ON FRIDAY, we received the good news that Boston was awarded a $15 million federal “RAISE” grant for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and multimodal street improvements along Blue Hill Avenue. […]
Ari Ofsevit
Posted inOpinion
Greenwashing the MBTA’s hybrid buses
“At Silver Line Way, you will hear the bus’s engine shut down for just a moment, as it converts to diesel power for the rest of the trip to Logan […]
Posted inOpinion
Coming T shutdowns present an opportunity
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER recently announced several upcoming weekday shutdowns of MBTA lines, with the most dramatic shutdowns coming to the Green Line. This short-term pain, long-term gain approach – relying […]
Posted inOpinion
How to improve T service during shutdowns
ONCE AGAIN, the MBTA’s floating slab project has reared its ugly head. If it seems like this project has been going on forever, it’s because it has. The first weekend […]
Posted inOpinion
#FreeTheRamp all day long
OF MAJOR AIRPORTS in the United States, Boston’s is closer to the downtown than most. Yet despite the short distance, getting to Logan at rush hour can be challenging. Pick […]
Posted inTransportation
SL3 could be solution to Logan’s access issues
THE MBTA HAS ADDRESSED some of the most pressing needs for more transit service at times of day when people need to travel by making early-morning and late-night service permanent. […]
Posted inOpinion
Why is off-peak Red Line service being cut?
IT’S NOT SURPRISING that service on the Red Line has suffered in the wake of the June 11 derailment that took out a large chunk of the line’s signal system. […]
Posted inOpinion
Here’s what’s slowing down the Red Line now
WHEN THE RED LINE DERAILMENT occurred, at first it seemed like it was in a relatively good location. Ashmont trains could bypass the crash site, and passengers could transfer to […]
Posted inOpinion
Fixing the Logan ‘donut hole’
With congestion continuing to plague East Boston and the Logan Airport roadway system, Massport has proposed changes to the fees charged for ride-hailing companies (Uber and Lyft) for pickups and […]
Posted inOpinion
MassDOT’s ramp proposal is a poor excuse for a plan
EVERY MORNING, at 4:57, the first 111 bus leaves Chelsea and makes its way up the ramp from Everett Avenue to the upper deck of the Tobin Bridge, before merging […]
Posted inOpinion
Harvard-Alewife bus shuttles can be run better
THE MBTA tweeted recently that it will once again be conducting track work on the Red Line between Alewife and Harvard on weekends, closing the route during that time and running […]
Posted inOpinion
S. Coast Rail is headed in wrong direction
THE CURRENT PROCESS for South Coast Rail is on the wrong track. The current solution—an interim option which avoids sensitive environmental areas—doesn’t please the city it runs through (Middleboro), the […]
Posted inOpinion
MBTA’s unfair rail fares need to change
EVERY DAY, more than 100,000 people ride the commuter rail in and around Boston, headed not just to work, but also to shop, spend time with family and friends, make […]
Posted inOpinion
Think bigger on Red-Blue connection
THE RED-BLUE CONNECTOR is back in the news, with the state funding a small study to examine whether the project might be feasible. When we last left it, the connector […]
Posted inOpinion
Buses, not gondolas, are the answer
Second of two parts WHILE A GONDOLA WON’T FLY at South Station, there’s a simple solution to the mobility issues confronting the Seaport District and the basic infrastructure is already […]
Posted inOpinion
Forget the gondola, there’s nowhere to put it
Unlike Elon Musk’s latest foray in to urban transportation, which involves several as yet non-existent technologies, the idea for a Summer Street gondola is something which at least has been […]
Posted inTransportation
Forget gondolas, turn Silver Line Green
PERHAPS THIS WINTER’S SECOND 100-year flood will pour cold stormwater on the latest idea for fixing transportation in the Seaport District: running a gondola down Summer Street. Hopefully this idea […]
Posted inTransportation
Free the ramp
I’VE BEEN WRITING for three years about the disadvantages of the Silver Line not using the Ted Williams Tunnel ramp that was designed for it, but it’s time to bring it up […]
Posted inOpinion
Dear Gov. Raimondo: Express trains wrong ask
DEAR GOVERNOR GINA RAIMONDO: We read with interest your call for express rail service from Providence to Boston. You are spot-on in thinking that improved rail connections regionally will be […]
Posted inOpinion
Take long view, build N-S Rail Link
DESPITE THE SORRY STATE of Greater Boston’s commuter rail system, it manages to function well enough to carry nearly half of the city’s suburban commuters to jobs and other destinations. […]
Posted inOpinion, Transportation
Our plan for late-night MBTA service
WE BELIEVE THERE is an affordable pathway toward establishment of a robust late-night transit service on the MBTA, building on the T’s existing early morning bus service. Our plan would not just offer service on […]
Posted inOpinion, Transportation
DiCara is wrong about Boston buses
IN A RECENT CommonWealth piece, Larry DiCara decried the routing of MBTA buses through downtown Boston, which he said was clogging its already congested streets. If you look at downtown […]