (which are really common in Madrid) and had three headhouses. The outer lane of the rotary was actually a busway, and it went right by the main headhouse. The main headhouse was a small, glass rectangular building with an entrance for the escalators in the front and elevators in the back.
The main entrance to Legazpi, with the escalator entrance showing.
The station as a whole was really clean and modern. After going through the spacious mezzanine (which had plenty of ticket machines), the fare control area was directly linked to the outbound platform of Line 3. Next to the ramp to the platform was an escalator down to the exchange level, where three other escalator pairs (both up and down) linked to the inbound platform and the other end of the outbound platform (there was a pair of elevators there too). There were also escalators down to the Line 6 platforms, but I never got to check them out, or ride the Line 6 at all.
The platforms themselves were quite clean, and had ample seating. A couple of scattered countdown clocks told us both the time, the ETA of the next train, and some other useful system information (delays on Line 2, shuttle service on line 5).
One of the ticket machines within the mezzanine. It looked quite similar to the ones in Boston.
A picture of some of the Metro tickets, taken the following day. The tickets cost more the further you go, so you have to enter your destination. You could go further than what the tickets “allow” you too, but we didn’t risk it.
Some information on the namesake of the station probably meant for visitors to Madrid and tourists. Too bad it was in Spanish…
A map of Line 3, with one side showing the station name and the other showing the connections.
The platforms for Line 3.
A Line 3 train on the outbound side. In the picture, you can see the ramp leading up to fare control and one of the escalators down to the exchange level. This type of train was used on both of the lines I rode upon, so I can assume it’s standard with the Metro system (not the light rail trains, of course).
The inside of the train that we rode inbound. Like the London subsurface trains, it was a continuous car, with 5 pivot points (so it was the length of a six car train).
The station that we got off at was the huge Sol station, a transfer between the 1, 2, and 3 lines. Like Legazpi, Sol was clean and modern, with a large main room that has passageways leading off from it. This room was a quick escalator ride from fare control and the mezzanine, and the main room was on level with Line 2.
One of the main hallways located within Sol. As you can see, there’s a busker within it, and the hallway leads to the escalators to the main room.
A view of fare control and the mezzanine from down the hall. Behind us is the exit to the Line 3 stairs, and way behind us is the Line 1 entrance seen in the previous image.
A picture of one of the entrances to Sol, in the NYC style. The banner states that the elevators are being fixed, and that there is no accessible service at the moment.
Here’s the main mezzanine, taken from within fare control. The mezzanine is clean, modern, and efficient, with ample fare gates and ticket machines. We exited both through this area and came through it later in the day, as we headed home.
Here’s a view of fare control past the main mezzanine. The escalators lead down to the bottom floor of the main room. You can see some of the ads within the station from here, as well as a sign directing the foot traffic.
A view of the main room, from atop the second floor (I took it from the area seen in the last picture). If you go to the right, you end up in the Line 3 hallway. If you go to the left, you head to Line 2. The entrance to line 1 is also to the right, but it comes up immediately after turning. The large black object hanging from the roof is actually a sculpture.
The next station we got to visit was Callao (pronounced Cay-yow), a transfer station between Line 3 and Line 5 (it also got commuter rail service, but we didn’t take it). Like the other stations, it was simple, modern, and efficient, though it had some nice decorations.
One of the entrances to Callao. This one was built like the standard NYC subway entrance, so the elevators were elsewhere in the square.
A picture of Callao’s main mezzanine, showing the escalator from the more modern entrance (it had the elevator) and the fare gates. Unlike the other stations I visited, the pillars here were metal and reflective, and not just painted white.
A close-up on one of the fare gates (standard throughout the system). The slit at the front is for the tickets, and the green circle at the top is where you place the smart cards for the system (think CharlieCard).
The Line 3 platform at Callao, looking quite similar to every single platform on Line 3 I had already seen.
One of the countdown clocks located at Callao. It was working perfectly, though my (phone) camera caught it at a weird moment. As you can see, it tells you the destination of the next train, the time till the next train, and some other fast-moving information.
The final station that I visited was Retiro, which I convinced my parents to go to after walking through the Royal Gardens (the other option was to go to Sol, which I had already been to). Retiro was on the Line 2, but was not a transfer station, and was two stops away from Sol. It seemed that the Madrid Metro had only modernized the transfer stations, as Retiro was old and not in good shape . The platforms were decaying, and there were stains on the walls. At least the technology (fare gates, ticket machines, countdown clocks, etc) was in top condition.
Retiro’s small mezzanine and fare control area. The ticket machines were located behind my current position to the right. I quite like how they put a countdown clock right at the entrance, so you would know if you had to run for the train.
Retiro’s platforms, not in the top condition. The concrete was faded and the walls were stained. At least there was no water dripping on the floor (I’m looking at you, Haymarket).
Both Line 2 and Line 3 (and probably the rest of the lines, due to a standard trainset) ran on overhead lines, which weren’t even wires! They were a third rail suspended above the train.
Finally, on the second to last day, I walked down to one of the main roads and took a couple pictures of the buses going by. According to Madrid’s website, the bus colors have meaning. The blue buses only operate routes within the city, while the green ones go out into the suburbs (there are also the express yellow buses, which go to nearby cities, and red buses have the same job as blue ones). At one point I had more pictures, but they were deleted by my sister (still don’t know how she did that).
A route 135 approaching from the distance.
A route 86, heading to “Vill. Alto”, which is the terminus for Line 3.
And so, after three weeks on an international adventure, I returned home to Logan Airport. However, my family and I were faced with a problem. My grandmother, who left us halfway through the trip, had driven us to the airport, so we had no way to get home. Luckily, the previous night, I had thought of a solution. We ended up taking the Silver Line SL1 to South Station, then taking the Providence/Stoughton Line to Sharon (review coming soon), and finally calling a cab to get home.
Did you know that the SL1 had countdown clocks at the airport? Well now you do, and they’re pretty accurate! The bus ended up coming two minutes late, but that’s pretty minimal.
I couldn’t get a picture of the front of the bus, so here’s the side.

And that’s it! Between buses and trains in Israel and the metro in Madrid, I think my trip was pretty transit filled!

GUEST POST: Service Change: Transit in Israel

Sep 20, 2016 | | 0 Comments

Gabe W. sent this guest post about transit in Israel. Thanks, Gabe! Look out for Part 2, which will talk about transit in Madrid.

Hello fellow MBTA riders! I’m Gabe W., a random reader of Miles’s fantastic blog. Recently, I took a two week international trip to Israel, with a stop in Spain. And while I did not do as much public transit riding as I wanted to, I do have many transit tales to share.

My trip began at Ben-Gurion International Airport, which is the largest and (as far as I know) the only international airport in Israel. The bad news was that the taxi fare to our AirBNB apartment was very expensive. The good news, at least for me, was that Israel Railways, the national passenger rail service within the country, had opened up a station at the airport. It was new enough that the only signs leading us to the station were standing banners. So, we followed the signs, baggage carts in hand, to get to the mezzanine of the station. However, as I discovered, my phone was dead (turns out playing games on a 7 hour flight is not good for your batteries). So I couldn’t take any photos of the train.
Let me set the scene: there’s a concrete pavilion, sheltered by a parking garage above. One side of the square is a small, grassy courtyard. On the opposite were the fare gates to get down to the below-grade platforms. On the adjacent side was an entrance to the drop-off and pick-up stretch of road, and on the opposing side of that was an entrance to the arrivals terminal.  There were only two ticket machines, so we had to wait for about 10 minutes to get on board. Dad spent this time conducting some research about where the nearest station to the apartment was. Turns out the train heading in that direction came in half an hour, so we didn’t have to rush (we determined this from the LED signboard above the ticket machines). When our turn came, we purchased two sets of 3 tickets (that was the maximum amount) to Tel-Aviv HaHagana railway Station. The immediate area after the fare gates was very bland, containing only the escalators/stairs down, the elevator down, and NOTHING ELSE. I guess they didn’t need to put benches there, because you could sit and wait on the platform, but it seems a bit of a waste of space. Secondly, with broken windows and exposed concrete, the area behind the double elevators was a mess. The platform was so much nicer. It was divided into two sides, with a median of plants in the middle. They were raised to be about 3 feet off the ground, and every fifty feet or so the median would disappear, and there would be a set of benches. There was also plenty of seating along the platforms, which I found nice. The countdown clocks went from 20 minutes to 10, 5, and finally a pair of headlights turned the corner. The train we got was one of their newer ones, a 6 car bilevel that had LED screens and announcements. The seats were all in a seat-table-seat configuration, and there were four per row. They were obviously comfier than the commuter rail seats, but they weren’t that plush. Our ride was only 3 stations long, but it was much smoother than any ride on the T. When we arrived, we followed some well-placed signs to the front, where we hailed a much cheaper cab.
A picture of the Israel Railways ticket, taken the following morning.
The next day, we tried to catch a bus. So, my family and I walked down the block till we reached the nearest bus stop. Even though it was a very minor stop, it was still way above anything that the MBTA would construct. It had a full metal shelter, including a cool hanging bench. It was pretty spacious, and all 6 of us could fit under it (it was also in pretty good quality, unlike many MBTA shelters). It even had a countdown clock, though it wasn’t on at the time that we rode (other stations had fully functioning ones).
The bus sign, in not-perfect condition (note that all the routes with the owl sticker were both day and night routes).
The countdown clock, which is obviously turned off.
The bus stop itself. The yellow papers posted on the side of the stop indicate which minibus routes stop at the station.
A minibus itself. These buses will not stop if they are full, and run their own routes. Being smaller and more quiet (and run by a different group), they cost an extra NIS (New Israeli Shekel).
After waiting for a couple of minutes and not having our bus arrive, a stranger passing by advised us to download Moovit, the bus app for Tel Aviv. One we found our station and consulted the app (which is very well designed), we found out that our bus would not be arriving for some time, so we decided to call a cab (again).
Once we finished going through the museum the bus was supposed to bring us to, we as a family decided to try taking a bus again. Walking down the street near the museum, we found a much bigger bus stop that was served by many routes. The stop itself was an assembly of three normal shelters, spread out over about 50 feet. After waiting for about 10 minutes, our bus arrived.
A random bus I saw while walking to our stop.
A view of the larger stop, showing the three shelters and a bench (it had a bike rack too).
Now, Israel’s buses are split into two groups. The first is Egged (pronounced egg-ed), the national bus corporation. Egged runs two types of routes: long distance ones that still make stops along the way (sometimes you will see random stops on the side of the highway, in the middle of the desert, that are served by 3 routes), and inner-city routes. The long distance routes use a tour-bus vehicle, while the inner-city buses usually use conventional buses. I say usually because the bus that rolled in to pick us up was built around a coach-bus frame, even though it was only travelling a couple of miles. The bus was quite comfy, with airline-style seating (though a bit more simple) and individual AC vents, which were fantastic due to the 90 degree weather.
The inside of the bus, showing the seating, AC, and scroll board up front.
The bus (so, us) pulled up next to a couple other routes at the next stop.
Some skyscrapers I saw on the route. Pretty cool looking.
A skyscraper in progress, I guess.
An advertisement for the up and coming Tel Aviv Light Rail, which looks to be very extensive.
Our bus finally arrived at the huge Tel Aviv Central Bus Terminal, a 7 story behemoth station (bus only, though an Israel National railway station was nearby) serving hundreds of routes. The station was mixed with a mall, so many of the levels had bus platforms on the exterior and shopping in the center. There was a complex system of ramps leading up to each level.
A view of the bus level serving our route. On the closest sign, the symbol to the left is the Dan bus symbol.
The next bus we got on was managed by the Dan Bus Company, which is the bus carrier of Tel Aviv itself. It was built like any other city bus, with grab bars, stop request buttons, and a scroll screen at the front. The route itself wasn’t that interesting, and was much more residential than the last one. Unsurprisingly, the bus stop we got off at was the same as every single one we had seen before, though only one module. Later in the day, we just hailed a cab to get back to the apartment.
The inside of the bus, looking pretty normal.
What a nice modern building! It reminds me of the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge.
Goodbye bus! Also, note the very quiet street.
The rest of our Israel trip was not transit related at all, as we rented out a car to drive around in. However, as we stayed in Israel for another week and a half, I tried to take as many photos as possible, so here’s a small collection of assorted ones.
A picture of the Jerusalem Light Rail system, which I snapped as our car was at a traffic light. When I asked, mom said that we didn’t ride the system because we had a rental car. Also, the system ran through the new, developed sections of the city, and we were staying in the historic Old City.
On the way back, while on the Tel Aviv section of one of the highways, I saw an Israeli Railways train passing us. It was one of the older trains, with single level cars in a blue livery, but it was a nice way to end the Israeli leg of our trip!
Note: Both pictures were taken from a moving car.

Assembly

Sep 14, 2016 | | 2 Comments

Oh yeahhhhh…this station exists! Ever since my insanely excited post from when Assembly first opened, this place has just disappeared from my mindset. I dunno…I don’t find Assembly Row particularly interesting, and the station never gets as many riders as the other ones on the Orange Line. But still, with the south entrance finally open, I can properly review this thing once and for all! Welcome to the newest station on the MBTA.

The platform.

Assembly’s platform is like any other station on the northern Orange Line, except more modern. The concrete is brighter, and some nice metal is used for the ceiling. The station has numerous benches, including a few in those classic pointless Orange Line bench shelters. Good to know they still decided to include those! Finally, wastebaskets, help points, and historical information about the area are dotted around the platform.

Looking down towards the northern entrance.

It’s also worth noting that the platform has a little bus shelter for Customer Service Agents – two, to be exact. Now, what’s the point of a CSA, exactly? To help out customers, of course. The problem with having them at Assembly is that it doesn’t get that many customers! So you basically have two CSAs just hanging out in their shelter talking to each other. What an excellent use of resources.

Heading up to the main entrance.

Going towards the main entrance to the north, we have another typical Orange Line setup. Yes, it’s that classic elevator-stairs-escalator exit! Still, I have nothing to complain about – it works pretty well, and this one looks way better than other Orange Line stations because of the glass and generally nicer-looking materials used.

Fancy fare gates!

Of course, we can’t talk about Assembly’s mezzanine without bringing up the awesome new fare gates! Although this isn’t the only place on the system where they exist anymore (Government Center uses them, too), Assembly is where they originally came into service. As for the rest of the mezzanine, it’s pretty small, but it’s well-designed for handling lots of people.

I had to do it, I couldn’t resist!

However, the mezzanine also features bathrooms! I simply had to check one of them out, and I was fearing the worst. However, it ended up being pretty nice. They’re only one stall each, but they (the men’s room, at least) were pretty clean overall. Great job, Assembly!

The entrance.

From the mezzanine, a footbridge leads over one of the Orange Line tracks, and then we’ve got another classic Orange Line setup to the ground – elevator, stairs, escalator. The main entrance is pretty nice and modern, with lots of glass. Of course, the area to which it leads hasn’t really developed yet, so you have to walk through a bunch of construction to actually get to Assembly Row.

This is incredibly bleak.

The parking at Assembly is a little dubious. There’s no mention of anything on the MBTA website, but that’s because it doesn’t actually own any lots here. However, Assembly Row does have a parking lot for commuters. It’s not too big, but it’s an alternative to Wellington or Sullivan if those places are full. The fee is $6.00 per day, just like Assembly’s neighboring stations.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the station…

With the completion of the Partners Healthcare building in Assembly Square, the other entrance to the station is now open! It’s…uh…basically the main entrance, except smaller. Oh well, it still provides an easier way for people working at Partners to get onto the train. This was the main reason I was waiting to review this place, but it, uh, didn’t seem to be too worth it. Oh well.

Two trains at the station.

Station: Assembly

Ridership: According to this document, Assembly got 1,864 riders per day in 2015 – that makes it one of the least-used stations on the system. Now, I understand that it’s new and maybe people aren’t using it too much, so let’s check out its predicted ridership: 5,000 people per day by 2030. Welllllllllllll…that puts it at around a Community College level. That’s not really saying much.

Pros: For an Orange Line station, Assembly is definitely pretty in the aesthetics department. Serving a rapidly developing neighborhood, it has a simple, straightforward design that allows for the transport of lots of people…not that it’ll ever have to.

Cons: Yeah, Assembly isn’t the best for ridership…but it certainly has helped the development of the surrounding area. Also, I wish the station had a bit more character to make it stand out, but that’s ultimately not too important, and the historical information does the job just fine.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Assemblyyyyyyyyyy Rowwwwwwwwww…yeah, okay, I don’t like it as much as other people do. I’m sorry, but I find high-end clothing stores boring!

Final Verdict: 8/10
Even though I continue to forget this station exists (“Alright, next stop Wellington! Oh wait…”), it has to be said that Assembly is a pretty good one. It’s clean, straightforward, and modern, and it’s certainly a great way for all you shoppers out there to get to Assembly Row. That said, I don’t think I’ll be using it any time soon…

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

Sam’s Operational Oculi- Lynn Garage

Sep 12, 2016 | | 0 Comments

Miles’s teachers aren’t being too nice as of late, giving him tons of homework and eating away his time to write on here. So you might be stuck with me for a little while….



Anyways, today we’re going to talk about Lynn Garage, the MBTA’s operational hub for all routes in the north shore. In many ways, it is similar to Quincy Garage. In many more ways, it is very different. Let’s get started.
The 459 in Salem. All pictures taken by me (Sam Hegg)



Lynn probably has the largest geographical service area of all of the garages, stretching from Downtown Boston to North Beverly, about 17 miles as the crow flies. And to get between these two places, you only need to transfer once. The MBTA has some long routes running out of  Lynn, including the longest of them all, the 459, which can take over 2 hours to complete a one way trip. Lynn has an incredible variety of routes, which include express, inner city, and suburban routes, and 1-2 Key Bus Routes (depending on how you would count the 116/117).



It’s hard to know where to begin when trying to describe all of Lynn’s crazy routes. The 121 is a short, rush hour only feeder that connects people from a small residential part of East Boston to the Blue Line and Boston. The 120 is a crazy one; with a loop on each end around two Blue Line Stations. The 116 and 117 are also crazy, but in a different way; essentially one key bus route, but taking different routes into Wonderland. The high ridership portion from Maverick to Bellingham Square also sees some extra service. The 434 runs one inbound trip every weekday morning, and one outbound in the evening. It connects Haymarket and Peabody Square via the Tobin. The 426 is an express route all day on weekdays, with one express trip waiting for the last trains to arrive at Haymarket. I’d love to know how many people use that one. The 451 goes from Salem to North Beverly, the furthest north an MBTA bus will take you. And then there’s the 459 which connects Downtown Boston and Salem Depot in a 2 hour plus tour featuring the great places known as Lynn, Swampscott, and Salem. The point I hope I have made here is that there is no such thing as a typical Lynn route, and we haven’t come close to covering all of the unique routes that run out of here.



The 121 in Maverick



Lynn is very similar to Quincy in terms of fleet. Both fleets consist of 2008 New Flyer D40LFs. Lynn’s fleet also includes 19 2006 New Flyers, acquired from the Charlestown and Somerville garages in early 2015 after those garages accepted an order of 60 Hybrid “Xcelsior” buses. Both Quincy and Lynn have no plans to accept any of these hybrids in the immediate future, in part due to height restrictions near Central Square, Lynn. The T will roll out over 750 of these “Xcelsiors” over the next five years or so, so chances are these may come to Lynn and Quincy. On the whole, however, Lynn Garage’s fleet is in excellent condition, so there is no rush in doing this.



Quincy Garage and Lynn Garage also have their fair share of differences. Namely, Lynn is much better at minimizing the number of deviations. Instead, Lynn would much rather create a new route if the bus will be travelling a different way. For example, the 114, 116, and 117 have a very similar route that somewhat resembles all of the 225’s deviations. The 441 and 442 have an identical route except for a small portion in Marblehead where they run their separate ways. The 448 and 449 follow the routes of the 441 and 442 respectively, running express into Downtown. I can imagine if these were Quincy routes, they would all be given one route number, and a half a dozen variants. This is much easier on the customer as they can see very clearly what bus they are getting on and where exactly it’s going. Most people just look at the route number before boarding, so this numbering scheme saves so much time and confusion as opposed to combining all of these different routings under one number.
The elusive 428 in the North End



The other thing of note about Lynn Garage is its’ garage itself. It is positioned perfectly as to be close to both Salem and Downtown, places that buses must be able to deadhead to quickly and efficiently. Several routes go right outside, and driver changes, or “swing ons” right out front are a daily occurrence. Some pull outs and pull backs are run as service trips, beginning and ending in “West Lynn”. I know I said previously that Lynn is much better at cutting back on variants, however I must contradict that statement and say that many people fail to pay attention to the bus and have to wait in West Lynn for a bus to Wonderland, or whatever their destination may be.

Lynn Garage is definitely one of the more unique garages in the system. I mean, where else do you get a last train express bus? Lynn has many quirks, and I definitely wouldn’t say it’s my favorite garage in the system, or the best planned garage either. However considering the service area it’s given, it does do an adequate job of interconnecting the North Shore. I will probably be back in the very near future with a look at another quirky garage, Southampton. I also might have a completely different operational post coming soon, so stay tuned!

Miles on the Internet: mbta.com

Sep 11, 2016 | | 4 Comments

Here’s something I’ve realized during my explorations of RTAs: transit websites are often terrible and I love to rant about them. Then I realized that instead of ranting to friends, why not rant about them on the blog? Welcome to Miles on the Internet, where we’ll be reviewing various transit websites! Now, it has to be said that not all transit websites are awful – for example, the one we’ll be looking at today, the MBTA website!

I’m sure almost all of you will recognize this home page!

There’s a lot of information packed into the MBTA’s homepage, and for a newcomer, it can seem pretty overwhelming. Having used the website so many times, I have it down pat and know where to go, but I can definitely see someone getting confused here. Still, there’s a lot of important stuff in here – you can find any schedule, plan a trip, and get service updates, all within the same page.

What the heck??

Don’t get me wrong, I like the overall structure of the MBTA’s schedule pages. While subway pages will only give you line diagrams (and basic headways if you click on the PDFs), the other ones display a full schedule with links to PDF files and service updates for the route on the right. There are annoying quirks with these pages, though: for one thing, they set to weekday by default, even if it’s a weekend; for another, bus routes with extended early morning or late night variants end up looking like the schedule above. You have to scroll way over to the right to get any proper information, and I usually end up just clicking on the PDF. The “Interactive Street Maps” of the routes are also functional, although for some reason they default to early morning variants of certain buses, which is very misleading.

The fares page.

Clicking on the “Fares and Gifts” section gives you a rather daunting page of every possible MBTA fare. For the record, it’s a heck of a lot easier just to click on an individual mode to narrow down your search. Also…uh, Charlie? Could you move your finger a bit? You’re, uh, blocking a few words…Charlie? Oh, never mind…

The “Riding the T” section.

The “Riding the T” part of the website is basically the place to go for miscellaneous rider information. It has pages about rules for bikes and pets, information on accessibility and parking, and directions to Logan Airport. The presence of a “Government Center Project” page is pretty outdated, though – the station’s been open for quite a while now!

“Welcome to the T”!

“About the MBTA” essentially covers the “behind the scenes” aspects of the system. It includes pages about the MassDOT Board, the T’s history, MBTA news, and a rather scary-looking page about finances. Their “T Projects” page could use a bit of updating, though – isn’t everyone excited for the Salem Station upgrade, currently in “planning”? Try “it’s been open for two years”!

In case you’re in need of support.

The last three tabs on the website aren’t particularly interesting or useful to the average rider. “Customer Support” mostly covers complaints, as well as a heck of a lot of forms. “Safety” is what you would expect, and it’s only noteworthy for including the wonderfully bad “Safety Bounce” video, which I implore you to watch if you haven’t seen it already. Finally, the “Transit Police” page is all about fighting crime on the system.

The Transit Police page.
Website: mbta.com
Usability: Although it can seem overwhelming at first, the MBTA website is pretty easy to navigate once you know where you’re going. I particularly like how each section is color-coded, which makes things organized. The home page offers almost all of what you would need to know, but also a lot of what you wouldn’t.
Speed: The MBTA website is generally pretty fast, and pages load at a standard speed. The only places I have trouble are the subway stop diagram pages – the Green Line takes forever to load in!
Information: The site has a staggering amount of information about the system, and if someone wanted to dig deep into obscure T info, they totally could. You sometimes have to poke around if you need something specific (the photo policy, for example), but the average rider wouldn’t care too much about things like that – and schedule and fare information is very easily found.
Final Verdict: 8/10
I like the T website overall, and the average rider shouldn’t find too many issues with it. That said, some of the bus schedules are incredibly annoying with their huge amounts of blank space – there must be a better way to show that the route has once-a-day variants! Also, some of the info can be outdated, but they generally do a good job of updating what most people will be looking at. Finally, the ads on the site can be awfully clickbaity sometimes, although they’re not too hard to avoid. Overall, although it suffers from some clutter and a few major problems, the MBTA website is one of the best ones out there!

Bloom Bus Lines (Taunton, Raynham, Easton, and West Bridgewater – Boston)

Sep 10, 2016 | | 6 Comments

Ooooh, now this is a very interesting one indeed! I had no idea this service even existed until my friend Sam and I took a trip down to Taunton and discovered its schedule hanging on the wall! Well, we had to give it a ride, didn’t we?

The bus coming into the Bloom Terminal.

So what the heck is the Bloom Bus? Well, it’s a coach bus line that runs local with stops at Taunton, Raynham, Easton, and West Bridgewater, then express right into Boston! Its fare is a flat $11.00 to get from any of those four stops into the city, and it uses pretty standard coaches to run the route.

The inside of the bus.

Of course, I would be remiss to talk about this bus without mentioning its bathroom! The inside is decent enough for a coach bus bathroom (it’s not like you can expect much), but keep in mind that the door is really narrow. It can be a tight squeeze to get in.

It’s beautiful!
We left the Bloom Bus Terminal in Taunton (The name makes sense now, doesn’t it?) and headed down Oak Street, which immediately became Washington Street. The Bloom Bus has limited stops and downtown Taunton isn’t one of them, so we just stayed on Washington, bypassing the downtown. We did go by a hospital, though, as well as a few houses.

A street corner.

We then merged onto Broadway, which was mostly lined with houses, and also a cemetery. Occasionally, an industrial or retail building would pop up, and we also passed another graveyard. Actually, after that second cemetery, Broadway became way more industrial. Auto shops, anyone?

Some random industrial building.

We eventually got a break from the industry (having entered Raynham) with…oh great, a Walmart. If GATRA were up here, I’m sure it would’ve made a deviation! Luckily, we still made no stops as we continued up Broadway, which was now residential. Did it last long? Not really – we started seeing businesses again soon.

A pretty major intersection.

We crossed over I-495, and the street got more woodsey after that. Still, there was a bit of retail and industry that showed up, as well as a trailer park and an ice skating rink. And then…we arrived at one of the largest, most empty parking lots I’ve ever seen. Turns out this was our first stop, as we pulled into the lot (primarily for a dog track, but there’s plenty of space to park for the bus) and looped around. No one was waiting to get on at the small shelter, so we continued up Broadway.

Oh my oh my…

It was pure forest after that, and no buildings broke the trees as we came into Easton. Eventually, we went under some telephone wires, then passed a variety of buildings in a short amount of time – houses, residential developments, an industrial building, and a golf driving range (along with a mini-golf course). At the next intersection, we turned onto Route 106 (Foundry Street), where there were a few businesses.

A pretty generic intersection.

We went by a couple of housing developments, crossed over a small river, and then some more development – residential and retail. We then made a loop around another park-and-ride, and this one had no riders, either. Thus, we rounded a cloverleaf interchange and headed onto Route 24 – next stop, Boston!

Highway pictures are hard…

The view from the highway started out as trees…and that’s about it. We were able to see lots of industrial development in Brockton, however. After that, there were houses pretty close to the freeway, but they were hard to see through the trees. We symbolically passed the Westgate Mall (I sure as heck couldn’t see it), where two trips per day deviate on request to serve Brockton, but this was not one of those trips – we sailed right through.

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s…a plane.

We got some more woods from there, interspersed with random highway development on neighboring streets. Eventually, we reached Route 24’s final interchange, curving north onto I-93. This part of the interstate was forested, but we reached development in Braintree very soon.

Some random office building.

It started to get much denser past Braintree, and we could actually see…stuff! The highway went into its short tunnel at East Milton Square, and we passed through a marsh, then went over the Neponset River. We went by the famous Keystone Apartments, (201 and 202, woooo!) and the road came alongside the water, with a view of that classic rainbow gas tank.

This came out…better than expected!

The highway came up along the Red Line, and we went by Savin Hill Station. We curved over the tracks near JFK/UMASS Station, and passed the South Bay Center soon after. It was industrial from there as we passed Southampton Garage (both Amtrak and MBTA), then the freeway went elevated over Albany Street.

Nice view!

We took the South Station exit, and I assumed we would run on that connector road that leads to the bus terminal. Instead, we just took the normal exit onto Lincoln Street. At this point, the driver turned around and shouted “Is anyone going to South Station?” No one on the bus was, although the “South Station” stop really isn’t at South Station – we’ll discuss that later. Anyway, since no one was going there, we turned onto Kneeland Street.

Kneeland Street is busy!

We headed through Chinatown, then the Theatre District. After that, Stuart Street became one-way in the opposite direction, so we had to turn onto Charles Street South, then Park Plaza. This led us past some tall buildings (apartments, perhaps), and then we looped onto Stuart Street via Arlington Street. And…this was the last stop. Just some random block with no signage at all. Huh.

The bus at its “stop”.

Route: Bloom Bus Lines (Taunton, Raynham, Easton, and West Bridgewater – Boston)

Ridership: My trip was practically empty, with only two other people riding – however, this was a reverse-peak trip, so of course it wasn’t going to get that many people. In terms of overall ridership, the best statistics I can find are from this article, published at the beginning of 2014. (on my birthday!) Ignoring that fact that it’s from a Beverly-based news site (a town which the Bloom Bus doesn’t go anywhere near), it said that the route got 350-400 riders per day at the time. The route had 13 round trips per day, then, which means about 10-15 people per trip. Not a bad average, considering that most reverse peak trips won’t get anyone.

Pros: Taunton has no Commuter Rail service as of yet (we’ll see if South Coast Rail will change that), so this bus is incredibly useful for commuters in that area. All of the route’s suburban stops offer parking, so people can drive in and grab the Bloom to get into Boston. The buses the route uses are comfortable, and the schedule is pretty darn good – the route runs every half hour in the peak direction, and service is provided consistently throughout the day (minus a bit of a gap in the late morning). It even runs on Saturdays and Sundays, with two morning and two evening round trips.

Cons: The fare system for the route is rather wonky – yes, $11.00 from Taunton to Boston is essentially the same price as Commuter Rail, which is great. But since it’s a flat fare, it would also cost $11.00 to go from Taunton to Raynham, for example. I’m not saying anyone would do this, but they could maybe encourage local travel by having cheaper “interzone” fares in the suburbs. The other problem with the route is its stops in Boston – they could really use some signage. How is anyone supposed to know where the bus boards when it just stops on random city blocks? Also, the “South Station” stop is actually two blocks from the station itself, but I’ll let it slide.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Taunton doesn’t have a reputation for being the best town ever, but if you’re going there for whatever reason, this is the route to use.

Final Verdict: 8/10
This is by far the best way of getting from Boston to Taunton (sorry, GATRA). It’s comfortable, it’s cheap, and it’s reasonably fast if traffic cooperates. Just make sure you check their boarding locations in Boston before heading out – they can be hard to find. Also, don’t plan on taking this thing locally in the suburbs, since it’s way too expensive. But still, this bus is awesome! I know I’ll definitely use it again next time I ride some GATRA routes down in Taunton.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

MBTA Excuse Generator

Sep 7, 2016 | | 1 Comment

I’m sorry for not being able to post much – work coming into the first week of school has been tough. Here’s a fun little website I found, though, called MBTA Excuse Generator. Many of you have probably already heard of it as it’s been circling around the internet, but if you haven’t, it generates fake MBTA Tweets about delays. Some of them are hilarious! Check it out here.

GATRA: 8 (East Taunton/Raynham Walmart)

Sep 5, 2016 | | 0 Comments

*TRUMPET BLASTS* WELCOME…TO THE BUSIEST ROUTE ON THE GATRA! BOW BEFORE ITS GREATNESS! GAZE IN AWE UPON ITS MANY DEVIATIONS! I INTRODUCE TO YOU…THE 8!

The bus at Walmart.

What’s more, the bus it was using was a shiny new New Flyer MiDi, which was great to see! On board this beautiful bus, we left Walmart, already with a good amount of people on board, and headed down Paramount Drive. It was office park land until we made our way to South Street East, which was more residential (although we also went by a gigantic Buddhist temple).

Leaving onto Paramount Drive.

As we crossed the Taunton River, we passed an old factory converted into condominiums, then went over a railroad crossing. It was at this point that the street became Old Colony Ave and the houses got denser – we were in Taunton. There were some businesses as we turned onto Middleboro Ave, but it soon went back to being residential.

A little pizza shop.

After passing a lot of identical houses as part of a development, we reached the intersection with Caswell Street, which housed a few businesses. Middleboro Ave curved north, and we crossed another level crossing with a train track. After that, we turned onto Stevens Street, which went over the train track on a bridge.

A residential side street.

The street was lined with houses, although we also passed a church at one point. Eventually, though, the road widened and there were office parks on both sides. Next, we turned onto County Street, entering the ridiculously long Silver City Galleria deviation. It required looping around the whole complex, with stops at Bertucci’s, the main entrance, and Bristol Community College.

A view of the mall.

From there, we headed onto…the highway? Yes, the 8 actually has a short express portion on Route 140! However, after the next exit, it became a regular road, and we turned onto Mozzone Boulevard after another railroad level crossing. The scenery? Businesses with parking lots and office parks.

NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT THE T-REX!

Next, we turned onto Allison Ave, which led us to a deviation into a small shopping plaza, Taunton Depot. After that, we made our way back onto Route 140 (County Street), going by some housing developments. There were a few businesses at “Hart’s Four Corners”, which is considered a major stop on the route. Here, we turned onto Hart Street.

A liquor shop.

At this point, the route got interesting. You see, our trip was scheduled to be a school trip, running up to the Taunton High School. But school wasn’t in session during my ride, so of course GATRA wouldn’t deviate to serve it right? Right? HAHAHAHA, NOPE. WE TURNED ONTO JOHNSON STREET, HEADIN’ UP ON TOWARDS THE SCHOOL!

Some houses.

Johnson Street was mostly residential, but we did see some retail as we crossed County Street. We went under some telephone wires, then merged back into County Street, which was also residential by this point. From there, we left the road and headed up towards the high school. Wanna guess how many people we picked up? ZERO. NO REALLY, I’M NOT LYING! PRETTY HARD TO BELIEVE, BUT IT’S TRUE.

What’s this? The empty parking lot for the school? Gee, if cars have the sense not to come here in the summer, why not GATRA?
From that incredibly busy deviation, we headed back to County Street, which crossed over the Taunton River. At this point, we rejoined the regular route…in the wrong direction. That’s right, we had to head down Ingell Street like an outbound bus in order to serve a residential neighborhood. Don’t get me wrong, this would make perfect sense if the bus had students on it, but…it didn’t. BECAUSE IT’S SUMMER.
Going over the Taunton River.
Ingell Street was lined with houses for a bit, then it became industrial. We went over yet another railroad level crossing, and reached some businesses as we turned onto Weir Street. There were some houses, a big factory, and another railroad crossing, then it became residential with some businesses sprinkled in. 
What a lovely…um…lot.
Weir Street led us into downtown Taunton, where retail abounded, of course. Now, for some reason, the inbound 8 deviates to serve the Taunton “Historic Courthouse” and I have no idea why – no other GATRA routes do this. Regardless, it meant turning onto Court Street, going by deserted buildings and parking lots. Finally, we turned onto Washington Street, and after one final level crossing with a railroad, we entered the Bloom Bus Terminal.
The bus setting out on another outbound journey.
GATRA Route: 8 (East Taunton/Raynham Walmart)
Ridership: Like I said, this is GATRA’s busiest route, so prepare for astronomically high numbers. Are you ready for this? About 315 people per weekday and 190 per Saturday. WOOOOOOOWWWWWWW. My trip got about 15 people, which is simply huge for GATRA! I mean…crazy!
Pros: It’s a GATRA route that people use! That alone is incredible! It’s also the only full route to serve the southeastern part of Taunton (the 3 is rush hour only), including some busy malls. It has that classic GATRA schedule of every hour Monday-Saturday, and it works.
Cons: Some of those deviations can feel too long, but I guess if they get people, there’s nothing wrong with them. And, uh, yeah, I guess that’s it for the cons. OH WAIT YEAH WHY THE HECK DID WE SERVE THE SCHOOL IN THE SUMMER?
Nearby and Noteworthy: A lot of people use this route for shopping, and you can too! If you really want to go all the way out to Taunton, of course…
Final Verdict: 8/10
Ayyyyyy, the 8 gets an 8! Honestly, it’s really the ridership that sells it for me, since it gets so much more than any other GATRA route (about 100 more riders than the second-busiest route, the 10). The 8 may be a windy crazy trip, but hey – at least it gets people! But you know where we got no people? Oh yeah, THE SCHOOL. Only GATRA would serve a freaking school in the middle of summer…
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates

GATRA: 7 (School Street/Raynham)

Sep 3, 2016 | | 0 Comments

The 7 is a bit odd for GATRA. For one thing, it has a completely different map style from any other GATRA route. Also, it leaves Taunton at different times than most other routes from there. And finally, it’s really good about not making deviations! Well, we’re off to a good start in that regard.

The bus at Taunton.

We left the Bloom Terminal and headed down Oak Street, going over a railroad track. We passed a few suburban businesses, then turned onto Court Street and entered downtown Taunton. Heading around the Taunton Green, we went by some businesses and municipal buildings, then turned onto School Street.

Downtown Taunton.

The somewhat narrow road soon became lined with mostly dense, multi-story houses. We passed a development by the name of Thomas Apartments, and though it was a major stop, we luckily didn’t deviate to serve it. The houses became single-family from there, unlike the majority of the ones back towards town.

These houses were closer to downtown.

There was a little corner store at the intersection with Winter Street, onto which we turned. As we passed mostly industrial buildings, the street became Longmeadow Road. Next, we turned onto the wide Dean Street, going by a social security office and some other office buildings, as well as the Taunton River.

Turning onto Dean Street.

It’s at this point that the 7 makes a rather odd routing. The main drag of this area is Route 44, which is lined with a bunch of different malls and parking lots. However, probably for safety reasons pertaining to picking people up on a highway, the 7 runs down the narrow South Street West, serving the backs of malls instead. We didn’t even deviate to the fronts, and ironically, someone in a wheelchair got on along this section!

The other side of South Street was mostly sparse houses.

Eventually we merged back onto Route 44, crossing over the Route 24 freeway. There was a mixture of office parks and businesses with parking lots on the other side of the crossing. Next, we turned onto Paramount Drive, then into the parking lot for a Walmart. This was where my friend Sam and I got off in order to transfer to the 8, but the 7 does extend slightly further past Walmart – it runs to a trailer park called Pinehill Estates.

The bus at Walmart.

GATRA Route: 7 (School Street/Raynham)

Ridership: I’m surprised to see that the 7 only gets about average ridership for GATRA’s weekday Attleboro/Taunton routes, with approximately 130 riders, and below average on Saturdays – 60 people. My weekday trip was actually quite busy (for GATRA), with over 10 riders!

Pros: This is the fastest way of getting to Walmart from Taunton, making the trip in about 20 minutes (the alternative, the 8, takes 45 minutes to get there). It also serves other businesses along South Street West, and houses on the School Street section. The 7’s schedule is standard for GATRA, with every hour headways Mondays through Saturdays.

Cons: You know, I thought the 7’s ridership was pretty good before, but in all honesty, very few people use this thing on Saturdays – it averages out to about 3 people per trip. This shows that service could probably be reduced, or perhaps start later or end earlier. Weekday ridership seems good, though.

Nearby and Noteworthy: If you’re trying to get from Taunton to Walmart, the 7 is the way to go. There are a few other businesses along South Street West, as well.

Final Verdict: 7/10
Ayyyy, the 7 gets a 7! No, but seriously, this is a good route that seems to get a good amount of people on weekdays. On Saturdays, though, it might be beneficial to shave off a trip each in the morning and evening – the every hour schedule works well, but ridership is probably higher midday on the route.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
I’m back from Portland, Oregon! I’m finishing up the GATRA posts I hadn’t written yet first, and then I have a slew of posts in store about the public transit system over there, the TriMet. I also want to give a huge thanks to my friend Sam Hegg for managing the blog while I was gone – check out his Operational Oculi if you haven’t already!