Officials from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and Massachusetts Department of Transportation will visit Wellesley Town Hall on Monday, Jan. 6 at 3pm to discuss plans for service and station improvement, including fare collection. Station accessibility will surely be one topic of interest.
While MBTA officials can’t be expected to have all their meetings at nights or on weekends, it’s likely that a weekday afternoon meeting in Wellesley will be of little use to most daily Wellesley commuter rail and green line users. And it’s these patrons, who have been stuck with higher fares this year while still often experiencing late trains, who would be most likely interested in what the MBTA has planned and have the most input to share.
As a regular commuter rail rider myself for the past 2 years, I know the good and bad. I appreciate that Wellesley has 3 stations and a few others nearby. The trains are usually on time out of South Station, but frequently late out of Wellesley. I find the temperature control on the trains generally good. I’ve tried taking earlier trains to ensure my arrival at work on time, but these trains seem to be late half of the time. Late commuter rail trains literally cost me hundreds of dollars per month in lost time that I can’t bill for at work.
Even if you can’t attend the MBTA meeting in Wellesley, you can submit questions through the town at shawkinson@wellesleyma.gov.
Questions might include:
- What are plans for increased frequency, including on weekends?
- Are there any plans for later trains, so that if someone were to attend a concert or other such event in Boston that they could get back to Wellesley by commuter rail?
- What are plans to make Wellesley’s stations accessible to those with physical disabilities?
- What are monthly commuter rail pass holders actually getting for their 7% fare increase?
- Any thoughts about widening space between seats to accommodate those over 6-feet tall?
- WiFi?
- Is there really a Commuter Rail Wheel of Excuses?
The MBTA has held a series of meetings over the past year or so to discuss its Rail Vision plans, which seeks to find cost-effective ways to transform the current system. This could include much more frequent trains, which could make the commuter rail viable for late night or weekend travel, which it really isn’t now.
More: Wellesley train platforms now boast solar-powered “station brightening” displays
The MBTA/MassDOT has a bad habit of scheduling meetings such as this at inconvenient times. When the MBTA was planning a “Bus Rapid Transit” or BRT like the Silver Line for one of the surface bus routes serving Mattapan, the service labeled “Route 28X” (for express) would have restored service along a former streetcar right of way with similar stops. It would have cut off pedestrians from business and homes due to safety barriers. There was also community concern for construction dust in a part of Boston with the highest instance of asthma and other lung diseases. Eventually community organizers engaged their city councilors and state reps who lambasted the MBTA and MassDOT for their lack of community convenience. In the end the public rejected the express bus BRT system.
Yes, the MBTA can hold meetings in convenient locations THAT ARE ACCESSIBLE TO ADA AND PUBLIC TRANSIT (where available), but will only follow their own convenience when they can get away with it. Wellesley is not the only community seeing this. I’d also note their plans in the electronic medium and sending comments by E-mail also lock out the segment of the public that does no have access or is not tech savvy. Hard to believe in today’s society but that is still an issue.
Hopefully, more additional personel @ Wellesley Farm.to guide us where to go w/ out any darn similiar opposite track confusion that ensued since early OCT ’19 to a point where my S/S reduced Fat CHOC ice cream kept melting & dripping on me & me missing one of my above workplace’s shifts in mid-OCT ’19, respectively. Luckily, my above workplace’s staff were very understanding about this.
There definitley need ramps on the Wellesley Commuter Rail. Not just for Wherl Chairs but also for people who use walkers and those who have baby carriages. Thank you Lesli