Poll of the Week 4/19
170 (Central Square, Waltham – Dudley Square)
Third time’s the charm, as they say. That certainly held true for the 170: I tried twice to catch it, and failed both times. Finally, on my third attempt, I managed to catch it. “So why couldn’t you have just waited for the next one?” you may ask. Well, that’s the catch: it only runs twice a day in each direction.
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| It looks so sad and lonely… |
Luckily, the bus to Waltham (I took the 553) arrived a half hour before the 170 was scheduled to leave. I was able to finally ride this rare route. We left the Waltham Commuter Rail station with…two people. The other guy was having a spirited conversation with the bus driver, while I was just awkwardly sitting in the back looking out the window.
We headed up Lexington Street, which was mostly businesses, then we turned onto Dale Street, going by a large baseball field. We then turned again onto – I’m not kidding here – Bacon Street. But rather than being filled with meat, it was actually a more suburban street, bordering on rural. When we merged into Lexington Street, it was less woodsey with more closely spaced houses – but they still seemed rather large.
We went by the Waltham High School, a massive complex hidden in the woods, then we went through a section with endless forest on one side of the road and large houses on the other. There was a large shopping complex when we turned onto Lake Street, though, and then Lake Street felt like a normal suburb. There was even a cute playground complex.
It started to get weird again when Lake Street became Lincoln Street. I could sort of tell when we went by the “Briar Glen Village” gated community. It became pseudo-rural once again. When we turned onto Wyman Street, we were surrounded by forest with large office park complexes looming behind the trees. There was some “stuff” when we turned onto Winter Street, namely a weird motel that nobody in their right mind would want to stay at. I’ll bet it’s cheap, though.
We crossed over I-95, and I actually recognized the area as I took swimming lessons near here when I was very young. We did a u-turn around a fountain in the middle of the road, then turned onto 2nd Ave. It started to get even weirder over here. This was basically a huge complex of random office parks, and it was where people started getting on.
The stops were really far apart over here, and once 2nd Ave became Bear Hill Road it started twisting around like crazy. Eventually Bear Hill Road was just paralleling I-95, but it was just plain rural by this point. There was a dramatic change once we turned onto Main Street, joining the 70 route. The area was all of a sudden very thickly settled, and soon it became urban as we came back into Waltham Center.
We turned onto Moody Street, and I assumed we would make a loop around Waltham Common to serve the Commuter Rail station but we ended up bypassing it entirely. Crossing over the Charles River, it was still quite urban, with many small businesses lining the road. Eventually we turned onto River Street, and that was more residential fare. It was normal, though, unlike the weird pseudo-rural areas we had been to before.
We then turned onto Elm Street, and there were some businesses again once we got to I-90 and West Newton Station. Turning right on Washington Street (instead of left, like the other buses that go on Elm Street), we crossed over I-90, then merged on. The driver floored it, as usual, and we barreled down the highway, going through (yes, through) a Shaws and a hotel, then later going through the toll plaza and onto a bridge, then going past Fenway Park and into a tunnel.
We had been lucky with traffic, but it started to accumulate in the tunnel. Luckily we were getting off at this exit (unlike the other I-90 routes), though everyone else seemed to want to take it too. Turns out there was a baseball game and this is the closest exit to Fenway Park, but we had an easy time since the way to Fenway Park branches off of the road.
Still, the tunnel had been dingy and dark so I was happy when we came out and turned onto Dartmouth Street, joining the 10 route. Almost everyone got off at Back Bay, leaving only three people. The guy who had been talking with the driver the whole time also got off here, but not before sharing a hug with him.
I had talked about the lovely brick apartments in my review of the 10, and they were still great when I took the 170. And the sudden transition to a not-so-great neighborhood happened at Tremont Street once again. But we turned onto Washington Street, leaving the 10 and joining up with the Silver Line. Interestingly (and annoyingly), we didn’t use the bus lane at all. I’m not sure if it was just this particular driver (though it’s not like there would be a lot for a twice a day bus route), but it was kind of annoying.
The remaining person got off on Washington Street, but surprisingly another person got on at the same stop. When we got to Dudley, the bus said “Not in Service,” and presumably would make a non-revenue run back to Waltham to start the route again.
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| The 170 is a very rare sight to see. |
Route: 170 (Central Square, Waltham – Dudley Square)
Ridership: There ended up being about 20 people who rode. I was somewhat surprised that only about half of them came from the office parks.
Pros: Having an express from Waltham to Back Bay and Dudley seems great. There’s only one small problem…
Cons: It runs twice a day! Not to mention it only goes in one direction depending on the time, and it’s weekdays only. Also, the bus doesn’t go to the Commuter Rail station after going around the long, weird loop. I feel it should stop at it in case people want to go from Waltham to Dudley without spending an extra half hour going through the middle of nowhere. Granted, it stops pretty close to the station, but still…
Nearby and Noteworthy: Unless you like office parks and forests, there’s no reason to take this bus. There’s stuff in Waltham Center and in Boston (of course), but you wouldn’t take the 170 exclusively for those.
Final Verdict: 3/10
The route itself isn’t bad, though I wish it stopped at the Commuter Rail station after the loop. However, its schedule drags down the score quite a bit. I feel they could have a few runs midday that omit the loop, and just go from the Waltham Commuter Rail station to Dudley. I’m not sure if anyone would use it, though…
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
Random Photos: X-treme Bunching
You may remember how in my 77 post, I talked about how the bus bunches…a lot. Well, I now have proof. I saw four 77’s in a row on Mass Ave, and though one of them made it through the light before the others, I still got pictures of three of them.
10 (City Point – Copley Square via Andrew Station and BU Medical Center)
I had been eager to get my review of the 7 out quickly, which I had used to get back from City Point, but for some reason I wasn’t as excited to do my way of getting there, the 10. I’m not sure why this is, but finally I’m reviewing it. Better late than never, right?
The 10 has a smaller loop at Copley than other buses, but it still boards at the main stop on Saint James Ave. Leaving there, we headed down Huntington Ave, then turned onto Stuart Street, then Dartmouth Street. We stopped at Back Bay (but didn’t go into the actual busway), then as the street got narrower, we went through a beautiful neighborhood lined with brick apartments.
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| The 10 pulling into the Copley Square bus stop. |
But after we crossed Tremont Street, there was a dramatic change. The charming apartments were now tenements and projects, not to mention the high school with the 10 foot tall chain link fence surrounding it. There was a cool cathedral near Washington Street, though.
We made our way to the Boston Medical Center via a somewhat crazy route – ultimately we ended up on Mass Ave, that’s all you need to know. Mass Ave was a horrible industrial wasteland over here, which was somewhat surprising considering what it’s like everywhere else on that street. We went by Newmarket Station, but as this was a Saturday no trains were running.
At this point some 10’s turn off to avoid South Bay Center, but most of them go via the mall on Saturdays. As such, we went just a little further down Mass Ave before turning into the mall parking lot. The bus stop was on an island in the middle of the lot with just a bench, no shelter. There were a lot of people waiting here nonetheless, but once they were told that we were going to City Point, most of them didn’t get on. Presumably they were waiting for the 8, which also goes to the South Bay Center.
After that we crossed over to the other side of the parking lot for another stop. There was a beautiful view of the Boston skyline on the left side of the bus, but I was sitting on the right. I aimed my camera across the aisle to get the picture, when a guy in the seat behind me tapped my shoulder. “Excuse me,” he said, “are you taking a picture of her?” He pointed across the bus to a girl who I presumed to be his daughter. “No,” I replied. “It’s just the view.” He seemed skeptical, but he didn’t pester me anymore. Okay…
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| See? Not your daughter. |
We went onto a twisty road to get up to Southampton Street, which then crossed over I-93. We also went over some train tracks, and there appeared to be a large Amtrak yard to the left. We then turned off into the Andrew Station busway, where most of the people (including the guy and his daughter, whom I apparently took a picture of) got off. “You be good,” the guy said to me as he left the bus. Okay…
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| Glad I’m not on I-93… |
From Andrew we went down Dorchester Street (along with the weekdays-only 5 route), which was initially lined with apartments, but they soon became small businesses. We were joined by the 9 when we merged into East Broadway, which had pretty much the same atmosphere as Dorchester Street. After a while (about when we were joined by the 7) it became lined with a mixture of urban houses and more lovely brick apartments.
The beach was visible, but a block before it we turned onto Farragut Road. The bus was empty by the time we got to East First Street and went through this weird industrial neighborhood. At a seemingly random place, the driver told me it was the “last stop” and kicked me off the bus onto a street with no sidewalk and a massive chain link fence telling me not to trespass. Okay…
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| The 10 in the sunset. |
Route: 10 (City Point – Copley Square via Andrew Station and BU Medical Center)
Ridership: In the end, there were about 35 people who rode this bus. That’s not bad for a Saturday, frankly. No one went from beginning to end; most people got off at Andrew.
Pros: It cuts a nice path through the South End, and it seems to get healthy ridership. The schedule is also pretty good: about every 25 minutes rush hour (not great, but not bad), every 35 minutes during the day (also not great, but passable), every 20 minutes on Saturdays (surprisingly), and every 40 minutes on Sundays (not horrible, just meh).
Cons: It’s also every 60 minutes during the night, which is actually pretty bad. And frankly, 40 minutes on Sundays isn’t too great either.
Nearby and Noteworthy: Copley Square, once again. Dorchester Street also seemed kind of nice, but don’t go to the industrial wasteland!
Final Verdict: 8/10
This is a pretty good route. Though most of it is shared with other buses, it provides a nice link from areas such as the Boston Medical Center or the South Bay Center to Andrew Station. But if you do plan to go from City Point to Copley for whatever reason, keep in mind that the 10 takes a rather circuitous route. The 9 would probably be the better choice as it’s much more direct. The 10’s schedule is good for the most part, but nights and Sundays (to a lesser extent) could use some work.
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
The MBTA put the new map in 40 Green Line trains! It’s about time.
Random Photos (Videos): A Trip Through Government Center on the Green Line
On a school trip I managed to take videos of the closed Government Center both ways on the Green Line. Keep in mind that this was a school trip, and there’s a lot of chitter-chatter in the background unlike the totally empty train on the Blue Line. If the videos don’t work, you can watch them on YouTube here and here.
39 (Forest Hills Station – Back Bay Station via Huntington Ave)
I had taken the 39 once before, but I never reviewed it for some reason. I don’t know why – it’s the busiest bus route on the MBTA, it replaces a former trolley, and best of all, it uses articulated buses. Whatever the reason is that I didn’t review it, I’m doing it now after riding it again.
The 39 doesn’t actually start at the Forest Hills busway, but rather at a station that used to be served by E Line trains. See, the E branch of the Green Line used to run all the way down to Forest Hills, but they cut it back to Heath Street in the 1980s (the line was actually eliminated entirely for a few years, too). Some track still remains here, but obviously the trains don’t come anymore. I’m not sure why the 39 doesn’t serve the busway, because I feel like a reference to what used to be isn’t reason to change an entire bus route.
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| The former E Line station where the 39 boards and drops people off. |
Anyway, everyone was just scattered around the area, on their phones and whatnot. Once the bus came, though, they all went to a spot to board. I was happy to see it was articulated, as sometimes they run just regular buses on Sundays. These particular buses are apparently unique to the 39, as there was a convenient map of the route inside.
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| The destination board seems to be a bit garbled up. |
Leaving the station, we went up South Street, which was about half apartments, half businesses. We soon reached “Monument,” which is just a big statue from what I could tell. Nonetheless, the 38 route turns off here to head back south, but the 41 route begins here and follows the 39 up Centre Street. After some businesses at Monument, it turned to mostly apartment buildings. Well, “projects,” really.
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| Ooh, swanky! |
Soon we broke off from the 41 and went up South Huntington Ave. This street was more residential, with actual houses (but still some projects). We went by V.A. Hospital, a very massive structure, and then were joined by the E Line at Heath Street. I really liked the neighborhood heading up South Huntington Ave, although I’m not sure if it’s actually as nice as it looks.
The rather sharp turn onto Huntington Ave is always fun on the train, when it screeches and squeaks trying to make it around the curve. On the bus it was somewhat less exciting, but we headed up Huntington Ave nonetheless. It started getting much more urban around here, with a tall tenement building at Mission Park Station.
After Fenwood Road the E Line went into the median of the street and the buildings got ever taller. On weekends the E doesn’t usually go all the way to Heath, terminating at Brigham Circle, but even after that people were still choosing the bus over the train. We went by the Longwood Medical Area, the Museum of Fine Arts, and Northeastern University before the E Line went into its subterranean lair.
Symphony Station was really fun. I was wondering why the stop was so far from the actual station and Mass Ave. Turned out the 39 goes into a little bypass tunnel under Mass Ave, and the driver floored it. After roaring through the tunnel, there was a stop at good ol’ Prudential Station, and then we turned onto Belvidere Street.
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| I love it when these articulated buses make sharp turns and you can see the front from the back. Bus inception? |
We went by the cool “Infinity Pool” (or whatever it’s called) before turning onto Dalton Street and going over I-90. Turning once again onto Boylston Street, we went by the Prudential proper and the Hynes Convention Center, then came into Copley Square. Then we turned onto Clarendon Street, going right by the John Hancock Building, and finally came into the Back Bay busway (wow, say that three times fast).
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| I know this post has a lot of pictures, but you gotta admit that this is a great one. |
Route: 39 (Forest Hills Station – Back Bay Station via Huntington Ave)
Ridership: It’s the busiest bus route on the MBTA. Even though it was actually pretty empty the first time I rode, this time almost 80 people took it – and this was a Sunday! Most of them got on for short distances, and I don’t believe anyone but me went from beginning to end.
Pros: As a replacement for the E, it’s pretty darn good. It has about the same capacity as what trains the E Line used to run, which is certainly a good thing as this bus had a lot of people riding. But since it uses articulated buses, nobody had to stand! And though these buses aren’t as fantastic as the ones on the 28, they’re still pretty great. Oh, and it’s a Key Bus Route, so of course we’ve got a great schedule: every six minutes (!) rush hour, every 13 minutes during the day, every 12 minutes nights (and until 2 AM on Fridays and Saturdays), every 10 minutes Saturdays, and every 12 minutes Sundays. That’s amazing.
Cons: The one thing I have to nitpick about is where the bus boards. There’s not enough signage for it, and the area doesn’t exactly look like a bus station. I had a hard time finding it the first time I rode – I feel there should be more signage around the station.
Nearby and Noteworthy: It goes right by the two tallest buildings in Boston, and I think you’ll find a lot of interesting things to do around Copley Square. And of course, you can’t talk about Copley Square without mentioning Newbury Street and its European-esque architecture and feel. I once went to a great Italian Restaurant there called Piattini (something specific, hooray!), but there are plenty of stores and restaurants on the street.
Final Verdict: 8/10
This is a fantastic replacement for the former E Line service – even where the bus runs alongside the existing tracks people still choose the bus over the train! And the articulated buses are great, as is the schedule. But would it hurt to put some “The 39 is over here” signs at Forest Hills? I feel like it’s pretty hidden right now. And really, it’s not exactly a proper busway where it boards. People just sort of stand around or lean against walls since there aren’t any benches. I don’t think it would cost too much to stick a few benches in there, would it?
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
The first of forty new Commuter Rail locomotives went into service today, on the Haverhill Line. The new trains will save the MBTA $1 million in fuel costs annually.
Hynes Convention Center
I only went to Hynes Convention Center because of the stupid 1 getting stuck in traffic. I didn’t know what to expect, but this station ended up being worse than horrible Prudential. The first warning sign was the entrance: there’s only one of them, and it has no signage whatsoever, just a big “T” sticking out of the wall and a poster saying “Charlie’s Here!” The entryway was pretty nice, though, with a shiny image of an old streetcar over the staircase down.
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| Shiny… |
When I got down, there was a walkway that curved to the left. It was really bland, with a very low ceiling and boring brick walls and a really weird floor. Lighting was achieved with standard (and not very interesting) florescent lights. It was also pretty cramped, with only a few fare gates leading to the platform. There was also, for some reason, a random chair sitting there. Sound familiar?
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| I can’t stand this area. |
Keep in mind that there are no elevators here, so people in wheelchairs are simply out of luck. At least Prudential’s accessible. There are, however, boring staircases leading down to the boring platform! Ah, the platform. Just like Prudential, this thing is full of random pipes criss-crossing on the ceiling. I mean, there’s one part of the platform that’s just a big hole in the wall! Why hasn’t this been fixed?
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| It was really crowded at the station. |
The brick walls on the platform would be okay if they actually went up the whole wall. But after the station sign it just turns to basic white with random pipes again. And the worst part? I walked to the other end of the platform to see what was there, and there was another exit! One problem, though: it was locked behind a massive gate with an “Exit Closed” sign. There was also a weird electrical box (or something), with a sign warning people not to play on it. I feel like just a sign saying “Danger” would suffice…
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| This was the most crowded Green Line train ever itself. |
Station: Hynes Convention Center
Ridership: People going to conventions, most likely. But there are also a lot of apartments close to the station, so there are probably residential riders here, too.
Pros: Well, the streetcar image is kinda cool…
Cons: Okay, first of all, the one entrance (there’s only one, there’s another con already) has no signage whatsoever, just a big “T” sticking out of the wall. The fare gate area is bland, the staircase to the platform is bland, and the platform itself is bland (stupid pipes). On the platform, the closed exit, the hole in the wall, and the random box thing all contribute to it feeling really dirty and awful. There’s also a lack of bus connections; the station’s only served by three of them. And though it’s only a five minute walk to the convention center, that’s still fairly long and there’s no signage whatsoever. That closed exit looks like it may have led closer, but…it’s closed.
Nearby and Noteworthy: There’s the convention center, but Newbury Street is pretty close to the station (closer, in fact). I’d much rather take a stroll down the amazing Newbury Street with its brick architecture and cute shops than go to some smelly old convention any day.
Final Verdict: 3/10
This station’s even worse than Prudential. Aside from the somewhat decent entryway (though it has no signage), there’s nothing of note at this station. It’s all very bland, and that closed exit looks like it heads toward the convention center. Does anyone know why it’s closed? Either way, it’s a horrible station.
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
Nothing of note, sorry. I may start leaving this section blank if there’s no news.
Poll of the Week 4/11
Aquarium
Whenever I ask one of my friends if they’ve ever taken the Blue Line, 99% of the time they say, “Oh, yeah, I think I took that to the aquarium once.” But although I’ve taken the Blue Line many times, the lack of bus connections at Aquarium means I use the station very rarely. But when we went to the aquarium with friends from out of town, I got the chance to go home via the train (my mother was driving, but who wants to drive?).
I’ve always thought the station entrance is fairly far from the Aquarium, and it kind of is. That’s not to say that a three minute walk is very long, but there’s no direct entrance into the aquarium. Consider Prudential Station, which although everything else about it is horrible, does boast a direct connection to the Prudential Center. But Aquarium is so much better than Prudential, and not just because it doesn’t have a bunch of random pipes on the ceiling.
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| The entrance closest to the actual aquarium. |
The first entrance, right near the aquarium itself, is a simple staircase heading underground. There’s also an elevator here (there’s one at every entrance, actually) that’s glass so you can see…dirt, mostly. There are two other entrances further inland: one of them is like the first one, but a bit larger, and the other one is hiding in the entrance of a building (it has signage, but it took me a little while to notice it).
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| It’s a bit more decked out than the other one, for sure. |
The two inland entrances feed into a nice mezzanine area. It’s not full of glass like the entrances, but it’s mostly white, with a neat floor pattern. There is a random customer service desk that seems to serve no purpose, but the mezzanine was pretty great. And once you get past the fare gates there’s a fantastic symmetry. There’s a large window overlooking the platform, then stairs, escalators (one-way, unfortunately), and elevators leading to either side. But they’re perfectly symmetrical, and I love that!
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| The very quiet mezzanine. |
The platform itself is also great. The ceiling is designed so that it looks like a wave, and there are interesting designs lining the walls. The entrance towards the actual aquarium is on the other side, but I didn’t look at it. Also cool is the fact that the walkway to get in stretches a little further than the platform itself, so you can get a view of trains coming through the tunnel. When I visited, the floor was really wet (as well as the tracks, apparently), but that’s just because it was really wet outside. Overall, as the last station before crossing the harbor, it’s really nice!
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| You gotta love that ceiling. Sorry there weren’t any train pictures in this one – all of my attempts were really blurry. |
Station: Aquarium
Ridership: Although all of my friends seem to have used it at some point or another, the overall ridership for the station isn’t too great. Only about 4500 people use the station on a typical weekday, according to the MBTA Blue Book. Perhaps it’s because of its proximity to the next station, State? It’s only a fifth of a mile away, after all. Nonetheless, I’m sure most of the people who use this station – yes, you guessed it – head for the aquarium.
Pros: Aesthetically, this station is top-notch. Everything from the simple but effective entrances to the perfect symmetry of the platform entrances (and the platform itself) to that amazing ceiling look amazing.
Cons: It’s too bad that the station remains somewhat far from the aquarium, at least for tourists who don’t know where to go. Also, the one-way escalators are irksome, but it’s not too bad. Finally, the only bus connection is the 4, which runs weekdays-only.
Nearby and Noteworthy: Take a guess.
Final Verdict: 8/10
I love the look and feel of this station so much. But think of how much more convenient it would be if there was an underground walkway leading right to the aquarium. It wouldn’t be that long of a tunnel, and it could just deposit people outside in front. (although think about how cool it would be if it went right in!) And the escalator thing is a bit annoying, too. And bus connections are slim. But overall, fantastic station!
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
The MBTA will be closing a few stations and rerouting some bus routes for the Boston Marathon. Click here for more information.
Random Photos: The Most Crowded Green Line Train Ever
I’m not a baseball fan by any means, so I’ve never taken the train on game day. But our paths coincided, and I ended up having to get squashed on a really crowded Green Line train with a bunch of rowdy, possibly drunk sports fans and a larger-than-average man whose belly was sticking into me the entire ride…fun.
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| Someone shouted “Photobomb!” when I took this picture. |
Random Photos: The Green Line to Forest Hills
I noticed a sign at Forest Hills that, although it probably confuses some people, is a nice reference to the MBTA’s past.
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| The Green Line platform is still there, though, and it’s where the 39 bus boards. |
Random Photos: Traffic on Route 1
How was I to know there was a ball game? I thought taking the 1 from Mass Ave Station would be faster than taking the train, but I was certainly wrong. I had to wait about 15 minutes for a bus, and it was packed when it got to the stop. Then it was stuck in a massive traffic jam that just wasn’t moving at all. I got off at the very next stop, along with a lot of other people. Horrible.
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| A close-up of the 1. |
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| So many cars! Not to mention one of them was blasting heavy-metal music. |
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| Poor bus… |
Random Photos: Secret Exit at Forest Hills?
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| The turnstyle wouldn’t move… |
Random Photos: Bus Countdown Clock
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| It’s so shiny… but shiny apparently doesn’t mean functional. |
A Commuter Rail Ride From South Station to Ruggles
I had gotten a Zone 1A Commuter Rail ticket a while back, but I never actually used it. I decided to just keep it in case I ever needed to ride the Commuter Rail within Zone 1A. But the ticket was expiring on April 19, so I figured I would have to use it soon. So, I decided to go to South Station and grab the first train that comes (that’s how I roll).
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| The train at South Station. |
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| A bad picture of the inside of the train – it wasn’t too crowded yet. |
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| The train leaving Ruggles. |
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| A train going back towards South Station. |