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The MTA is the best in the U.S. by a good margin. But the T isn't bad compared to most other U.S. transit agencies. WMTA has gone downhill in the past decade or so. The CTA has major issues. SEPTA has seemingly endless problems, and if you think the Green Line is slow, try riding Muni Metro anywhere outside of the Central Tunnel. The bar for public transit is not high in the U.S., but the T is still better than most. Obviously, the T needs to be a lot better, but as a daily T commuter who has lived elsewhere and ridden transit all over the country, the chicken little attitude about the T here is a bit over the top.
We'll see what the investigation finds in this recent incident, but it's likely to be a combination of both mechanical failure and operator error. The door should never trap someone's arm like that. The sensors are generally super sensitive. And even if the sensors did fail, an adult should be able to free their arm from between them (I'm wondering if he actually got caught/pinched where the opening door recedes into the frame of the train rather than between the two doors where they close). Regardless of how he got caught, the train should never have moved - that's operator error. The drivers are supposed to ensure that the doors are clear before moving out of the station. They have mirrors and multiple cameras positioned on the platform that show the entire length of the train. They should also have an open window and manually look backward to ensure that people are standing behind the yellow line before moving. So mechanical issue or not, this guy should not have been dragged into the tunnel.
WMATA offers a hybrid commuter rail and urban rail with more ridership, more track, and much much cleanlier, more modern, and it already had many features MBTA trains are only just now getting when I first rode it in 2011. Off-Peak and On-peak pricing and exit fares minimize fare evasion and just make sense. Even with its now reduced hours, it's still a better and more comprehensive system than the MBTA, which is a bit less hub and spoke.
CTA has 24/7 lines and elevated both of which I think add great vibrancy. but I haven't ridden it; I just know my Chicago friends put it well above the MBTA.
I definitely believe the MBTA to be better than MARTA SEPTA and BART but not the MTA. MBTA has a real issue with train safety. Especially derailments.
The MTA is the best in the U.S. by a good margin. But the T isn't bad compared to most other U.S. transit agencies. WMTA has gone downhill in the past decade or so. The CTA has major issues. SEPTA has seemingly endless problems, and if you think the Green Line is slow, try riding Muni Metro anywhere outside of the Central Tunnel. The bar for public transit is not high in the U.S., but the T is still better than most. Obviously the T needs to be a lot better, but as a daily T commuter who has lived elsewhere and ridden transit all over the country, the chicken little attitude about the T here is a bit over the top.
We'll see what the investigation finds in this recent incident, but it's likely to be a combination of both mechanical failure and operator error. The door should never trap someone's arm like that. The sensors are generally super sensitive. And even if the sensors did fail, an adult should be able to free their arm from between them (I'm wondering if he actually got caught/pinched where the opening door recedes into the frame of the train rather than between the two doors where they close). Regardless of how he got caught, the train should never have moved - that's operator error. The drivers are supposed to ensure that the doors are clear before moving out of the station. They have mirrors and multiple cameras positioned on the platform that show the entire length of the train. They should also have an open window and manually look backwards to ensure that people are standing behind the yellow line before moving. So mechanical issue or not, this guy should not have been dragged into the tunnel.
SEPTA is awful. I couldn't believe how poor the service and how dingey the stations were. Nearly Gotham like. Downtown Crossing would be a clean SEPTA station. PATCO is the complete opposite.
MTA is extensive but I find it disjointed and the trains to be in poor condition recently. The MBTA has operational problems, however, the MTA riders are o_O sometimes. I think perception (Like cleanliness and quality of rolling stock) plays a huge role in how I weigh a transit system.
MWATA seems to always be delayed. Its nice, for sure. But I genuinely am not sure what is going on there.
CTA was the most efficient IMHO of any transit system that I have ridden. It has MAJOR issues and it probably will get way worse before it gets any better. I like the Red and Brown Lines.
MARTA is a sleeper. Very reliable and has great potential.
WMATA offers a hybrid commuter rail and urban rail with more ridership, more track, and much much cleanlier, more modern, and it already had many features MBTA trains are only just now getting when I first rode it in 2011. Off-Peak and On-peak pricing and exit fares minimize fare evasion and just make sense. Even with its now reduced hours, it's still a better and more comprehensive system than the MBTA, which is a bit less hub and spoke.
CTA has 24/7 lines and elevated both of which I think add great vibrancy. but I haven't ridden it; I just know my Chicago friends put it well above the MBTA.
I definitely believe the MBTA to be better than MARTA SEPTA and BART but not the MTA. MBTA has a real issue with train safety. Especially derailments.
I liked riding WMATA when I lived in DC, but it's a different type of system. I speaking more about safety - WMATA has had several fatal accidents (inc. one that killed 9 people) and some major derailments (as recently as October 2021). CTA is larger and definitely better at moving people throughout the city than the T, but it's also had a lengthy history of major safety incidents (including the dramatic blue line crash at O'Hare where the train jumped the tracks and crashed into the escalator). None of this is OK, but it's not even remotely unique to the T.
I liked riding WMATA when I lived in DC, but it's a different type of system. I speaking more about safety - WMATA has had several fatal accidents (inc. one that killed 9 people) and some major derailments (as recently as October 2021). CTA is larger and definitely better at moving people throughout the city than the T, but it's also had a lengthy history of major safety incidents (including the dramatic blue line crash at O'Hare where the train jumped the tracks and crashed into the escalator). None of this is OK, but it's not even remotely unique to the T.
I would bet money the MBTA has had many more derailments than the CTA or WMATA over the past decade.
https://www.masslive.com/boston/2019...ata-shows.html
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has experienced 68 total train derailments in the last decade — with a continual increase in incidents from 2012, documents from the Federal Transit Administration show.
....
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which in 2017 claimed to have an average 5.5 million weekday riders, only had 17 train derailments since 2009 according to the data.
https://www.nbcboston.com/investigat...otal%20of%2077.
Federal records reviewed by NBC10 Boston show the MBTA experienced more derailments in recent years than nearly all of its peers. Trains came off the tracks 57 times, and 27 of those incidents involved passenger trains. Only the transit system in New Orleans saw more derailments during that time, with a total of 77
I would bet money the MBTA has had many more derailments than the CTA or WMATA over the past decade.
https://www.masslive.com/boston/2019...ata-shows.html
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has experienced 68 total train derailments in the last decade — with a continual increase in incidents from 2012, documents from the Federal Transit Administration show.
....
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which in 2017 claimed to have an average 5.5 million weekday riders, only had 17 train derailments since 2009 according to the data.
https://www.nbcboston.com/investigat...otal%20of%2077.
Federal records reviewed by NBC10 Boston show the MBTA experienced more derailments in recent years than nearly all of its peers. Trains came off the tracks 57 times, and 27 of those incidents involved passenger trains. Only the transit system in New Orleans saw more derailments during that time, with a total of 77
Yeah, it's definitely not a testament to the T and is one of the areas it needs to be significantly better. But general "derailment" statistics paint a pretty incomplete picture. Most of the T's derailments are non-issues. Out of service trains bumping off the track at switches going into the rail yard, a Green Line train bumping off at the old, extremely tight Lechmere Loop (a common occurrence - I've seen it twice in person), etc. make up the bulk of incidents. They shouldn't happen at all and it's embarrassing that they still do, but they're not an indicator of a major safety threat. The Red Line one a few years ago was a serious problem and could have been much worse. But that's an outlier. WMATA may have fewer derailments (I can't find data), but the ones I can find seem to be more serious than ours.
Also worth noting, the Red, Blue, and Orange Line have collision avoidance systems that prevent collisions like the ones that have happened on the Green Line Line and the WMATA examples above. The T upgraded systems a few years back so that if two trains get within a certain distance of each other, the manual controls are automatically overridden and the approaching train is slowed/stopped (you see this happen a lot at Park St. and Downtown Crossing on the Red Line). The Green Line is getting the same systems and the Lechmere loop doesn't exist anymore.
Yeah, it's definitely not a testament to the T and is one of the areas it needs to be significantly better. But general "derailment" statistics paint a pretty incomplete picture. Most of the T's derailments are non-issues. Out of service trains bumping off the track at switches going into the rail yard, a Green Line train bumping off at the old, extremely tight Lechmere Loop (a common occurrence - I've seen it twice in person), etc. make up the bulk of incidents. They shouldn't happen at all and it's embarrassing that they still do, but they're not an indicator of a major safety threat. The Red Line one a few years ago was a serious problem and could have been much worse. But that's an outlier. WMATA may have fewer derailments (I can't find data), but the ones I can find seem to be more serious than ours.
Also worth noting, the Red, Blue, and Orange Line have collision avoidance systems that prevent collisions like the ones that have happened on the Green Line Line and the WMATA examples above. The T upgraded systems a few years back so that if two trains get within a certain distance of each other, the manual controls are automatically overridden and the approaching train is slowed/stopped (you see this happen a lot at Park St. and Downtown Crossing on the Red Line). The Green Line is getting the same systems and the Lechmere loop doesn't exist anymore.
As a regular of the T, do you find the T has made improvements in the past 5/10 years? Even last two years?
As a regular of the T, do you find the T has made improvements in the past 5/10 years? Even last two years?
They've certainly made some. The weather upgrades have drastically reduced weather related delays. There was a multi-year stretch culminating with the infamous winter of 2015 where the T had multiple shut downs and many, many delays due to cold temps causing problems. They responded by laying new track and third rails across the system which have pretty much eliminated the issue. There have been signal upgrades across the system which have had a noticeable impact (to me, anyway) in reducing delays "due to a signal issues" as well as increased speed in certain places. There are still too many signal delays, however; and trains move too slow through many sections of the network.
I wish it was happening faster, but the fact that 1/4 to 1/3 of trips on the Orange Line are regularly being run by new trains makes a world of difference from a rider's experience. More trains = better headways and less crowding. Plus, the new trains are infinitely better than the old. The Green Line trains have improved greatly too (between the new trains and the renovated trains). Taking the Green Line to Union Square is awesome, as is the new Lechmere station, but the trip is painfully slow due to speed restrictions approaching Union (there's even a stop sign for the trains just before pulling into Union) which is hopefully temporary. The station "brightening" projects have made a big difference too - better lighting and new paint make them feel a whole lot less dingy at night.
There are still way too many delays and mechanical issues, however. There are also clearly some safety issues that need to be addressed. I think the upgraded fare system will help movement across the network quite a bit when it's implemented. But Boston has a long, long, long way to go to even be in the discussion with comparably sized cities around the world with good transit (Copenhagen, Berlin, Madrid, etc.). All of the current investment in the future of the T is great. But the T could be perfectly passible (and not in the position of spending 8+ billion to undo a well-deserved decades long reputation of poor performance) if it had been better about not deferring maintenance and made incremental investments in improving operational and safety systems between the 60s and early 2010s.
Here we are in 2022, and things like that can still happen. Cripes.
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Man dies after being dragged by red line train with arm stuck in door
