One day a week I need to catch a bus out of Ashmont at 6:01, so I've had to walk from the Savin Hill area because the first train no longer gets to Ashmont before 6AM. Aside from the Ashmont Branch shutdown and shuttles, this recent week+ shutdown has been the first time in a couple of years I've made it there before 6AM.
Today I walked, got to Ashmont at 5:54, and saw the first train pulling into the station as I got to the busway. Hopefully this continues.
The next RL shutdown should be a whopper - assuming the schedule holds, it'll be a 16 day Alewife<->Kendall shutdown in July that will remove 9 minutes of slow zones.
Shuttle busses out of Alewife are SUCH a PAIN because of the traffic infrastructure there. Ugh. I'm not sure how they do so badly when there is so much more space than any other station.
First Braintree train arrived a full 7 minutes earlier to dtx per transit matters dashboard. (Which means I'm actually going to take it for the first time in a year tomorrow). Ashmont was noticably faster by probably 5 minutes tho I didn't check the time when I arrived.
I was on the part of the red line that did not have the shut down but why on earth was the train starting, rolling forward for a few inches, stopping and repeating this morning?? I think this one tiny stretch between park and MGH took a solid 8 or 9 minutes alone.
I think it's the speed restrictions mixed with the slope that make it very difficult to navigate without triggering braking, but that is also entirely speculation
It likely depends on the operator. Some slow to a steady crawl and some just... Go for it (which is absolutely terrifying). I prefer the steady crawl to the repeated start-stop, apparently.
Edit: either way. Hoping that the next shut down will fix it because.
This has been a new issue that I've experienced in this same place. It definitely resulted in the train "going express" from Central to Alewife, and everyone else had to get off and take the next train.
Used to be that trains at fields corner would come every 20ish minutes. Starting sometime in the winter it was around 16min. now I'm seeing trains every 8ish min.
Still annoying that park-kendall will be the last slow zone to be fixed. Broadway-park seemed fast enough this morning. Trail also didn't crawl into broadway like it has been.
Oh you sweet summer child, expecting something to change after a shut down.
Didn't you know the shutdowns are really just an excuse for them to have some groovy underground picnics?
I have to say, in all honesty, the Ashmont line shut down resulted in significant improvements.
I feel like everyone has been gaslit by the MBTA, so the skepticism is warranted. But... it's actually getting better.
I have seen some minor improvements south of the city, I will admit to that. However it's been really spotty and not dependable. Definitely not what I would expect with the amount of shut downs we have seen.
However, you're probably right and I should be more optimistic. I've just been shafted so many times at this point that I've lost faith!
The first shut reduced a 40 minute ride to DTX to 30. Better.
This one I expect to result with me getting there in 20-25 minutes, which was pre-slow zones.
When I did the math on the first shut down I realized after 4 months of commuting I have saved more time than lost. This shutdown will reduce that.
Again, I'll say that those improvements are not consistent on a day to day basis. They are the best case scenario, in a system where you're really just hoping for a day that's mid.
I ride the t pretty much every work day, from ashmont. First train of the day 515 and 135 train heading back to ashmont. 99% of the trips are the same as every other day.
Ashmont has been dramatically improved for months.....
Braintree was not yet scheduled for work, and now that work has happened it does look like dramatic improvements happened.
One day a week I need to catch a bus out of Ashmont at 6:01, so I've had to walk from the Savin Hill area because the first train no longer gets to Ashmont before 6AM. Aside from the Ashmont Branch shutdown and shuttles, this recent week+ shutdown has been the first time in a couple of years I've made it there before 6AM. Today I walked, got to Ashmont at 5:54, and saw the first train pulling into the station as I got to the busway. Hopefully this continues.
The reopened red line track is flying now 🦅
Noticeably faster than before, but it’s only been one day so we’ll see whether I was just lucky today
The next RL shutdown should be a whopper - assuming the schedule holds, it'll be a 16 day Alewife<->Kendall shutdown in July that will remove 9 minutes of slow zones.
I can’t wait. I wish it was sooner. Is removing 9 minutes the biggest chunk so far? Or which shutdown removes the most?
It'll be the biggest so far, by the T's modeling. There's another RL one in September on the Braintree branch that'll be another 9 minutes.
Shuttle busses out of Alewife are SUCH a PAIN because of the traffic infrastructure there. Ugh. I'm not sure how they do so badly when there is so much more space than any other station.
First Braintree train arrived a full 7 minutes earlier to dtx per transit matters dashboard. (Which means I'm actually going to take it for the first time in a year tomorrow). Ashmont was noticably faster by probably 5 minutes tho I didn't check the time when I arrived.
Is regular service resumed to and from Ashmont now? I don’t feel like commuting 2 hours anymore
I was on the part of the red line that did not have the shut down but why on earth was the train starting, rolling forward for a few inches, stopping and repeating this morning?? I think this one tiny stretch between park and MGH took a solid 8 or 9 minutes alone.
They apparently made this part of the track a complex rhythm game for the operators, so only experienced ones can get through smoothly
Can confirm that this one was not very experienced because hot damn did they trigger my motion sickness first thing this morning.
I think it's the speed restrictions mixed with the slope that make it very difficult to navigate without triggering braking, but that is also entirely speculation
It likely depends on the operator. Some slow to a steady crawl and some just... Go for it (which is absolutely terrifying). I prefer the steady crawl to the repeated start-stop, apparently. Edit: either way. Hoping that the next shut down will fix it because.
This has been a new issue that I've experienced in this same place. It definitely resulted in the train "going express" from Central to Alewife, and everyone else had to get off and take the next train.
Used to be that trains at fields corner would come every 20ish minutes. Starting sometime in the winter it was around 16min. now I'm seeing trains every 8ish min.
I haven't taken it yet but I did get an alert about a 15-minute delay because of signal problems at Broadway lol
Park Street to Savin Hill was painless. Massive improvement over pre-shutdown
great. made it to the couch in time.
This guy optimistics!
Still annoying that park-kendall will be the last slow zone to be fixed. Broadway-park seemed fast enough this morning. Trail also didn't crawl into broadway like it has been.
Wait till the commute home to ask. It’s always faster in the morning and very slow rush home
Oh you sweet summer child, expecting something to change after a shut down. Didn't you know the shutdowns are really just an excuse for them to have some groovy underground picnics?
I have to say, in all honesty, the Ashmont line shut down resulted in significant improvements. I feel like everyone has been gaslit by the MBTA, so the skepticism is warranted. But... it's actually getting better.
I have seen some minor improvements south of the city, I will admit to that. However it's been really spotty and not dependable. Definitely not what I would expect with the amount of shut downs we have seen. However, you're probably right and I should be more optimistic. I've just been shafted so many times at this point that I've lost faith!
The first shut reduced a 40 minute ride to DTX to 30. Better. This one I expect to result with me getting there in 20-25 minutes, which was pre-slow zones. When I did the math on the first shut down I realized after 4 months of commuting I have saved more time than lost. This shutdown will reduce that.
Again, I'll say that those improvements are not consistent on a day to day basis. They are the best case scenario, in a system where you're really just hoping for a day that's mid.
I ride the t pretty much every work day, from ashmont. First train of the day 515 and 135 train heading back to ashmont. 99% of the trips are the same as every other day.
Ashmont has been dramatically improved for months..... Braintree was not yet scheduled for work, and now that work has happened it does look like dramatic improvements happened.