Transit Tales: Return of the Shuttle Buses

Jan 18, 2014 | | 4 Comments

As you most likely know, the Longfellow Bridge has been closed on the Cambridge-bound side for a while. The work they’re doing on it occasionally requires the Red Line to be closed on weekends. And you know what that means – shuttle buses! My father and I had the privilege of riding these buses between Kendall and Park Street one day, and as expected, it wasn’t very fun.

Kendall was a madhouse full of people trying to get to the buses. Everyone dashed down Main Street towards the line of vehicles waiting to shuttle people over the bridge. As we went by, I noticed that a makeshift yard had been made on Hayward Street. Everyone crammed onto the buses, but ours wasn’t actually that crowded.

The route started out pretty straightforward, and the view from the Longfellow bridge was just as good as it would normally be on the train. Interestingly, though, buses were only using the left side of the bridge. That meant that we were actually driving on the wrong side of the road! At Charles, the driver opened the doors but no one got on or off, then we went on down Cambridge Street, then Tremont. Our bus and all the others stopped a few blocks away from Park Street. Everyone got off, but my father refused. “Whaddaya want?” shouted the driver from up front. My father explained that we were going to Park Street. “This is Pahk Street,” said the driver, and he kicked us out.

We assumed that the buses stopped here so that they wouldn’t have to loop all the way around the Common to get back to Cambridge Street. We figured that made sense, and walking the extra few blocks was a decent trade-off. However, on the trip back, we found the long line of buses waiting right outside the entrance of the station. The result was a long hellish route in the dark with a bunch of traffic going around the Common. It took absolutely forever, and at Kendall it was raining and everyone had to walk in mud…not the best shuttle bus experience ever.

The large stream of people at Kendall.
The MBTA employees were like shepherds, herding us to the buses.
This is not Park Street!

Miles on the MBTA’s First Anniversary!

Jan 18, 2014 | | 2 Comments

I can’t believe it’s been a year. I remember starting out the blog and no one knew it existed. Slowly it increased in popularity, and it started showing up on random Google searches. I would always be proud when I did some random search about the MBTA and my blog would come up. Obviously the highlight of the past year, though, was breaking the record with Adham Fisher. That was an absolutely fantastic day. So thanks to everyone for reading – and here’s hoping for many more years to come!

Nothing like some generic clip art from Google Images to celebrate! Image source

Maverick Station Has a Second Entrance!

Jan 16, 2014 | | 3 Comments

Who knew? One of the cons in my Maverick post was that the station seemingly only had one entrance. That’s what it seems like, anyway – when you’re at a train station, you naturally gravitate towards the area with a bunch of fare gates that everyone else is heading for. Turns out, though, on the other end of the station, there is a tiny area with only two fare gates that also leads outside. It’s quite a sight when you come out; with a big expanse of swampland, and beyond that Boston Harbor and the city. The view is phenomenal from here, although I don’t think anyone would have any use for this exit unless they live in the nearby projects.

As I said, it’s a bit small.
The modern entrance looks a bit out of place to me.
A neat rock sculpture, with the elevator alternative in view.
This is the sort of neighborhood I’m talking about.
A bit of a strange view, but a good one.

Random Photos: Thank You, I Am

Jan 16, 2014 | | 0 Comments

I was riding on the Red Line, and as I was getting out I noticed the stickers on the outside of the train. One of them was an ad for beer, and then there were two tiny stickers that both said “You are beautiful.” I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean.

I’m assuming the MBTA didn’t put these up.

120 (Orient Heights Station – Maverick Station via Bennington Street, Jeffries Point, and Waldemar Loop)

Jan 16, 2014 | | 4 Comments

At a party months ago, my father heard from someone that the 120 was a bus worth riding. He found out that it goes onto a big hill past a giant statue of Mother Mary that offers fantastic views of Boston. Fast forward to a few days ago, when we were finally able to take the route. I can say now that the views are indeed amazing, and that this bus is definitely worth riding.

The route is basically a main trunk portion, and then two loops on either end. On the Maverick side, there’s a loop around Jeffries Point, an interesting little neighborhood surrounded by the airport. On the other end at Orient Heights, there’s the Waldemar Loop, going around a hilly neighborhood where the statue is located. The loops were originally completely separate bus routes, but they were merged into the 120 in 1969.

We decided to start out at Maverick (which, I found out, actually does has two entrances! I’ll post about it at some point) and go around the Jeffries Point loop. We waited there for a while having just missed a bus, but one soon came. The driver, however, completely bypassed the station! We went up to the door and knocked. The driver let us in (“Sorry, I’m so out of it today!”), and we were off with a total of six people in the bus.

A bad picture of the bus at Maverick.

We headed down Sumner Street, going through a quintessential small neighborhood, with small businesses on the first floors and apartments on the upper floors. Once the bus reaches the end of Summer Street and turns onto Jeffries Street, you get a view of the airport which is literally a few yards away. After that, a massive concrete wall sits between the street and the airport beyond.

We had been going up Maverick Street for a bit, my father and I being the only ones on the bus at this point, and soon the driver stopped the bus. “Where are you guys going?” she asked us. “We’re going to see the Mother Mary statue,” replied my father. “See?” the bus driver replied. “This is why I didn’t pick you guys up!” (I thought you were “out of it.”) She went on to say that we should’ve gotten a bus going to Orient Heights and that we would have to pay another fare to keep going. She said she’d let us go “this time,” but apparently one would normally need to pay again. Which makes no sense to me, seeing as it’s still the same bus route, isn’t it?

We went back to Maverick Station and picked a fair amount of people up, then headed up Meridian Street along with all of the other Maverick buses. This one is different, though, because it makes a small loop around a park, stopping at a shopping plaza. We then made our way down to Bennington Street and another nice small neighborhood. At Day Square, where the 112 and, in the morning, the stupid, stupid 121 join up with the 120, there’s a neat little wooden shelter that I actually took a picture of.

Yeah, the window was a bit dirty.

We pulled into the Wood Island busway and picked some people up before heading back up to Bennington Street. We went by some more standard apartments and houses, Bennington Street having gotten wider with nice plants in the median. As we passed a pedestrian bridge over the Blue Line tracks to Constitution Beach (where planes fly really low over, apparently), the Mother Mary statue became visible way up on a hill. Soon after, we came into the Orient Heights busway (the new Orient Heights – review coming at some point, maybe) and dropped most of the riders off with a few coming on.

After Orient Heights, we went up Boardman Street, going past a big baseball field. Then we turned onto McClellan Highway, intersecting with some express buses from Boston. It was a fairly industrial neighborhood, but we soon turned again onto Waldemar Ave, going by some fairly run-down projects. There were just trees on the other side, but by looking on Google Maps it turns out there’s an industrial wasteland beyond there.

We turned onto Crestway Road, and then made a sharp corner onto Faywood Avenue. Faywood Avenue soon loops around and becomes Orient Ave, with a nice if fairly short view of the surrounding area. My father and I soon got off at the Don Orion Home stop, as the Mother Mary is right across the street. The statue is absolutely gigantic, and the view is phenomenal. The day we went, however, was very windy, and we had to duck around walls to be able to take pictures without anything blowing away.

The statue, in all her glory.
See that swampy-looking area in the distance? That’s Logan Airport. The planes are really loud when they take off, even from here.
Fantastic view of Boston! It’s not that great of a picture, but again, the wind was blowing very hard.
The bus coming down the hill. Yeah, I know I did too many pictures bunched up together.

We hung around for about a half hour, and soon the bus came. It wasn’t very crowded at all, and we made the final run down the hill, back onto Bennington Street, and into the Orient Heights busway. After that, we crossed over to the other busway in the station and headed off to Winthrop, but that’s for another post.

A final picture of the bus at Orient Heights.
Route: 120 (Orient Heights Station – Maverick Station via Bennington Street, Jeffries Point, and Waldemar Loop)
Ridership: A pretty good amount of people rode – about 30 in total on a Saturday. Of course, about 5 or 6 kids rode, and they don’t pay fares, but I counted them anyway. This was a pretty local-heavy bus, with a few people doing shopping at that mall off of Meridian Street.
Pros: A nice supplement to the Blue Line (it parallels the tracks almost the whole time). The schedule’s nice as well – the bus runs every 20 minutes weekdays and every half hour Saturdays.
Cons: It seems like with quite a few buses, the Sunday schedule is a deal breaker. This one is no exception, running every 50 minutes on Sundays. Also, this may not be the bus’s fault, but I didn’t like how that driver said we would have to pay another fare from Jeffries Point. What if someone lives there and has to go past Maverick? Do they have to pay again, too?
Nearby and Noteworthy: The Mother Mary statue, obviously. But also, across the street is the Don Orion Home. Yeah, it’s a nursing home, big deal, you may say. However, you can buy candles there for $3, and then they have an area outside where you can light candles for people who have passed on. I actually took a picture of the area:
Final Verdict: 8/10
Again, a nice supplement to the Blue Line that picks up a lot of local traffic. The schedule’s good, except on Sundays when it’s pretty darn terrible. What irked me most about this bus was just the driver at Jeffries Point. Do you actually have to pay another fare there? If anyone knows, leave a comment below. Overall, though, a pretty good bus – I recommend taking it just for the Mother Mary statue.
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
The MBTA is trying to figure out who tagged the historic streetcars in Boylston Station. Why anyone would do such an awful thing is beyond me. On the brighter side, MassDOT released a plan for improving the state’s transportation infrastructure. This includes a new Indigo Line as a supplement to the Commuter Rail. Finally, French company Keolis is the new operator of the Commuter Rail system. 

Random Photos (Videos): Destination Kendall

Jan 12, 2014 | | 0 Comments

This isn’t that notable, but this weekend they’re running shuttle buses between Kendall and Park Street on the Red Line. I just really liked how they actually reprogrammed the destination boards and automatic announcements to say “destination Kendall.” There’s a picture of the destination board below, but for some reason the video didn’t work on Blogger. You can see it on YouTube here.

MBTA, Step Up Your Game – an Editorial

Jan 11, 2014 | | 1 Comment

As you have probably noticed, I haven’t been posting as much as I was in the last few days. Basically, school started up again and I’ve been busy and not able to post as often as I was able to over vacation. So yes, I will be going back to my “Supposedly Once a Week But Not Really” posting schedule in the coming days. For now, though, I have this editorial I wrote for school about the MBTA’s debt. I got a 100% on it, so it must be sorta decent, right?


Imagine Boston with no public transportation: Our roads, already unable to handle rush hour traffic, would be even more congested than ever. And getting to and from the airport would be completely impossible.
Parking is hell right now, it would be even worse without a subway. Tourists trying to see the Prudential? Tough luck. Business people getting to meetings downtown? Fat chance. Families trying to see a play? If you leave two hours early you could make it. With only slow, congested buses with severely limited schedules and insanely high fares to ride, it’s impossible to get anywhere quick.
Now admittedly, the MBTA isn’t going to shut down the entire subway system anytime soon; however, service frequency could be reduced if they don’t do anything about their debt. They’ve already taken some steps to try to make some money: they’ve raised fares (and are considering doing it again), cut some lesser-used bus routes, and have requested proposals for corporate station naming. And really, it’s not the MBTA’s fault. After the Big Dig, which cost $22 billion in the end, they dumped the debt onto the MBTA, despite them not really contributing much to the project.
They may not have made some of the best decisions, though. Take the corporate station naming, which I’m all for if it puts some money in the coffers. However, they also sent out requests for proposals for corporate line naming. Aside from the obvious lunacy of the idea (“The next Dunkin’ Donuts Red Line train is now arriving”), it would only cost a company $2 million a year to buy the Green Line, according to the Boston Globe. Considering that buying a station costs $1 million a year, I think the price of the entire Green Line could be raised. As long as it’s inevitably going to have some goofy company name attached to it, and considering that it’s an entire line, I feel $5 million or even $10 million would be more suitable.
There are money-wasters even more apparent that the MBTA just doesn’t seem to notice. Lights, for example. In particular, the fact that every light on the system isn’t energy efficient at all. Let’s just consider the lights in the tunnel: there is about 17 miles of tunnel on the system, or 29,920 yards. Assuming there is a light every three yards, we can divide 29,920 by three to get 9973. However, there are lights on both sides of the tunnel, so we can multiply 9973 by two to get 19,946. It costs $48 a year to run one T12 light, which is the type of light used in the tunnels, so 19,946 times $48 is $957,408 per year. And that’s just for the tunnels!
Now let’s say the MBTA replaces all those lights with T8’s, which cost $13.20 a year. This would bring yearly costs down to only $263,287 per year! Now the MBTA would have to buy all these lights – each T8 costs about $4.00. If we multiply 19,946 (the number of lights needed) by 4, you get $79,784.  Yes, it’s a large amount, but it would pay off so quickly!
Another issue is that somewhat used buses are being eliminated, while there is another bus not being used the MBTA refuses to get rid of: the SL2. It runs from South Station to the Design Center, which is in the middle of an industrial wasteland. Sure, many people use it during rush hour, where it makes sense to run every 5 minutes. On weekends, however, the bus is literally empty. Literally empty, and it runs every 15 minutes. Why is the MBTA operating this bus every 15 minutes with nobody riding while other, better used routes get cut to three trips a day?
The SL2 also uses articulated buses. Again, that makes perfect sense on weekdays when it’s packed to the brim anyway, but on the weekend, it just seems like a total waste of a bus. Admittedly, they have to use the articulated buses because they’re dual-mode (i.e. able to change from electric to diesel power). But couldn’t they just not run the SL2 on the weekends and use the extra buses for the SL1 to the airport (which is a sardine can no matter the time)?
The Pioneer Institute has found another issue with the MBTA: overstaffing bus maintenance. Gregory Sullivan, the research director for the Pioneer Institute, says that the MBTA could save $250 million over the next six years by lowering bus maintenance costs to national standards, hiring less workers to do the maintenance, and paying them less. Apparently, though, it’s not entirely the T’s fault; the “Pacheco Law” restricts privatization at the MBTA (and other government sectors), preventing officials from saving money by letting private companies handle bus maintenance. But still, $250 million is a lot of money.
The state’s trying to do something about the debt problem, luckily. A new bill raises gas taxes by 3%, and gives 32% of the total collected gas taxes to the MBTA. Of course, whether it’s enough to help substantially remains to be seen. The MBTA plans to carry out a lot of transportation projects, such as extending service hours through the night, or in the long term, the Green Line West Medford extension.

But there’s just so much the MBTA can do about the debt! To avoid drastic changes for the worst, such as fare hikes and service cuts, the MBTA needs to start now. The corporate station naming is a good start, although line naming is going way too far. They could save almost $700,000 a year by changing lights in the tunnels alone! And imagine if they did it for all the stations, too. Fairly well-used buses are being eliminated while the SL2 is sending empty buses to an industrial wasteland every 15 minutes on weekends. And they could save $250 million in six years by following Gregory Sullivan’s plan to reduce the amount of bus maintenance workers. You’ve got so many options, MBTA. Why haven’t you done anything with them?

112 (Wellington Station – Wood Island Station via Central Ave, Mystic Mall, and Admiral’s Hill)

Jan 3, 2014 | | 5 Comments

The 112 is a crazy mess. That’s not to say it’s a bad bus (not really, at least), but if you look at the interactive street map of the route on the MBTA website, you can see how many twists, turns, and detours it makes along its route. It is one of three buses that connects the Blue Line to the Orange (the 110 and the 411 being the others), and the only one that doesn’t leave from Wonderland. That said, it leaves from Wood Island, which is certainly not a hub at all, only serving the 112, 120, and, in the morning, the awful 121.

When I got on the bus, completely aware of its insane route, I wasn’t entirely expecting about 10-15 other people joining me. We soon left the small Wood Island busway and headed for Eagle Square, turning onto Neptune Road, and then Chelsea Street. As I mentioned in my 121 post, Eagle Square seemed to be a bunch of large, mysterious vats. We went by a lot of these on the 112 before going on a bridge over Chelsea Creek, entering Chelsea. I tried to take a picture of the (only decent) view, but as usual it came out blurry.

I normally don’t like side-view photos, but this one of the 112 at Wood Island shows the blatant product placement on the destination sign.

After going over the bridge, we made a slight turn onto Central Ave and it soon became residential with closely spaced apartments. We entered downtown Chelsea and businesses started popping up. We turned onto Hawthorne Street, which becomes Broadway at Bellingham Square, then we turned onto Fay Square, and again onto Washington Ave (closely missing the Commuter Rail station), then onto Broadway at Bellingham Square again, and then onto Everett Ave, going under Route 1, still part of the Tobin Bridge over here. Confused yet? It took forever to get out of downtown Chelsea with the route the bus takes through it.

And the craziness doesn’t end there. Soon after going under Route 1, we turned onto Spruce Street and went through another industrial area. After crossing over Williams Street, Spruce becomes “Commandants Way” as we entered Admiral’s Hill. I couldn’t really tell what it was from the bus, but I concluded that it’s half old folk’s home, half gated community. Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

We turned onto “Captains Row,” going by some large residential buildings before turning again onto “Boatswains Way” and going by some very similar houses. A few people got on and off at one of the large buildings, but we soon turned back onto Captains Row and then Commandants Way, heading out of Admiral’s Hill. But before heading back to Everett Ave, we pulled into the Mystic Mall, made a strange loop around the parking lot, and made the “Market Basket” stop. A whole bunch of people were waiting here, maybe 15 or so.

After crossing the Commuter Rail tracks, it got pretty industrial. We made it about three blocks in this area, though, before making yet another detour to Quigley Hospital. We went down Route 16 at fast speeds before turning onto Washington Ave (the same one that goes to downtown Chelsea, apparently) and following the 111 for just a block or two. We then turned onto Jefferson Ave, then Franklin Ave, then Warren Ave and went through a residential neighborhood. We soon made a sharp right turn onto Summit Ave, dropped someone off at the hospital, and then went back the way we came.

The route finally gets normal after this, turning onto Everett Ave for a short time, and then turning onto Chelsea Street (into Everett, somewhat ironically). It’s a residential neighborhood, but there are businesses once we turn onto Broadway and join up with some other buses to Wellington. We soon got onto Route 16 and made the final pseudo-express run (there’s nothing to really skip) over the Mystic River and into the Wellington Station busway.

I much prefer this picture at Wellington.

Route: 112 (Wellington Station – Wood Island Station via Central Ave, Mystic Mall, and Admiral’s Hill)

Ridership: The initial burst of people at Wood Island seemed to be all locals, just getting home. The people that got on at Market Basket mostly got off at Wellington, suggesting that they use this bus to get to the Orange Line and they live elsewhere. I don’t believe anyone took this from beginning to end, though, as I can imagine. Overall, about 40 people rode. Not bad.

Pros: It serves a lot, although mostly via long detours. It does seem to be very well-used, though. It’s only one of two buses to directly serve the Market Basket (the very limited 114 from Maverick being the other). The 112 has the edge, seeing as it runs 7 days a week, and connects to the Orange Line as well as the Blue. This seems to pay off based on the number of riders using the Market Basket stop.

Cons: Are all the twists and turns really necessary? The Admiral’s Hill and Quigley Hospital detours had very limited ridership, and it seems the 112 could do a much simpler route through downtown Chelsea (though perhaps I’m making that up; the street pattern over there seems pretty complicated). Also, the schedule is definitely not the best. It runs every 40 minutes weekdays and Saturdays, and every 50 minutes on Sundays. It is admittedly better than some other buses, including the 114 that also serves Market Basket, but I feel it could definitely be improved on based on the ridership I saw.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Downtown Chelsea seemed to be the friendliest place along the route. Eagle Square is an industrial wasteland, there’s nothing really around Wellington, and Market Basket is…Market Basket.

Final Verdict: 6/10
Yeah, it serves a lot and it got a lot of ridership. But the schedule’s pretty bad and, more importantly, the route is so twisty! Consider that the “snow route” of this bus omits the Admiral’s Hill and Quigley Hospital detours. What if they made it so that every other bus operates straight through (though still serving Market Basket), and then the others serve Admiral’s Hill and Quigley Hospital. I feel that would make a lot of sense and make the 112 a somewhat better connector between Blue and Orange. Currently, though, the 110 is definitely the better option, at least if you’re leaving from Wonderland.

Latest MBTA News: Nope, nothing much. Sorry.

456 (Salem Depot – Central Square, Lynn via Highland Ave)

Jan 3, 2014 | | 0 Comments

“456!” Shouted the driver out of the bus that said “NOT IN SERVICE.” Some people started to board the bus. Racking my memory, I remembered that the 456 goes to Salem. I called my mother, got the a-OK, and was the last person to step onto the bus. “You getting on the 456?” asked the driver. I said yes, and he said “You da man!” Okay…thanks, I guess?

There seemed to be about 20 other “da men” on the bus initially. We made our way up to Union Street, along with the 455 and 459, which also go to Salem from Wonderland and Downtown Crossing, respectively. We passed by some Chinese restaurants and at least two barbershops. We soon left the businesses of Union Street behind, though, once we turned onto Chestnut Street. And then Olive Street. And then Fayette Street. And finally, Trinity Ave, within 20 seconds of Chestnut Street. This small section of turns appeared as just a bump in the route in the paper map, so I just figured it was a typo (map-o?). Turns out it actually does it, and it felt rather unnecessary when on the bus. It’s the most direct way of getting to Trinity Ave, however, so the crazy route does have to be there.
We went down the residential Trinity Ave, dropping off and picking up people as we went. We soon turned onto Eastern Ave and intersected with Essex Street, the terminus of the 424 bus (a route that runs from here to Wonderland in the morning and from Haymarket to here in the evening). It seems like a fairly insignificant area to terminate a bus – mostly residential, with a few tiny businesses at the intersection. Nonetheless, the 424 joins the 456’s route down Eastern Ave from here, and we continued past more houses.
Not very inviting, is it? There seems to be a guy waiting at the stop, though.
Eventually, Eastern Ave intersects with Western Ave (ha) with a gas station, a Dunkin’ Donuts, and, to the right, swampland. Here, the 424 turns left to join with the 450 towards Wonderland, while the 456 turns right, running with the 450 for the rest of the trip up to Salem. Western Ave goes on a bridge over a pond, and then it goes back to being residential as we enter Salem.
Once Highland Ave (the street name changes once we cross over the town line) widens, we enter what I dubbed The Bane of Salem – a multitude of big box stores, malls, and fast food places (including another Dunkin’ Donuts). The street soon narrows, and it gets normal once again as we pass a medical center. Highland Ave becomes Essex Street, and businesses start coming up when we intersect with Boston Street and are joined by the 465 bus from Danvers.
There is a short residential run before the bus enters downtown Salem, turning on Summer, Norman, and Washington Streets in quick succession. We came to the stop right in the middle of downtown, and most of the people on the bus got off. The driver closed the doors when an older couple shouted “Wait! We want to get off!” The driver opened the doors, although he yelled at the couple who paid no attention as they left the bus.
All things considered, a fair amount of people continued to “Salem Depot” proper – about five, including me. Better than the 459, when everybody got off the bus except for my father and I. We got to the busway, which, due to the construction of the new Salem parking garage, is currently operating at a temporary location. It’s still in the complex, but now buses drop people off right after the turnoff from Bridge Street. Our 456 driver let everyone out after getting into the layover area, then he struggled to turn around in the tiny space. I took a few pictures, and he beckoned me onto the bus. “Are you a journalist?” he asked me. I explained my blog to him. All in all, he seemed pretty cool about me taking pictures, so long as it was confirmed that I was taking a picture of the bus rather than him (take that, 91 driver!). After that…
  • A 450 to Haymarket came into the busway. I got on and spent an inner express fare. I then asked the driver when we were leaving. “24 minutes!” he responded happily.
  • I asked if there was another bus coming sooner. “No idea!” he responded happily.
  • I asked him if he had any schedules of the 459, the other express into Boston. “Yup!” he responded happily.
  • Taking the schedule, I saw one left in five minutes. He pointed out (happily) the 459 as it pulled in and then said he wasn’t sure when it was leaving. I knew it was leaving soon, so I left the bus. So I just wasted an inner express fare.
  • The 459 was an older RTS bus, and so its back door got busted. The driver had to get out in the middle of nowhere and force it closed.
  • I was one of three people who went all the way to Boston. I got somewhat lost downtown, accidentally pressing the stop request button too early.
  • I ultimately made it to the train and home.
I couldn’t decide which picture I liked more, so I included both!
Route: 456 (Salem Depot – Central Square, Lynn via Highland Ave)
Ridership: This is a very locals-only route. Most of the riders got on or off in residential areas, although a few people rode from beginning to almost-end, getting off at the downtown Salem stop rather than “Salem Depot.” Overall, about 30 people rode, which I found surprising for a route like this.
Pros: It serves a fair amount of Lynn which is only served by the rush-hour only 424 otherwise. The majority of the route shared with the 450 gets a one-seat ride to Lynn which it wouldn’t get without it (the 450 bypasses downtown by a lot). It also seems to be pretty well-used.
Cons: Hoo boy, let’s talk schedule. The fact that it runs every hour and 20 minutes from 9:30 in the morning to 4:20 in the afternoon (weekdays only, of course) means it’s just a single bus shuttling back and forth. 30 people rode it! Why not add a second bus and make it every 40 minutes? Also, there’s a big gap in the middle of the route where no one really gets on or off – yup, it’s The Bane of Salem, and it’s pointless to serve. Just look at any of the massive parking lots in front of each store in that area, and you’ll see how people really get there. In terms of what’s served, the 455 and 459 are much better, going through more residential neighborhoods. Although they do take about 10 minutes longer from Salem to Lynn, they run more often (much more often), and the 455 is your only option on weekends.
Nearby and Noteworthy: There’s nothing in The Bane of Salem that’s noteworthy, so I would say just look at this section in the 459 post for some (specific!) attractions in downtown Salem.
Final Verdict: 4/10
Yeah, you were probably expecting this, if comparing the lengths of the “Pros” and “Cons” sections is any indication. But the schedule is just so bad! Admittedly, the fact that it’s midday only (a rarity for transit in general) makes it obvious that it’s meant for locals, but you know…most people do their trips to town on weekends. So unless this bus is meant for derelicts (which, based on the people I saw on the bus, is not), I don’t think it’s very useful. Although it did get 30 riders – maybe because it was Winter Break or something? According to the Route Performance Indicators document, it ranks 152 out of 173 bus routes for ridership – not that great. Perhaps more people would ride if they added every hour and 20 minute service on weekends. Currently, it only serves as a nice connector between two fairly major cities.
Latest MBTA News: The MBTA will continue to operate throughout the blizzard. Some buses will operate on Snow Routes, however, and expect delays on the subway and Commuter Rail. The Mattapan High Speed Line will operate with bus shuttles until further notice, however.

426/426W (Central Square, Lynn – Haymarket or Wonderland Station via Cliftondale Square)

Dec 31, 2013 | | 1 Comment

Once upon a time, I said I’d write a post about the 426 “at some point.” When I said that, however, I had only ridden the 426W, which is the weekend version of the route – it just goes to Wonderland. The full route, which is the weekday version, runs express from Lynn to Haymarket via the Tobin Bridge (woo!). I got the chance to take that version yesterday, so I now feel I can give the 426 the review it deserves.

I originally had no intention of taking the 426. I got off at Haymarket and planned to take the first bus that came that wasn’t a 111. That happened to be a 426, so I hopped on, along with maybe 20 other people. While we were waiting there (the bus left in 15 minutes or so), many of the riders in front were talking to the driver. They all seemed to be friends, and were happily discussing some of the crazy people that came onto the bus in the past, such as “that woman who wouldn’t stop laughing.”
After two 111’s went by within five minutes of each other, both packed to the brim regardless, we set off. Leaving the busway, we looped around the I-93 portal and headed up North Washington Street, soon becoming the Charlestown Bridge. The TD Garden was in view to the left, and to the right was Boston Harbor. On the other side, there were two more 111’s bunching, and both were still sardine cans. But whereas the 111 makes stops along this local portion in Boston, the 426 plows right through, or as close as you can get to plowing right through when contending with large amounts of city traffic.

A decent picture of the 426 at Haymarket.
We soon turned off and headed for the Tobin Bridge on an exit ramp through the industrial wasteland below I-93. There is a feeble attempt to spruce up the place with some public art – different colored streetlights. Rather than making a gross area look nice,  it more just looks really out of place. Nice idea, though. We soon got into a tunnel and the driver gunned the motor. And when the road surfaced to become the Tobin Bridge, the driver floored it like buses always do when running express. To the left is industrial wasteland, and to the right is a great view of hundreds of packed apartments and the Mystic River.
The 111 turns off once crossing over the river, but the 426 keeps going on Route 1, which soon runs at ground level. The highway makes some sharp turns, with apartments (and soon just houses) easily in view. We got off at the Route 60 exit and went around the massive rotary by the Northgate Shopping Center. There’s a big lake in view (Rumney Marsh), and a massive traffic jam going onto Route 1 away from Boston, believe it or not.
We turned off onto Squire Road, and there were about 5 or 6 people who got on at the Linden Square stop. We soon turned onto Lynn Street, leaving behind the industrial-ish neighborhood around Northgate for a much more residential area. Once we went under Route 1, there’s a small park and then it gets residential again. We went by a very run down basketball court (where one person was shooting hoops), and soon reached Cliftondale Square, Saugus, where there are some businesses and a much smaller rotary.

Lincoln Ave, the street we traveled on, curves right at the rotary, and it gets residential again with the occasional shop. Lincoln Ave goes on a bridge over a river, with swampland in view. Lincoln Street becomes Boston Street and we entered Lynn. In this particular neighborhood, there’s a gas station, a liquor store, and a pizza joint. Classy.

A bad, blurry picture of the 426 in Lynn. A woman got in the way of the bus, as well.

It gets residential again after, and we turned onto Summer Street. The bus got pretty crowded by this point, with a few standees. A nice guy wearing ratty clothes and sipping out of a Dunkin’ Donuts coffee cup sat next to me and told an amusing story of how a crazy 60-year-old woman came into the 426 with no pants on, definitely trumping the story about the laughing woman. This route seems to attract a lot of crazies.

There is another swampy view before the bus goes through an industrial warehouse area. Soon after, we turned onto Western Ave, joining up with a multitude of other buses. There are many more businesses here, which range from Walgreens to Dunkin’ Donuts again. We soon turned again onto the very wide Market Square, with Lynn Common in the middle.

Looking at my schedule, I noticed that for our trip and others, it said “Arrives 4-5 minutes earlier at Silsbee Street/Greater Lynn Senior Services.” I wasn’t sure what this meant, so I asked the guy next to me. He said it just meant the bus makes a loop in downtown Lynn. The way it was worded, I thought it meant the bus was going to an entirely different destination! The buildings got much taller as we turned onto Market Street. We soon pulled into the Lynn busway, and everyone but a few people (including the guy sitting next to me) got off.

Now, a note about the 426W. It follows the same route from Lynn down to the big rotary by Route 1, where it goes down Squire Road. After Northgate (which it doesn’t pull into, unlike a few other buses), it actually becomes the only one on Squire Road, though it doesn’t make any stops. It goes through the industrial-ish area of Revere that I really don’t like, joining up with some other buses at Brown Circle (another rotary). It heads down American Legion Highway until Bell Circle (there are a lot of rotaries on this route), where it goes onto VFW Parkway and pulls into the Wonderland Busway.

Wow, that was a long post.

Unfortunately, the best picture of the three is of the short, weekend version of the route.

Route: 426/426W (Central Square, Lynn – Haymarket or Wonderland Station via Cliftondale Square)

Ridership: For a route of this caliber, I was very surprised at the number of riders. About 45 people or so rode the 426, half of which using the local portion from Linden Square to Lynn. As for the 426W, I don’t entirely remember the ridership, but I want to say around 20-25 people rode, which isn’t bad. Many of the people who rode on the 426 had grocery bags and the like, so they seemed to be using it as a way to get their shopping done.

Pros: It’s a quick way to get to Lynn. As I said, it travels very quickly over the Tobin Bridge. The local portion can be a bit slow, but it’s no quicker than the 459. Of course, the Commuter Rail will get you there in no time, but the $3.50 inner express fare for the 426 is better than $6.00 by rail. Although it runs every hour during the day, it runs every half hour during rush hour, which isn’t bad for a North Shore Express Bus. However…

Cons: The scheduling for this route is so insane! Some trips start at the Lynn garage. Some trips end at the Lynn garage. Some trips serve Bell Circle. Some trips don’t make the loop in Lynn. One trip in the morning starts at Linden Square. Some trips start at “O’Callaghan Way,” wherever that is. And of course there’s the weekend routing to Wonderland. The guy who sat next to me said that he sometimes ends up on a bus to Lynn Garage without knowing it, and when they kick him off he’s stuck in the middle of nowhere and has to walk to his destination. The schedule makes absolutely no sense.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Nope, sorry. Frankly, none of the neighborhoods the bus went through seemed that nice, but that’s just me.

Final Verdict: 7/10
It’s a nice, quick way of getting to Lynn (not that I would want to for any practical reason, but that’s besides the point), and it seems to be well-used for every hour-or-so service. I’m not really a fan of the weekend version, or the sheer multitude of service variations in general, but I really like that ride over the Tobin Bridge. Plus, we got to Linden Square in 15 minutes! Imagine how much longer it would take to take the train, and then a local bus to get there. Of course, there wasn’t any traffic on Route 1 when we rode, so it may be a pain at rush hour. Midday, though, it’s great.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
Nothing of note. Sorry.

Random Photos: Yo, Yo, Yo

Dec 31, 2013 | | 0 Comments

I was riding an old Red Line train, and I noticed that on one of the doorways, where it says “Watch your step,” someone had rubbed off the U and the R so it said “Watch yo step.” I really wanted to take a picture, but I didn’t have my camera with me. Luckily, the chance came a few days later when someone had done it to every doorway. I had my camera this time, and took a picture of one of them:

Every doorway? Who would do that?

Maverick

Dec 30, 2013 | | 3 Comments

I’ve always considered the Blue Line to be the most modern of the four – the newest trains and the newest stations (especially with the recent reopening of Orient Heights). Maverick is no different; receiving a major rehab in 2009, it’s the first stop after going under Boston Harbor, and the last stop before the line rises to the surface. It plays host to two coordinated Key Bus Routes (the 116 and 117), a fairly high-frequency route (the 120), and two less frequent routes (the 114 and the abysmal 121). Five buses may not seem like a lot, but considering the lack of major bus hubs on the Blue Line apart from Wonderland, it’s not bad.

As long as we’re on the subject of buses, we’ll talk about the busway first for a change. The layout of Maverick Square actually makes for a pretty good busway. The road basically loops around the station entrance; buses drop off passengers on the east side of Maverick Square (except for the case of the 120 when going to Jeffries Point, which picks passengers up on the east side), loop around the station entrance, and pick passengers up on the east side. Unfortunately, the busway lacks proper shelters – when I went to the station on a snowy day, everyone was just bunched up in the station lobby. There aren’t any benches in there, either, so everyone was just leaning against the wall. There are benches outside, but no one wants to sit on those if it’s raining or snowing.
I really like the entrance of the station. There’s only one, but it’s very sleek and modern, mostly glass. Something I didn’t notice while I was there (because there was snow on the ground) was the big “T” symbol on the ground in front of the entrance! The station doesn’t have any official parking, but there’s plenty of street parking further down Maverick Square.
The entrance to Maverick – you can see all the people huddling in the lobby.
Maverick is just as grandiose and modern underground as it is overground. Upon entering the the station, you’re in a wide entryway going into an even wider station proper. There are a bunch of fare gates, a customer information desk (where someone was either talking to or arguing with the employee inside), and, coolest of all, a big map of the entire Blue Line. That may sound boring, but it’s actually got a bunch of lights in it. Each light represents a train, and you can see where each train is on the line in real time. It’s admittedly pretty useless, especially with countdown clocks on either side of it, but it’s a nice novelty.
The big map is right in the middle of the picture.
I really like the station proper. It’s a very, very wide island platform. It’s got something like five rows of pillars because it’s just so big. I suppose, again, it’s a bit unnecessary, but I think it makes Maverick one of the better, more unique stations on the Blue Line. Finally, I took the elevator like I always do – you get on in the lobby, and it takes you down a few yards (it’s not a very deep station). When you’re dropped off, there’s a ramp heading towards the fare gates. It’s glass, but there’s not much to see. Certainly not as impressive as the amazing elevator ride at Alewife.
I would’ve liked to have gotten the front of the train, but that ended up being a very blurry picture.
Station: Maverick
Ridership: This is a pretty locals-heavy station – there are some businesses close to the station, but it gets residential quickly. This station also gets its fair amount of Chelsea residents using the 116 and 117 to get back home (When is Chelsea going to get legitimate transportation? They haven’t yet started work on the Silver Line Gateway.).
Pros: The overall design of the station is fantastic. I love the entrance building, the wide platform, and especially the LED map. Yeah, yeah, the map’s not of much use, but it’s still so cool! It’s also a decent bus hub, at least when compared to the rest of the Blue Line apart from Wonderland.
Cons: This station needs to get some proper bus shelters. I don’t see why the MBTA can’t spring for even one – they’re putting shelters on all the Key Bus Routes, aren’t they? I suppose having one entrance is a bit annoying, but it’s a lot more expensive to “spring” for another.
Nearby and Noteworthy: I’ll have something specific for this section some day! The neighborhood around Maverick seemed to be a bit…tough…but I saw some intriguing businesses during my visit.
Final Verdict: 8/10
I love how well-designed this station is. The really wide platform is definitely a standout for me. The entrance is nice, as well. The best part? Definitely the (I know, pretty useless) LED map. This is the only place on the system with something like this, and that makes it all the more unique. I only wish this station had some bus shelters – or at least some benches in the lobby. Benches can’t be very expensive, can they? Nonetheless, this is definitely a station I recommend you pay a visit to.
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
The problem with posting more frequently, as I’ve been doing lately, is that not much news develops in a day. I mean, you get stuff like crazy people in the subway dressing up as the Grinch (or something), but that’s not exactly newsworthy to me. Oh, well.

91 (Sullivan Square Station – Central Square, Cambridge via Washington Street)

Dec 29, 2013 | | 0 Comments

I was at Sullivan Station, trying to get to the Red Line quickly. I had already wasted a train fare coming here from Wellington, and since the bus schedules are outside (why, MBTA?), I would have to pay again to go back in. I needed this shortcut to work, for the sake of a dollar. Scouring the schedules, I saw that I just missed an 89 to Davis and there wouldn’t be a 90 to Davis for a while. I didn’t think to use the 86 to Harvard, so that left me with the 91 – there was one leaving now – on the lower busway. I scrambled down the stairs, shoving past everyone in my way. I saw that its doors were closed, but maybe it was just laying over, so I dashed over to it, took a picture, found out I had actually taken a video (curses!), and stepped up to the doors.

The driver opened them up and asked me why I was taking pictures. “Why you takin’ pictures of the bus?” were his exact words. “It’s for a school project,” I replied, silently thanking my father for using that excuse last time a driver yelled at me for taking pictures. The driver hesitated a bit, then said okay. Or rather, “Aight.” The bus was fairly crowded – I counted about 20 people. It left the Sullivan Busway, along with some other buses on different routes, headed onto Cambridge Street, which turned into Washington Street upon entering Somerville. After going under I-93 and over the Orange Line tracks, roadside attractions mostly included gas stations, auto repair places, and chain fast-food restaurants.

We passed under Commuter Rail tracks, and stopped at a nice, modern bus shelter – under a massive highway. A fair amount of people got off at Union Square, where there are some small businesses. We didn’t get much time to admire it, though, as the bus made an unexpected turn onto the more residential Webster Ave, and shortly after turned again onto Newton Street. After turning again onto Springfield Street, businesses came up again as we came into Inman Square.

We joined up with the 83, making our way to Prospect Street and a more residential neighborhood. Having ridden the 83 so many times, I knew we were close to Central Square when we went by a fairly large parking lot. We then made a loop around a large church and pulled into “the Central Square busway that the 83 and 91 use.” I got out, took a picture (Ha! Ha!), and headed down to the subway.

For the first time, we ride an old RTS bus!

Route: 91 (Sullivan Square Station – Central Square, Cambridge via Washington Street)

Ridership: By the end, about 30 people had ridden – not bad for a non-key bus route. Union Square and Inman Square were major stops, but many of the passengers rode from beginning to end. This is relatively uncommon for an MBTA bus, but it’s nice not sticking out as the only passenger riding from beginning to end.

Pros: A great link between the Orange and Red Lines. The trip was scheduled to be done in 18 minutes, and we did it in fifteen. On weekdays, it runs every 25 minutes which is decent for a non-key bus route. On Saturdays, it runs even more frequently, every 20 minutes.

Cons: Unfortunately, nights and Sundays it only runs every hour.or so. It doesn’t really have any unique portions except for the twisty residential bit, but it does its job as a crosstown connector just fine.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Much of the route is either residential or just kind of dingy. Union and Inman Squares are sort of oases in terms of interesting stuff to do, and although it’s not the cleanest or most friendly neighborhood in town, Central Square has some nice stores as well.

Final Verdict: 8/10
This is a fantastic shortcut between the Orange and Red Lines. The best part: it was actually early! I had some minor quibbles about the schedule – I feel they could at least push for every half hour or so on Sundays and nights – but overall, really great bus route!

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
Yeah, this is like, my fifth post today. No news has developed.

Random Photos: A Visit to WardMaps

Dec 28, 2013 | | 0 Comments

I payed a visit to WardMaps today, and saw that there was a shirt signed by Adham and I on the wall (click here if you have no idea what I’m talking about)! Of course I took a picture, so here it is:

Yeah, it’s not that great of a picture, but it does the job.

Random Photos: My First Panorama

Dec 28, 2013 | | 0 Comments

I just discovered today that our camera has a panorama feature! I decided to try it out on a Red Line car, and here’s the result. I think it looks really cool, if I do say so myself.

As always click on it to make it larger. That should make it easier to see.