Wellesley commuter rail users are concerned about proposed changes by the MBTA to the schedule, including the elimination of a key morning rush hour train that currently works well for parents who need to drop off kids at school during a tight designated timeframe.
The T is currently holding public meetings to get feedback on proposed fare hikes and schedule changes, and is also offering a chance to leave comments online here. The nearest public meeting about schedule changes takes place in Natick on Feb. 3.
We’ve heard from a couple of Wellesley readers specifically about the proposed elimination of a morning train that currently is scheduled to arrive at Wellesley Square/Hills/Farms at 8:34/8:37/8:41am. In addition, the current 8:18/8:21/8:25am train would leave 14 minutes earlier, adding up to inconvenience for some local commuters.
“The proposed change makes commuting difficult for parents of elementary school aged kids, since elementary drop off is between 8:15 and 8:30am,” writes Elizabeth May, who has been trying to spread the word about the possible changes to other commuters. “The proposed changes are currently up for debate and enough negative feedback can sway the decision.”
Another reader notes that the proposed schedule change also eliminates stops in Natick and Auburndale, so driving to those stops wouldn’t be an option, either. “In particular, [the 8:34am train is] perfect for commuters like me who have elementary age school children that can’t make the earlier train because the elementary school drop off time is no earlier than 8:15 a.m. If they axe this train, Wellesley commuters like me will have to take the later train, which doesn’t arrive downtown until after 9:30.”
State Rep. Alice Peisch met with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation on Jan. 14 and raised concerns about the schedule, including the 510 train in question. “MassDOT made it very clear to us that they appreciated the concern but needed to hear it from riders directly, through the survey,” a Peisch aide told us.
Of course, local commuters have plenty of complaints about currently scheduled trains not arriving when they are supposed to, but at least having the trains scheduled gives the riders a fighting chance each day.
Lots of discussion of the schedule change at Dave Perry’s blog: http://dbperry.weebly.com/
I posted some detailed analysis of the new schedules on my website, including my observations that the elimination of the current P512 from the draft new schedule may cause problems for Natick and Wellesley passengers. My website also has an easier to read version of the draft new schedule.
See you at the meetings!
http://dbperry.weebly.com/blog/is-this-the-final-draft-new-schedule
They are eliminating all the morning stops at Wellesley Hills station! Btw, they have stops in the afternoon. You can’t take the train in the morning but they are expecting you will use the train to be back