What really causes MBTA delays?

     Delays are a regular occurrence on the MBTA, especially during the winter months. You might read online or get an alert on your phone that your train or line is experiencing delays due to a mechanical failure, medical emergency, or signal problem but what does the MBTA actually mean when they use these terms? 

Here is Boston to a T's list of MBTA "Delay Terms" and our interpreted definitions. 

Mechanical failures
    
      A mechanical failure can include any failures related to locomotion, braking (traction, pneumatic) and electricity. Due to the fact that commuter rail operation is such a dynamic system involving multiple systems working together, many issues can constitute a mechanical failure.  Engine failure can relate to either the main driver engine which powers the locomotive or to the Head End Power (H.E.P.) generator which generates all of the electricity & power for the train set. Mechanical failures happen all to often, this is due to the age of the MBTA's locomotive fleet (the majority of which are over 30 years old).

Disabled Train
   
     A train can become "disabled" due to a number of different problems. The trains AC or DC traction motors and propulsion system may blow out and prevent the train from moving, the braking system may not be working properly, there may be an electrical problem, or a computer fault. Any number of "mechanical failures" will cause a train to be "disabled". 
    
Signal Problem 

    One of the most common reasons for a signal problem is the interruption of a circuit between a signal and the signal's relay. This would cause all signals within an area (or block) to go to red. This will result in any train within the block to have to stop (and of course all trains behind it) until the prblem can be resolved. Sometimes it will reset on its own, other times signal personnel have to go to the signal, and check all the signals in the area to see where the prioblem started and then correct it. This takes time, and thus causes delays. Signal problems can occur all over the MBTA system. There are a few lines, however, that these delays are much more common. Due to the age of it's signal system the Fithcburg line is constantly plagued by delays. There are however plans in place to fully upgrade that system.

Speed Restriction

A heat kink on the WMATA
Photo: WMATA

     Speed restrictions can be put into place on an area of rail due to a large amount of reasons. One of the most common is heat restrictions. In the past CSX (the freight rail company that once owned most of the Worcester line) would implement a speed restriction on the Worcester line when temperatures would reach about 90F. Steel rails slowly expand and contract as temperatures rise and fall. In fact, an 1800-foot length of rail will expand almost one foot with an 80-degree change in temperature.With welded rail the normal tendency to expand must be constrained internally by securing the rail. Engineering measures, including heating the rail, are taken when rail is installed to account for rail expansion and contraction. The ties, rock ballast, and rail anchors must be strong enough to keep the rail solidly in place instead of expanding or contracting. Under extreme heat, the rail, on rare occasions, wins the expansion battle and a heat kink occurs. A heat kink causes the track to shift laterally causing a curve in what is otherwise a straight pair of rails.Speed restrictions can also be caused by construction, signal problems, and medical emergencies.

Medical Emergency

     Although medical emergencies are somewhat self explanatory, there are still a few different things that can cause one to be put into place. Someone can be physically sick or hurt on a train and need the assistance of an ambulance. This causes the train to move to the nearest station and standby until medical personnel and transit police can arrive. The train will not be released until the scene is cleared. Another cause can be a trespasser being struck by a train. Accidents like this will cause major delays on that rail line. There will be extensive police activity, and speed restrictions will be put into place if other trains are able to pass the scene. 

A fire at Chinatown Station in 2012

 Police / Fire Department Activity 

     Police and Fire department activity is a delay that happens anytime the police or fire departments need to be called to an MBTA train, station, or other property. It could be because of an unruly passenger, an electrical fire in a station, or a person jumping into the subway pit. 

Amtrak Interference (Providence/Stoughton/Lowell/Haverhill)

     This delay is just as it states. Trains are delayed due to an interference with an Amtrak train. Usually these delays happen on the Northeast Corridor (which Amtrak owns and therefore has priority over MBTA trains). If an Amtrak train is late it will then cause the trains that follow it to be late. This can also happen on the Lowell and Haverhill lines where Amtrak's Downeaster runs. 

Freight Interference (Fitchburg/Worcester)

     Once again this is just as it states. Trains are delayed due to an interference with a freight train. Usually these delays happen on the Fitchburg and Framingham/Worcester Lines. CSX and PanAm Railways are the prime culprits, in this area, when it comes to freight interference. 


Downed Wire

MBTA Type-8 LRV pantograph and catenary. 

     A downed wire can cause MAJOR delays on the railroad. Currently only the Green Line, part of the Blue Line and the entire Northeast Corridor have over head electric wire. Over head electric wire, or catenary,  is a system of overhead wires used to supply electricity to a locomotive, streetcar, or light rail vehicle which is equipped with a pantograph. Non-electric trains (such as the MBTA's diesel locomotives) may pass along these tracks without affecting the catenary. Downed catenary wires can be caused by tree limbs falling over, high winds, and broken support brackets. 

Orange Line Evening Diversion

Starting tomorrow, July 8th, the MBTA will be replacing Orange Line trains between Sullivan Square and Oak Grove with shuttle busses.

What you need to know:

• The diversion will run from July 8th through December 28th, Sunday through Thursday starting at 9:00pm and continuing till the end of service.
• The busses will make stops at all stations between Oak Grove and Sullivan Square. 

This diversion is being put in place to allow MBTA crews to perform upgrades to trackage, signaling, and power work for the Orange Line Assembly Square project. 

New Segment: Words from the train

     I would like to start out this post with an apology. So far this summer I have only posted once. I know that many of you have, in the past, depended on some of my posts when trying to plan your daily commute or when your just looking for some crazy information about the MBTA. The truth is this blog is truly like a full time job and it is sometimes hard to devote the right amount of time for it, especially when you are stretched thin already. As of today however, I am turning over a new leaf! Since I have been regularly traveling into the city on the train this summer, and that is truly the only time I have to my self, I have decided to start a "Words from the train segment" to help keep all of you informed while also having a little bit of fun! Leave a comment below and let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions! Also, the MBTA Wi-Fi on the commuter rail is sometimes unpredictable so just bare with me!

MBTA GP-40 "Geep" #1126

Sunday June 17, 2012 

     Today I am riding the the 10:00am train to Lowell out of North Station. I love riding the MBCR Commuter Rail on the weekends, except for when I forget that the MBTA runs a different schedule. 

July 1st is steadily approaching and hopefully all of you know by now what that means! Not only is the MBTA increasing fares (it's going to cost almost 20$ for a round trip to Lowell) and cutting service but they are also banning all alcohol related advertising on MBTA property. So that means the Amstel Light ads that are at North Station will probably be the last alcohol ads to ever be seen on the MBTA. I have to admit that is an awesome way to go out, those ads are really interesting. Go check them out whil you can!

 In regards to the fare increase, the MBTA has already started posting the new fare structure on all of their fare vending machines. Personally, I thought that posting a sticker with the new fares and then having another sticker on the other side with the old fares was a little confusing but see for yourself. 

Once again just as a friendly reminder fares ARE going up on July 1st!

Observations

The North Station Draw 

Another part of these segments that I am really looking forward to writing is just different sights and observations that I have seen around the system. Today, was actually a very interesting day around the MBTA system. Commuter rail coach #1607 (which I am sitting on right now) has a brand new paint job and the car looks absolutely stunning! Today, almost all of the morning trains out of North Station were being pulled by one of the MBTA's GP-40 locomotives! I love seeing these locomotives out and about in the system. They primarily run on the North Side. The one thing I truly love about these engines is that they are extremely reliable. This is probably because they are ex-freight engines. Leaving North Station today I was able to witness an often rare sight. The right draw of the North Station draw bridge was raised! Lastly, one of my biggest observations I had was on the Orange Line. Most of you who ride the orange line know that the cars are often dark, cold (because they have the BEST A/C), and smelly. I'm not sure what can be done about the smell but it looks as if the MBTA is installing newer my energy efficient lighting on most of the Orange Line fleet.

Well thats all I have for this weeks "Words from the train." Look for more segments in the coming weeks!

The T's Aging fleet: How they are managing to squeak by

©2011 Boston to a T

A few weeks ago current MBTA General Manager Richard Davey revealed, for the very first time, the true status of the Orange and Red line fleets.

Currently, the only reason the Orange Line is still operational is because of the dedicated and hard work of the T's vehicle maintenance department. Band-aid after band-aid have been put on these cars and no one truly knows how much longer they can keep that up. GM Davey did unveil a plan however that may cost a pretty penny but will actually allow the Orange Line fleet and the older Red Line fleet to function for a little longer, or at least until the T can afford to fund their overall replacements. 

The plan, which will cost a little over $100 Million, will upgrade the entire Orange line fleet and the 01500-01600 series cars on the Red line. The in-house overhauls would install a variety of new components on these trains, including speed sensors, electrical converters, trucks, and cosmetic touchups. All of these repairs would probably add about seven to ten years onto the life of these trains which will hopefully be enough time for the T to plan their overall replacement. 

Over the past few months Davey and his team have been conducting an extensive review of the status of the oldest vehicles in the T's fleets. The news, which is not truly shocking as most commuters have suspected it for years, is however very disheartening. In its current state, the T is lucky, if they have enough Orange Line cars available to run the morning rush hour. The Orange line fleet consists of 120 Hawker-Siddeley married pair cars. The T only requires 102 of those cars to be able to send off a new train every four to five minuets during the morning and evening rush. But cars are breaking down so frequently and are requiring more extensive repairs which in turn is causing cars to stay out of service longer. With more cars out of service wait time has also been a huge issue on the Orange Line and it is only going to get worse.  

As usual neither the total replacement or even the seriously expensive Band-aids were included in the MBTA's 2012 budget. The board of directors is well aware of the problem though. They have been discussing the overall maintenance needs of the entire system for years and have come to the conclusion that a total overhaul of all maintenance issues would probably put the T into bankruptcy, with a total price tag of over $3 Billion. 

The Orange line fleet was manufactured by the Hawker-Siddeley company (now Bombardier) and were put into service between 1979 and 1981. The oldest cars in the Red Lines fleet are the 01500-01600 series cars manufactured by Pullman-Standard. These were put into service during the peak of the Vietnam War. Subway car manufactures build their cars to last for about 25 years. This is provided that they also receive a mid-life overall during this time to replace key components of the car like lighting, brakes, propulsion systems and so on. None of the Orange line cars have ever received any form of an overhaul during their 32 years in service. The oldest of the Red Line's fleet received one full rebuild between 1985 and 1988 but that is still almost 25 years ago. 

The sad truth is the MBTA hardly has enough money to meet the needs of their rapidly expanding ridership and none whatsoever for the expansions and acquirements that are sought by the board and lawmakers. If nothing is done now the T could be on the brink of some pretty bad situations. The thing I find to be the most disgraceful about this whole situation is how years of leadership allowed the two lines with the most ridership in the entire system to fall into such turmoil and overall despair. 

Assembly Row to be Boston's "next great neighborhood"

Assembly Row, Somerville's newest neighborhood, promises to be the largest neighborhood development since the creation of the Back Bay in the 19th century and will offer more river frontage than Beacon Hill, more green space than South Boston, and will be larger than the North End. When completed, the development will include 1.75 million square feet of office space, 2,100 residential units, a new shopping plaza featuring an IKEA, a new main street with countless spaces for restaurants and small retail shops, a new 200 room hotel, a 60,000 square foot movie complex, a renewed waterfront along the Mystic River, and a new MBTA Orange Line station. The mixed-use, smart growth project is being undertaken by Federal Realty Investment Trust, based out of Maryland. The company is already established in the region, owning many large properties throughout the greater Boston area.


The site, located only 2 miles from downtown Boston, is easily accessible from I-93 and Route 28. It sits on 66.5 acres of land, right near the bank of the Mystic River. When completed, the development is expected to draw in $15 million in tax revenue for the city of Somerville, not to mention the more than 19,000 permanent jobs it will create. 


Originally the site of a shopping mall built in 1980, it eventually lost a great amount of business and fell into disrepair until it eventually closed down. Planning began in 2005 when Federal Realty bought the initial property for the project. 


The state has invested heavily into the construction of the neighborhood, giving it a large amount of government funding. In July of 2009, governor Deval Patrick announced a state and federal partnership with the Somerville Assembly Square Project, promising $65 million in state bond and federal stimulus money—$50 million coming from the Massachusetts Infrastructure Investment Incentive program (I-Cubed), and $15 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 


In addition, Assembly Square has already drawn in big-name companies to open shop. The already finished Assembly Marketplace contains an AC Moore, a Bed Bath & Beyond, a Christmas Tree Shoppe, a Kmart, a Sports Authority, a Staples, and a TJMaxx.


An integral part of the success of this project will be the new MBTA Orange Line station. The station will be located between the already existing Sullivan Square and Wellington stops and will be the first new station on the Orange Line since the opening of the Southwest Corridor in 1987. The structure will be designed to be green and eco-friendly, heavily relying on glass and metal. 


Federal Realty recently announced that the MBTA has submitted a notice to bidders for the construction of the station. Once a bidder is chosen, construction is set to begin this Fall, and the station could potentially be open by 2014.


Be sure to check out the images the MBTA provides of the new station here and here.


For more information on Assembly Row, visit their website.

YAY History: The "EL"

In this months history post I am going to be covering the history of the, now defunct, Orange line Elevated or the "EL".

MBTA map that shows the 
Elevated

The first phase of the "EL" , which was opened in 1901, was dubbed the Charlestown Elevated. The line ran from Everett right through Charlestown and then descended underground at North Station. The line then ran underground through downtown (todays Orange Line Subway) and then once again came above ground to meet the Washington Street Elevated. The Washington St. Elevated ran from the Chinatown station (then Essex st.) and terminated at Dudley Station. In 1909 the Elevated was then extended to Forest Hills. 




During the 1970's the MBTA was experiencing a time of growth. They began to examined many of their lines and fund improvement and revitalization projects. The Orange Line Elevated was the first on their list. The MBTA first thought of ways that they could extend the Orange Line. They proposed extending the northern terminus to Route-128 in Reading, then extend southern terminus to Dedham. As a result of this review the MBTA decided they were going to rip down the Charlestown Elevated. 

The MBTA built a brand new route for the Charlestown line. The new line ran from A new underground station at North Station through an underwater tunnel under the Charles River. The line then traveled at grade along newly acquired track from the Boston and Maine Railroad right of way under I-93. The line  then terminated at the present day terminus of Oak Grove.

Riding over the Charlestown Bridge

It wasn't long after the closure of the Charlestown Elevated that the MBTA came up with the idea to try and re-rout the rest of the elevated Orange Line. 

During the early 1980s, although the Orange line had become the most reliable and most ridden rapid transit line in Boston, it had become the most unsafe line in the system, due to the amount of crime on trains and at stations. 


The once beautiful victorian style elevated stations were now in horrible despair and were in need of a major refurbishment or total demolition. Although it was going to come at a huge price tag, around $730 Million, $1,677,050,744 in today's money, the MBTA was going to re-route the entire southern half of the Orange Line and rip down the Washington St. Elevated. In May, 1987 the last revenue trip was performed on the Washington St. Elevated. Thereafter the Orange line, instead of rising to the elevated tracks on Washington St., would veer west to follow the Mass Pike on the acquired right of way from the Boston and Albany Railroad and then travel along a newly constructed right of way all the way to Forest Hills. This became the Orange line that many of us ride today. 

North Station Elevated

As with many high profile and expensive projects, there was much controversy that came with the closing of the elevated. Although the line terminated basically in the same place, the new route largely bypassed Washington St. The MBTA promised replacement service to local residents who relied on the Elevated to get to work. A green line extension that would run from Washington Street to Dudley Square, then divert southeast on Warren Street towards Dorchester was proposed, but dropped soon after. It took the T until 2002 to implement some sort of service replacement for this area, being phase 1 of the Silver Line.

Hawker-Siddeleys are falling short.

Yup! You guessed it I'm talking about the Orange Line. You know, it's that line that you've ridden on that you probably got talked to by some crazy people on, had to evacuate for a fire, had your train breakdown and got stuck in a tunnel, the door you were standing at that didn't open, or you were new to the city and thought, because an outdated map at one of the stations told you so, that you could connect to the Green Line at Forest Hills.


The Orange line that we know today, was finished in 1987 and runs from Forest Hills to Oak Grove right through the heart of Downtown Boston. It also has the highest ridership out of the three heavy rail lines in the system. Today, as you might have heard, the MBTA has many problems it is dealing with, but in my opinion, a huge number of their problems lay with the ever-aging Orange Line. In this post I hope to share what I feel are the largest and most concerning problems on the Orange Line and what the MBTA is trying to do in order to fix some of these problems.

New (1981)

Today

First and foremost the largest issue that has been plaguing the Orange line over the past few years and especially this winter is it's fleet of rolling stock. The entire Orange line fleet consists of 120 Hawker-Siddeley (now Bombardier Transportation) 01200 series cars. These cars were bought brand new and were implemented in phases between 1980 and 1981. These cars have reinforced roofs for pantographs (much like their sister cars which were the old Blue Line cars). It was thought that if the Orange Line was extended, they would opt to use overhead collection, but since these extensions were never built, pantographs were never installed. 


Today these cars are really showing their age. These once shiny and state-of-the-the-art trains are now rusted out clunkers in need of a serious overhaul or complete retirement. This past year has been a very trying time for the Orange Line fleet. Many of the trains tried to slug through the winter, but hardly made it out alive. There were a multiple of breakdowns caused by the cold and the snow and also just the overall age of the trains. In many instances snow clogged the air intake for the trains propulsion, causing them to stall out (which is a horrible design, if you ask me, because the Orange Lines undercarriage, where this intake is located, has very low clearance with the ground especially when there is snow on the tracks).

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying bash the Hawker-Siddeley's. These were wonderful and revolutionary cars when they first entered the MBTA system, but because of negligence to the fleet on the part of former MBTA heads, these trains are definitely not going to last much longer especially through our tough New England winters.


You're probably wondering if the T is taking any steps toward revamping the current fleet or introducing a brand new fleet. The truth is I did lots of research on the subject and came up with only one answer--being that the T was looking into replacing the entire fleet, but there was no projected time line for it. In my opinion, the replacement of these cars should be a very high priority for the T. Also, if they were to choose a train to base the new Orange line cars off of I would think they should use the new Blue Line cars manufactured by Siemens. These are the nicest, and cleanest cars I have ridden on. This is just my opinion though. Well anyways that's my little (or fairly large) rant about my take on the status of the Orange Line.


Heres a little video about the Orange Lines winter update!