Green Line "Next Train" Signs: How They Work

Inside the MBTA Operations Control Center  (OCC)            Courtesy: MBTA

With last weeks unveiling of the MBTA's new "Next Train" signs for the Green Line, some of you might be wondering why does the Green Line still not have real time arrival data?

Map of AVI locations       Courtesy: MIT

Although these new "Next Train" signs are new to the Green Line, the technology that they run on has been around for the past two decades. AVI or automated vehicle indicators are how the Green Line is currently tracked by MBTA employees. 

Around the system there are a series of AVI readers embedded in the tracks. When a train passes over one of these readers it reports the trains location to the T's Operations Control Center (OCC) which is located at 45 High St in Boston. When a train passes a specific point it's number appears next to that AVI point on a large map at OCC. This means the T knows that a specific train is at or beyond that specific point. When it reaches the next reader it will disappear from the first point and appear on the next one.

Seems like the T should know where most Green Line trains are right? Unfortunately, it's not that easy. In the central subway, which runs between North Station and Copley Station, the AVI points are somewhat close to one another. When the trains go above ground however, the points are very far apart. All above ground routes are monitored by an actual human being. An MBTA inspector will post themselves at a certain stop along the line and monitor when trains are passing by.

    

Still a little confused? Here's an example: Lets say Green Line train 3651, which has a destination of Boston College, just passed the AVI point at Copley station. The T knows that the train is at or beyond Copley but it has not yet passed the next point which is at Kenmore Station. Once the that train passes Kenmore the next AVI point isn't until Chestnut Hill Ave. which is 16 stops from Kenmore. On average, that's about a 25 min ride over 3.5 miles. During that time central control has no visual on that train unless the inspector on the line physically reports its position. 

Overall, the T knows what train will be next (B,C,D,E) but they do not know the spacing between trains. Therefore no real time train data can be determined for the Green Line. These new "Next Train" signs are a big step for the Green Line but bigger and better things are coming. Back in January the MBTA announced that they would have real time tracking data for the Green Line by 2015. Since it's still over a year away, these "next train" signs will have to do for now. 

MBTA Countdown Pilot Picking Up Steam

Courtesy: MBTA

Have you been wondering why it has been taking the MBTA so long to roll out their countdown clock system on the entire Red, Orange, and Blue lines? 

I too was frustrated that the launch has been taking so long. That was until I got a chance to talk with the MBTA's Director of Innovation, Josh Robin.

Over the past three months, the MBTA has been rolling out countdown clocks at several stations on the Red Line. As of today the MBTA has a total of six stations online: Andrew, Park Street, Downtown Crossing, South Station, Kendall/M.I.T. and Broadway.

So far the MBTA has been unveiling the technology at a new station along the line every two weeks. Josh Robin told me that the MBTA will be putting a new station online once a week for the next three weeks. So far, he says the pilot has been "essentially flawless".

"The MBTA's number one priority for this project has been quality" says Robin, "we would love to flip the switch and launch the clocks at every station in the system today, but we want to make sure it is done right and that there are no issues"

Quality is defiantly something an agency should focus on when it comes to systems like this. New York City's MTA began launching their countdown clock system back in 2007 and they were plagued by software issues. 

San Franciscos MUNI and BART as well as New Orleans RTA, and the WMATA in Washington D.C. are among the list of other transit authorities that are continuing to add updates to their countdown clock systems.

Although the pilot has just started picking up speed, Robin tells me that the T will be moving more aggressively with the project come the end of the year. Hopefully by the new year we will see the pilot start up on the Blue and Orange lines or maybe even sooner.

MBTA riders have been sharing their thoughts about the pilot on Twitter!

Real Time Displays (Update)

Hi all! Here is a bit of an update on my earlier post about what I thought were going to be real time displays on the Red Line. Yesterday, as I was waiting for a Red Line train to Central at Park Street, I noticed the display that I talked about in my earlier post. I saw that it was lit up and displaying something. I ran over to it, almost tripping, and noticed, to my disappointment, that it was not displaying real time subway data, but instead was showing a quad-screen view of multiple closed circuit cameras. When I got to Central I noticed that same thing on the displays there too. I thought to myself, "Why on earth would the T display c.c. video footage of their stations?" I then came to the idea that maybe it may be for the motormen.

The way the system works now, each red line train, which consists of six cars, has two motormen on it: one who is in the first car and one who is in the third car. Both motormen are responsible for opening and closing the doors for their half of the train. In order for the motormen to know when to close the doors at a station they must hang out the windows on either side of the train. If these monitors are for what I think they are then the motormen will now be able to just look at the monitor to see when they can close the trains doors. Another interesting thought I had was that maybe these were part of the first steps to eliminating the second motorman from all Red Line trains.

The MBTA has been proposing, for quite a while now, to eliminate the second motorman position on the Red Line in order to save more money. Last year the T cut the second motorman position from all Orange line trains and it seems to be working fine. The reason I believe this may be one of the first steps toward this happening on the Red Line is because the monitors and cameras are strategically place so that the Motorman in the first car can get a full view of their entire six car train. This will make it a lot easier for the motor man to lean out his window to see down all six cars. Especially during rush hour when there are tons of people on the platforms. I keep you all posted when I find out more though.


Now back to the real time displays. Yesterday Aaron and I went on an adventure on the Blue Line to Maverick Square in Eastie. As we were waiting for the Blue Line at Government Center we both noticed a very dirty LCD screen, which you could tell had been repurposed, and was displaying realtime Blue Line data. The top of the display says "Blue Line Service (Pilot). I am guessing it is part of the same pilot program the T initiated on the Orange Line. I really hope it sticks around and starts popping up at more stations because it was amazing to see exactly where the next train is and when it will be arriving.

When Aaron and I got off at Maverick station we noticed that the station had its own way of displaying real time train data. This being in the form of a huge horizontal map of the Blue line tracks which shows the location of every running train by lighting up lights along the tracks. Not sure how old this is but I will try and find out!

Real time displays?

While I was on my way to Harvard Square on the Red Line today I noticed that there was a LCD monitor that had been recently installed on the center platform at Park Street Station. As I was about to board my train back to Park St. I also noticed there were 2  monitors hanging at Harvard Station. When I got back to my dorm I tried to find out what the MBTA might be using these monitors for but I came up with nothing. The only thing that I think the MBTA would be using these screens for would be to finally provide us with real time information for the Red, Blue and Orange lines.

A few months ago the MBTA initiated a pilot program like this at Back Bay and Ruggles Station on the Orange line. They used big LCD monitors, like the ones I saw, to show passengers down to the minute Bus and  Commuter Rail information, and also to show the position of trains on the Orange line. Another interesting fact about the screens and software used at Back Bay and Ruggles is that they cost the MBTA little to nothing. They made the monitors by using repurposed MBTA screens and all of the software costs were picked up by the company that made it. 

Hopefully these monitors that I see popping up all over the Red Line will be just like the ones that the T is piloting on the Orange Line. It will be nice to finally know where the next train is and when it is going to arrive. 

I will keep you all informed when I find out more!