irl – chelsea's corner

New Bedford (MBTA)

It’s been a LOOOOOOOOONG time coming…..but now, 67 years after the last trains roared through, on 2025-03-24………

SIX. NEW. STATIONS!!!!!!! South Coast Rail has finally opened to the general public for revenue service and I’m VERY excited to talk about it! With that in mind, here’s the first station review of the extension, and the first new stations since Pawtucket! First stop: New Bedford (Downtown)!

So, first off, this station has two different locations for bus connections. The 204 and 209 both stop at Purchase & Pearl, across the highway with access via a pedestrian bridge which, truthfully, looks quite nice. Meanwhile, the 211 stops on Acushnet Avenue outside the station. Speaking of which, the bridge over Rte. 18 REALLY looks nice! There’s even elevators, a Dutch “walk your bike down the stairs” situation, and even artwork. The station parking lot itself is sizeable, however it does also somewhat serve double duty, partly, as the Whale’s Tooth terminal parking lot. But, the Whale’s Tooth part is closed at this time of year because ferry season isn’t for another month. As for the station itself? It’s actually quite nice. You have the Wamsutta St. layover facility, a high level platform with sheltered areas, departure boards THAT HAVE SCROLLING TEXT?! WOAH!!! Another departure board is on the platform as well, more akin to what you’d see at Back Bay, Ruggles, and South Station. All trains are listed for Track 1 (the only platform track). There’s also a freight siding for Mass Coastal and HOLY FUCKING SHIT IT’S MILES. Nah, just kidding, though I actually did encounter him here and stuck with his group for much of the (very long!) day. There’s also another, more lowkey, exit from the platform as well. Overall, though, not a bad station!

Stairs! Yes, you can walk a bicycle down it!

A bunch of clear and restricted signals, presumably for the yard move out

Looking towards South Station and Taunton!

HOLY FUCKING SHIT IT’S MILES (also hi Jeremy, Aviv, Maz, and the others!)

CUE STRAUSS’S *ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA*!!!

Another yard shot before making the long trek to Boston

The good: It’s in New Bedford, and this is the closest you can get to downtown by rail! It’s a stone’s throw, and furthermore, across Route 18 is a residential neighborhood, so it’s in a relatively walkable area too (by virtue of the footbridge across the highway). The industrial area is expected to be redeveloped, but as of now it’s industrial. But, you also have the many Seastreak ferry connections to places like the Cape, Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, and I think even Block Island. There’s also plenty of parking, and I’m sure if you want to spend the day in New Bedford without going into Boston, this is a decent place to park and ride as well.

The bad: I mean, the area’s not the most pedestrian friendly given Route 18 is right there. But, I’m sure that could change in the future. Also, the walk to downtown is a little long, but still not the worst.

Nearby points of interest: The waterfront and downtown are the big ones! This city is also famous for the whaling industry (& is still a major fishing hub in the 21st century!). Also, the local career center is right at the station!

Transit connections:
Commuter Rail (New Bedford)
SRTA (202, 204 on Purchase St., 211 on Acushnet Ave.)

Overall, it’s not a bad station, and in terms of vibes, it’s really not that bad! The location could be better, but the rail lines aren’t conducive to a station in the heart of downtown so this is the closest we got. It’s genuinely not that bad though!

Rating: 7.5/10

Worcester Union (MBTA/Amtrak/WRTA)

Oh, how far we’ve come…the final entry of the Commuter Rail saga (well, aside from the entries about the lines themselves – but I’ll worry about that post-South Coast Rail…, also aside from the six South Coast Rail entries that will be dropping over the next couple weeks). And, no better way to finish off than what is quite literally the final boss: one of the busiest Commuter Rail stations on the system, at the end of a line that connects the two largest cities in all of New England (yeah, sorry Providence, but you aren’t that far behind circa the 2020 census – only about 15k people difference!). This one, surprisingly, was VERY difficult as well, having taken two attempts. With that in mind, here we go. The end of the MBTA’s Worcester Line, a surprisingly not very busy Amtrak stop (out of 11, the 3rd least-used stop in the entire state as of Amtrak FY’23), Worcester’s Peter Pan and Greyhound stops, …and a bus stop for both the PVTA and MART??? Huh, odd. Needless to say, with all that in mind, here we go!

ATTEMPT #1, 2025-03-15: I woke up at the asscrack of dawn, hoping to utilize the 40 minute turnaround period to do this station review. Unfortunately, due to unexpected interlocking work in Westborough area, this didn’t pan out. We held at Southborough as the inbound train was wrong-railing through HALF OF THE LINE, which took a while. Then, we proceeded up once the train cleared, the engineer had to ask for verbal permission for a NORAC Rule 241 (to those not versed in railroading jargon, a Rule 241 is permission to pass an absolute stop). This……took a while, and when all was said and done, we finally got to Union Station. However, I only had 3 minutes to do much of anything. And, since the next train was in 2 hours…I was fucked. Why? Well, I had made plans to ride Brooke’s train and to spend the day with Nat as well, and having to arrive back into Boston at almost 1PM would have derailed this greatly. So, back to the drawing board I go, to attempt again with my entire morning cleared out, as my only other real options for handling this were to either throw away my errands for the 17th (not happening as laundry takes a while) or to wake up at the asscrack of dawn on the 22nd (this was the only other viable option). With that in mind, I’d have to trudge on for another week before I could attempt to tackle this beast again.

ATTEMPT #2, 2025-03-22

So, after my last attempt got botched horrifically due to UNEXPECTED TRACKWORK IN WESTBOROUGH AREA, I had to come back up. And, given the fact the opening of the South Coast extension was imminent, I figured today (2025-03-22) was a good day to dry run waking up at such an ungodly hour (2am!!!!!). With that in mind, I hopped on the first Commuter Rail train of the morning, changed at South Station (rather than Back Bay), and pressed on all the way to Worcester. This time, I not only carved out 2 extra hours in my schedule, but also took my sweet time with this one. It’s the last entry, for crying out loud! So, with a smooth arrival into Worcester Union Station, here goes nothing.

The platform was decent – the PA system is pretty beefy despite the fact that: 1. only commuter trains stop here, and 2. only one Amtrak train leaves here each day (the Lake Shore Limited to Albany & Chicago). Benches line the platform, as does even proper countdown clocks ala what you’d see at Back Bay???? DAMN. I went to check out the pedestrian bridge and it was actually decently filled – as there was a departure board up there. Well shit, that’s ACTUALLY pretty helpful! There’s also a provision for a second track (does not exist presently), and I think the plan is to build said second track so more than one train can serve the station at a time. This would be important for the proposed East-West Rail proposal that would connect Boston with Springfield, the Berkshires, and Albany. There’s even a decent amount of surface parking to go around – and you can also see both the Commuter Rail and CSX yards from here as well. Cool!

Commuter Rail yard front and center, CSX to the right!

I didn’t see any ticketing machines in the overpass

Surface parking – probably primarily intended for crew members

Looks a little sad under the Shrewsbury St. exit ramp

Now, if this was all said and done, I’d easily give this at least a 7 or an 8, by virtue of being a nice and modern, if single-tracked when it should be double-tracked, terminus station. But, there’s more. Union Station is well known for having a grandiose hall and waiting area, with a parking garage, intercity buses, and the WRTA’s main hub as well. The main hall has a couple of food tenants, restrooms, and can even be rented out for events. MART’s Clinton/Worcester shuttle is apparently prescribed to pick up at the front door of the event hall. Further in, you have a departure board INSIDE the station, a Worcester PD substation, a CHARLIECARD MACHINE(?!) – YES, YOU CAN ACTUALLY RELOAD YOUR CHARLIECARDS AND BUY COMMUTER RAIL TICKETS OUT HERE!, and even the main WRTA bus hub is out here. That isn’t too special to ring home about, as it’s got several sheltered berths and benches and the usual. Vs. something like BAT, the WRTA doesn’t have their shit together nor do any of their routes have live tracking with GTFS. At least with BAT, the schedule is padded to Hell and you have The Pulse. No such thing exists here. However, the WRTA DOES have an indoor waiting room. It’s passable! Oh, yeah, the PVTA’s B79 bus to ZooMass (UMASS Amherst) stops at the intersection of Harding and Franklin. Neat!

Nice it acknowledges both intercity buses and Amtrak too

BUS connection – but it doesn’t tell you the B79.

The shuttered Peter Pan ticketing office

Intercity buses! Amtrak’s Thruway uses this too!

Towards Springfield, Albany, and Chicago

This train sharted itself on my way back

The good: A lot! It’s got a gorgeous station house, ticketing machines (nonexistent otherwise!), decent connectivity with intercity and local buses, signage that acknowledges the existence of Amtrak (where’s that at Framingham?!), a modern platform, overpasses with departure boards, departure boards in the main hall, a waiting area for the WRTA that’s open to the public, and is pretty well-located, being in downtown Worcester.

The bad: Signage for the PVTA and MART would be nice! I don’t have anything bad to say otherwise.

Nearby points of interest: Well, given this is in downtown Worcester, a lot, actually! I mean, you have everywhere the WRTA can bring you, ranging from several Walmarts, to where Higgins Armory used to be (RIP), Quinsigamond CC, Clark University, the Blackstone Valley Shopping Center, even out to places like Shrewsbury, the Auburn Mall, Southbridge, and even freakin’ Brookfield. Unfortunately, I can’t comment much as I haven’t ridden the WRTA much. Oh yeah, you can also get to Amherst and Ware via the PVTA’s B79 bus here, and MART runs a commuter shuttle from here to Clinton at peak hours, and express to Leominster and Fitchburg offpeak. As for thing closer to walking distance, you have Polar Park (home to the WooSox), the DCU Center, Femme (lesbian bar – yes, Ben, I will visit at some point), the Miss Worcester and Boulevard Diners, on Southbridge and Shrewsbury Streets, and even SWEATY BETTY’S (kids not allowed).

Transit connections:
Amtrak (Lake Shore Limited)
Commuter Rail (Worcester)
WRTA (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 19, 23, 24, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 33, 42, 825)
PVTA (B79)
MART (Clinton/Worcester Commuter)

Overall, I genuinely think this is deserving of the coveted 10/10 rating. I mean, I got nothing against it whatsoever, I can’t even think of anything bad to say about it, and it’s probably the single best station on the MBTA network.

And, with that, that concludes “Chelsea Visits Every MBTA Rail Station”, I guess. I mean, I have the CapeFLYER, a few Amtrak stops, and a CTrail station in the Commonwealth. I still have the entirity of Metro-North and the LIRR, NJT, the MTA subway, PATH, SEPTA, Maryland MTA & MARC, and even WMATA and VRE. As for the future of this blog, I’ll probably mainly slowly hack away at buses, the likes of other Amtrak and commuter train stations, and possibly even do a cross-country adventure or two. I mean, as of writing this, the opening of South Coast Rail is imminent so that still remains otherwise, for the MBTA. And, I’d also like to give a shoutout to everyone that’s come along, including people that went through the trouble of going through these stations with me. Thank you all for joining along for the ride, and stay tuned because….

NEW BEDFORD IS NEXT.

Rating: 10/10

I get the feeling that all the new development is because of the WooSox…

Something about this feels very imposing…

HERE COMES A GEVO (i think it’s a GEVO?)

Chelsea VS. the FAA (2025 Birthday Special)

Okay, kiddos, buckle down for this one because this is a particularly crazy special. Now, depending on how this goes, the following entries will either be all Boston-centric, or a mix of Boston and NYC-centric entries. As of me writing this paragraph (& the next three following), I don’t know. That being, I will have either ridden a plane successfully for the first time ever, or I will have been arrested by TSA police and have been through a traumatically undignifying experience, by the time I finish this entry. With that in mind, let’s begin this ordeal.

It all started, when Miranda (the same one that came with me to Christopher St. last August!) bribed me with $60 to take a plane, back in October. Surprisingly, she was not joking, and was serious. And, yes, she followed through. So, I booked a plane, and by god was it a bad start.

The booking process apparently REQUIRED me to gender myself incorrectly (no X option – to match what was on both my passport and Rhode Island state ID), and I fell back on “F”. Do I pass well enough? Probably not. But, whatever. Everything else is smooth-ish sailing until I get to the end. But, I was still panicking. By the time I got to the end, it asked for things I didn’t know what the hell they were. What the fuck is a “Known Traveler Number”? I don’t know, and I hope to god leaving it blank (per Brooke’s warning) isn’t going to get me in trouble – even though I have a bad feeling doing so is a bad idea. But whatever. It let me proceed, I paid up the $54 or so, and I had …a confirmation email.

What? Just a confirmation? No e-ticket?! WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?! Hell, it didn’t even tell me what my seat was! THAT’S RIGHT – THOSE BASTARDS ARE SO MONEY HUNGRY THEY EVEN DEMAND YOU MONEY JUST SO THEY CAN ASSIGN YOU A SEAT. So, I said fuck it, paid $10 for seat 8A (after everyone insisting seating doesn’t matter and it is not, in fact, scenic), and went on my way. But, I STILL DON’T HAVE AN E-TICKET. IT’S BEEN THREE MONTHS AS OF WRITING THIS PARAGRAPH, ALMOST, AND I DON’T HAVE ONE STILL – JUST A GODDAMN CONFIRMATION. And, for you plane foamers out there, you can track my plane with it being plane #E190 out of Boston’s Logan Airport. Have fun with that! In fact, this is also the first time I’ve ridden the SL1 for any semblance of a legitimate reason. Neat! Either way, so far, this is quite the sour start. For comparison, Amtrak just has you fill out info, no weird “Known Traveler” number or anything – you pick if you want coach or business, you’re assigned a seat (or told it’s first come first serve – this is how coach class on the Regional, and I presume many other trains, work) and you get your e-ticket right then and there.

2025-01-24 – The Preliminary Scoping

So, to get a feel for what I’m doing, in anticipation of being here in a melantonin-fueled daze, I decided to come by. So, I hop on the SL1 and get off at Terminal A. Of course, I wander around the terminal, figure out how to do inter-terminal transfers as needed, and generally get a lay of the land. And, by god, is Logan Airport pretty freakin’ big. I walk by Terminal B, find that it’s …two in one???? Yeah, this was confusing me. Looking through the outer areas of the terminals, there’s customer service desks, what looks like baggage claims, bubblers, convenience stores, three Dunkies, and several security lines. Admittedly, at face value, I’m more scared now because I really hope I don’t get in the wrong line. I must also admit, a lot of the airport is a freakin’ liminal space, and there’s also a lot of seemingly fishy-looking offices. Surprisingly, though, Terminal A was a madhouse yet B was basically dead, and C was also largely dead. Overall, nothing too bad.

2025-02-09 – “Check in”

I don’t know what the fuck a check in is, but I was asked to do that. So, I asked if it was bad and was told no, and confirmed “yes, despite pouring $65 into this, I am still using a plane.” It also asked me for seat selection (why?), extra bags, and …priority security??? I wasn’t an ADA passenger, so I didn’t need priority screening. After this, it actually beget me MY TICKET?!

2025-02-10 – The Big Day

Okay, so Feb. 10th rolled around, seemingly taking an eternity, and it was the big day. Woke up at 2:30, Ubered to Providence, and took the first train of the morning out. All was normal until, of course, in typical fashion whenever I go to NYC, something goes horrifically wrong and I narrowly avoid trouble. In this case, I avoided a derailment in the Readville yard that caused issues galore. I was able to take the Silver Line out to Logan Airport easily. I forgot where to get off so I just defaulted to Terminal B as a failsafe, got off, looked at the rather easy to find wayfinding and found I had to go to C. Surprisingly, here, I also discovered that Massport has countdown clocks for both the SL1 and their own shuttles. Neat! So, I hauled my ass over to Term. C, and printed out my ticket. FINALLY, they let me print it out. I’m not sure why I couldn’t print it out on Jan. 24th, but whatever. I got this, and then the first of two major problem points that could potentially derail everything: the TSA. I didn’t know what I was doing going into this, and there were multiple lines. But, thankfully, the TSA agent was ushering people in and pointed me to the right line (even if I was still nervous that I did not, in fact, get in the right line as it was completely unmarked). I confirmed everything they were saying, did as needed, and was on my way. Surprisingly, it was quick, and the TSA agents were….actually helpful in making sure I was doing the right thing. I know, ACAB and all that, and I still hold on to that principle, but recognition to people being helpful is an important thing too. With that, shoutout to the TSA agents at Logan for actually being helpful and professional. But, still, ACAB. Unfortunately, the problem point was actually something I did NOT anticipate.

I lost my ID somewhere!

Yeah, THAT was bad. But, after conferring with Brooke on what to do, and asking a TSA agent at the center of security, I actually managed to recover it as someone turned it in. Thank you, person who turned it in!

So, after this, I decided to explore the terminal a bit. There were a number of restaurants, shops, and even a couple of Dunks! Sadly, I couldn’t mobile order any Dunks here, so I had to forego it. But, I did find a gender-neutral restroom as I had to piss, and it was clean and spacious. Neat. Also, the sunrises out here are actually kinda nice, in a way. Personally, however, I’d rather my sunsets over the ocean in southern Connecticut. It was a long couple hours, but eventually 8:15 rolled around, I found the platform, and boarding began. The process was a bit weird. Of course, people with accessibility needs boarded first. That much was normal and expected and it’s generally courteous. After that were business class passengers. Lastly, I guess, would’ve been the remaining what are called “groups”. Why, coach class passengers have to be divided is beyond me and it makes little sense. But, instead, the agent just told everyone else to board, probably because the plane was far from sold out. And, I was finally on a plane. First time ever, in my life.

If the platform assignment was to be believed, this was my steed to NY-Laguardia

A United plane (maybe they’ll be the next aviation entry?)

So, once I boarded, I noticed a few things. The seats were…..actually kinda comfy? I mean, it’s better than the Commuter Rail, but it’s still no Amfleet or Acela I seat. Trays were considerably smaller than on Amtrak. The screen was a bit hard to see. Also, only a 4:3 ratio? Holy SHIT that’s old. At that point, just have a CRT television. The windows were tiny too. While many transit advocates like to give shit to U.S. rolling stock for “unusually small windows you can’t see out of”, I don’t see any of them batting an eye at things like the B6 classes or whatever. There were a seatbelt too, and that’s there for a REALLY GOOD REASON. Lastly, there was a toilet in the back. I didn’t use it, but I heard it’s tiny. And, if that’s the case, it’s PROBABLY A GOOD THING I didn’t need to use the shitter. Legroom, surprisingly, was very liberal too. Again, it’s no Amtrak coach class, but it was pretty damn close seemingly. Overall, not bad! I’m genuinely impressed on this.

OH NO NOT FUX NEWS! (this blog does not endorse Fox News, or rather Fux News)

RIGHT NOW YOU’RE LOOKING AT THE MENU SHOT!

Of course, after moseying around the runway for a good 15-20 minutes, something amazing happened.

We WENT AIRBORN! WOAH! I looked down, actually in awe, “woah”, this……..was something. It’s like someone coded the world as a Mode 7 Super NES game. For those reading that don’t know what mode 7 is on the Super NES, the best example of it is Super Mario Kart, so I suggest looking at gameplay of that game. But, it felt like a rollercoaster and getting a boosted start in Mario Kart. I actually got a bit of a headache, which nobody warned me about. So, that sucked. Also annoyingly, turns out planes are faraday cages. No cell service whatsoever! I think top speed was around 300 miles an hour or something, and for you plane foamers, we were at about 2 miles up the entire time. It, however, was not exactly scenic as I couldn’t discern anything clearly. Cafe service was…..anemic, with an option of either water or coffee, and plantain chips or a granola bar. I opted for water and a granola bar, naturally. I would’ve personally preferred a self-serve option here, though, so I could get something at my leisurely pace without worrying if I need something later. Annoyed by the fact I was in a faraday cage, I tried using the wifi, which…….just didn’t work. Oh well. We eventually came in onto Laguardia Airport, which required going in a 270 degree circle around the city and into New Jersey briefly, rapidly descending, into a very rough landing. I’m not sure if this is because the operator is new or what, but they really oughta be better. Overall though, not bad for a first plane trip.

Overall, would I do this again? Actually, probably, depending on how I feel. But, as someone who’s Amtrak-first, it’d be a hard sell to move me out of an Amfleet coach seat. But, if I could be sufficiently convinced with a similar or lesser price tag or otherwise convinced it’s more convenient than just hopping onto a train, I’d consider this again. Now, allegedly, Precheck for the TSA is a thing and adds to the “convenience” factor, however that costs …$80, I think? for something that’s single-use, as far as I can tell. Not sure if it’s worth it, but I’d have to keep that in mind. There’s also this thing called Clear, but I don’t know anyone who’s used it. Now, I also don’t know what the differences between each individual carrier is, but not knowing any of that doesn’t help the confusion factor in the booking process. How do I know which carrier is best for a particular route? Ya know, maybe I might just do an entry on each individual major US-based carrier.

Now, for you the reader? I can’t give a simple “yes” or “no” to “should you do this?”. And, ultimately, that’s because I’m not you. Only you know your needs best. I can give information on what it’s like in my personal experiences, but my experiences and yours will differ, as will what I’m looking for in an S-tier carrier (essentially, a very Amtrak-esque experience). And, plus, maybe you (the reader) value something that I don’t give many hoots about. I personally value being able to take in the scenery and walk around, and oftentimes like the slower pace of Amtrak (even on the NEC!), and for my needs Amtrak also oftentimes is considerably cheaper. But, if I had to answer “would I recommend JetBlue?”, I’d actually say “yes” to that because the experience surprisingly, while far from perfect, is a little familiar vs. the Amtrak experience I know and love. And, with that, thanks for reading.

GATRA GO (Foxboro/Mansfield/Franklin/Norfolk, Pembroke, Plymouth, & Scituate Microtransits)

Oh golly. I promised on the Miles in Transit Discord server that I’ll try speedrunning GATRA on the basis of losing a bet, or something like that. Well, I kinda forgot about that and never had the time or motivation to. But, since then, we finally have…ONE GATRA entry. Welcome to GATRA GO! Unfortunately…this one was about a year in the making due to a number of mishaps in the making. Here they are:

ATTEMPT #1: I first attempted to review GATRA GO on the same day I visited Forge Park/495. Unfortunately, GATRA GO didn’t want to cooperate and it kept telling me there were no trips between Forge Park and Mansfield. How could this be?! They’re the same damn zone! Just look!

At first glance, you wouldn’t think twice of this! “I can just go from Forge Park to Mansfield!” Well….NOPE! Just look!

It turns out (thanks random internet person for this insight!) that, there’s actually a historical reason for this weirdness (you’d think it’d be fixed?!) AND not only that, you have to transfer LITERALLY ANYWHERE IN FOXBORO – BEING THE ONLY TOWN WITH A ZONAL OVERLAP. WHY?! So, I was left out in the rather cold November evening, having to dial an Uber to Mansfield Station, as GATRA fucked me over at Forge Park/495. I must also add – THIS REPLACED LITERALLY ALL THE FRANKLIN, NORFOLK, FOXBORO, AND MANSFIELD-AREA FIXED ROUTES! THIS ALSO REPLACED THE SLOOPY SLOOP IN SCITUATE! WHY GATRA?!

I was one with the quietness of Forge Park in the twilight…

ATTEMPT #2: A week or two later, I was going up to visit Brooke among other things in Boston, it was still very cold (it was December at this point), and I said “fuck it” and decided to get revenge on GATRA GO. Unfortunately, very VERY long wait times said “lol fuck you” and even though I got off my train at 8ish AM, I wouldn’t be picked up until closer to 10, guaranteeing missing a Foxboro train I wanted to connect to. This also meant I’d be stuck in Foxboro for a couple of hours.

ATTEMPT #3: About 10 months after, I decided to come back with pretty much the entire Franklin Line under my belt and with a much better understanding of how GATRA works, and having much more time on my hands (now that I wasn’t dating Brooke, though we’re still friends, and I wasn’t trying to ride her train either as I didn’t know if I’d still have steam – or make it to Heath St. in time). This set of circumstances worked in my hands, even if I still had to wait…

*checks notes*

40 MINUTES?! Oh brother…

That’s what a bus looks like – but I didn’t get this in Franklin

So, when I got off in Norfolk, I dialed a GATRA GO bus and it took 46 minutes to arrive, coming from the general area of Franklin. Yeah, those wait times are BAD. But, the bus actually DID come eventually. It came, crossed the Franklin Line grade crossing, and pulled into the station parking lot to pick me up. And, oh god…

So, there were four other people, the operator and three passengers. The passengers each introduced themselves (Liv and Maddie, who were vlogging, and their friend Elias. If any of y’all see this, hi!) and we all talked a bit. Everyone else was going to Crumbl at Patriot Place, and I said “eh, why not?” (I was planning on a lunch in downtown Boston or at Five Guys in Foxboro). The two ladies continued vlogging as we got on Pond Street. Really, this was a straight shot more than anything and we made pretty good time, for what it’s worth. Didn’t pick anyone else up along the way though, but it was a rather quick ride. Though, I must wonder though: why are there no fixed routes? I get “low ridership” but ya know, ADVERTISE THEM. RUN THEM AT A CONSISTENT SCHEDULE 7 DAYS A WEEK! I digress. And then, I think I might’ve heard the most Gen Alpha brainrot thing I’ve ever heard from anyone. I’m not even sure if Gen Alpha is old enough to use GATRA GO. But, here we go:

“Sigma Ohio Skibidi.”

Please bleach that one out of my memory. Bleh. Cue the gif of Homer Simpson pouring bleach in his eyes, even. That aside, the ride was pretty comfortable, relaxing even, and there wasn’t even a jiggly wheelchair lift. Good job, GATRA! (or whoever owns the buses for GATRA) Eventually, we made it to Patriot Place and parted ways. And, to Maddie and Liv, I wish y’all the best of luck with vlogging.

See, Weston?! Norfolk is nice enough to have sidewalks on their streets!

The good: It’ll get you literally anywhere in the zone!

The bad: WHY ARE THERE NO FIXED ROUTES?! LEGIT, PATRIOT PLACE CAN AND SHOULD BE A PULSE POINT FOR LOCAL GATRA FIXED ROUTES GOING TO FRANKLIN, FOXBORO, MANSFIELD, AND NORFOLK. SEND A DAMN BUS TO WALPOLE CENTER TO CONNECT WITH THE 34E EVEN. AND FOR THAT MATTER, WHY DID THE SLOOP GET REPLACED WITH THIS?! WHY DOESN’T IT CONNECT TO ANY FIXED ROUTES THAT LINK IT TO THE MBTA IN WEYMOUTH OR HINGHAM?! WHY DOES THE PLYMOUTH ZONE NOT CONNECT TO THE KINGSTON T STATION?! WHY?! WHY DOES THE PEMBROKE ZONE EVEN EXIST AS A SEPARATE ENTITY?! WAIT TIMES ARE ALSO GARBAGE UNLESS YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHEN YOU’LL BE LEAVING AND WHEN YOU’LL BE LEAVING YOUR DESTINATION FOR YOUR RETURN – MOST PEOPLE AREN’T INFLEXIBLE LIKE THAT! THAT’S IF IT EVEN WORKS AT ALL.

Nearby points of interest: Franklin’s town center is cool, as is Patriot Place! You also have Plymouth’s downtown, Scituate & the Greenbush Line, and whatever the hell is in Pembroke.

Overall, WHY?! WHY DID THEY KILL FIXED ROUTES FOR THESE?! JUST WHY?! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Rating: 2.5/10

THIS SHOULD SUPPLEMENT FIXED ROUTES, NOT REPLACE THEM. GATRA GO, MORE LIKE GATRA GO FUCK YOURSELF.

34th St.-Hudson Yards (Line #7)

Hudson Yards is among the newest stations on the MTA subway, having opened almost 9 years ago (as of writing this), with only 2nd Ave.-72nd/86th/96th St. being newer than this. The station is, by Manhattan standards, also located in a transit desert otherwise, with 10th, 11th and 12th Ave.’s otherwise having no subway access. This isn’t too big an issue as 8th Ave. is the next best thing, however this location in particular needed a subway connection. With that, let’s get into the station review.

Hudson Yards is one of those kinds of stations where it’s very deep into the ground. However, unlike stations like the LIRR concourse at Grand Central, the various stations in Washington Heights, or Porter Square in Boston, there’s actually half-decent elevators! If I remember right, it took me about 30 seconds to get to the surface – AND IT WAS AN INCLINED ELEVATOR yhfioedpashifopdhsaioufphdsaiofhawdiop INCLINED ELEVATORS ARE AWESOME, OK?! THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME RIDING ONE. Shit, I should make time to ride the Monongahela Incline some time, now that I think of it. I digress. Hudson Yards is pretty nice, the platform is plain but is serviceable. There’s signs pointing to the next train, however there’s one teensy-weensy but crucial problem: THE DEPARTURE BOARDS DON’T WORK OTHERWISE. IS IT THAT HARD TO TELL WHEN THE NEXT TRAIN WILL DEPART?! Anyways, I digress. Going up the inclined elevator (are these called funny colors? fume colors? funiculars? or just simply inclined elevators? what’s the difference anyways?), the station mezzanine is spacious but pretty normal otherwise. The headhouse looks pretty cool, actually. In terms of importance, this station is very important as it’s the closest thing to the Javits Convention Center. For the MTA employees, this is also one of, if not the closest station to the Michael Quill bus garage, so there’s that. Overall, Hudson Yards seems like a cool area.

THIS IS THE LAST STOP ON THIS TRAIN. EVERYONE PLEASE LEAVE THE TRAIN. THANK YOU RIDING MTA NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT.

The Javits Convention Center (apparently a bid for the 2024 DNC was made using this place!)

The good: It serves the up and coming Hudson Yards development, along with the Javits Convention Center! It’s also pretty nice, and the vibes I get from it remind me of my experiences with WMATA from when I went to DC as a child. The mezzanine is also pretty spacious, presumably to accommodate convention crowds from the Javits Center. Also, THE INCLINED ELEVATOR!!!

The bad: WHY ARE THE COUNTDOWN CLOCKS BROKEN?! JUST FUCKING TELL ME WHEN THE TRAIN IS DUE OUT AND WHAT TRACK!

Nearby points of interest: The Javits Center, duh! Furthermore, you have the High Line Park (a rail trail in NYC’s urban core?!), the Vessel, a concerning amount of parking lots, and the Hudson Yards Mall. Yeah, this place largely is probably most comparable to the Prudential Center and Copley Place in Boston.

Transit connections:
Flushing Line (line #7)
MTA bus (M12, M34-SBS)
Megabus (former, long live THE GUY)

Overall, it’s a nice station. It’s pretty modern, serves an important area of NYC, and has some cool stuff around it. And, inclined elevators are pretty cool! DAMMIT MTA, FIX THE COUNTDOWN CLOCKS THOUGH!

Rating: 8/10

42nd St.-Times Square/PABT/Bryant Park/5th Ave. (Lines 1-3, 7, A-F, M, N, Q, R, W, 42nd St. Shuttle)

Times Square…oh how do I even begin this one? Well, it’s the dog days of summer, and this one’s gonna be one hell of a doozy. That is, a 5 in 1 package. Let’s dig into it: the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the associated MTA subway station, the Times Square subway station, and the Bryant Park/5th Ave. station complex. Yes, all of these are attached to one another. So, buckle down, for this will be LONG.

So, to start with this entry, I was intercepted by someone from the Miles in Transit server (this was before I met up with Miranda for Christopher St.’s entry) at Penn Station. I then took my HRT on line E, and continued to the PABT. Commence review.

The platforms are pretty standard as seen elsewhere, two island platforms (albeit staggered), with benches, wayfinding, and a countdown clock. They are also accessible via ramps. The mezzanine is huge, with access to the PABT, and even has shops lining it. The PABT itself is pretty expansive, and while I didn’t have a lot of time to check it out (I would be here all day!), the bus terminal itself is expansive. Information booths can be found for Greyhound, Peter Pan, among other carriers. There’s even shopping and restaurants in the non-subway section of the terminal. Neat! From what I heard, the bus berths are just oversized parking garages, so I wasn’t bothered. The End!

HA! You thought this was the end? LMAO NOPE! Well, after going through a concourse tunnel, we reach 7th Ave. at Broadway. Welcome to Times Square!

This was written and taken during the 2024 Olympics season!

Times Square has lines #s 1-3, 7, N, Q, R, W, and the Grand Central-Times Square shuttle. But first, a poem. It’s actually kinda dark, reading:
“OVERSLEPT, SO TIRED. IF LATE, GET FIRED. WHY BOTHER? WHY THE PAIN?”
Damn. That’s actually very dark, and in a way kinda relatable. Well, we reach Times Square’s mezzanine and it’s pretty big. There’s restrooms nearby (staffed!!!!!!), and stairs to every which way. The station itself, though, is more on the empty side. Now, if you’re expecting the platforms for each set of lines to be different….you’d actually be wrong here. Lines #s 1-3 use a pair of islands, with line #3 in particular being a shuttle between here and 148th St.-Lenox Terminal overnight. Lines N, Q, R, and W also use a pair of islands, albeit oriented diagonally underneath Broadway, rather than 7th Ave. Then, there’s line #7, which is yet another island platform. Historically, this station was the terminus for line #7 until Hudson Yards opened in 2015, and until then there were some big mean mother bumpers at the end of the track. Lastly, there’s the Times Square shuttle platform. There used to be three tracks, however that changed relatively recently with modifications to widen the platform, so now it’s just two with an oversized island. One of the two tracks happens to connect to line #1 at the Times Square end as well. Neat! In terms of platform amenities, you have the usual signage, countdown clocks (yes, even for the shuttle!), benches, and wastebaskets. Nothing exciting. The station is also accessible by elevators – however, the PABT transfer is not due to a steeper than normal grade. Sorry!

Line R – wait, isn’t it supposed to be yellow?

This is, in fact, the busiest station on the MTA subway

On the surface, Times Square is one hell of a busy place. In fact, it is known to be overwhelming to some. Even I felt mildly overwhelmed but GOOD GOD was it an experience. Many express and local buses can be found here at street level, while some can be found near Bryant Park, with the PABT having a number of NJT and intercity buses. One of the entrances to Times Square, a simple staircase, is also reported to cost $30 million. Yikes! Overall, this place is definitely among the most photographed in the world, and being here was certainly an experience. Furthermore, you also have a number of shops and theaters nearby. Moving on!

BUS connection- wait a second, GET OUTTA THE BUS LANE!

Eventually, going back to the shuttle platform, Bryant Park station can be accessed underground from here. It’s a stone’s throw away again, which means in theory you can walk from one #7 line platform to the other! HA! Nice… Anyways, I digress. Bryant Park isn’t too special, with the connections to lines B, D, F, and M along with line #7. Except for one thing… Line #7’s platform has “platform screen doors” – albeit, better, as platform barriers. THEY SUCK. THEY CALL THESE PLATFORM SCREEN DOORS?! THIS AIN’T THE KIND OF STUFF THAT RMTRANSIT MENTIONS IN LITERALLY EVERY VIDEO!!! GOD FUCKING DAMMIT MTA!!!!!!!! THESE ARE NOT GOING TO DETER A MALICIOUS MALFACTOR OR ANYONE ELSE FROM FORCING A LIVING BEING ONTO THE GODDAMN THIRD RAIL!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! I digress, the mezzanine is your typical ex-Independent Subway mezzanine (the Independent Subway, or IND for short, being one of the three predecessor entities to the modern MTA, forming part of the present-day B division/lettered lines). That’s to say, stupidly overbuilt. That’s it. That’s the entire review. Sorry, no pictures of Bryant Park, but it is a pretty nice place, and I might add pics next time I’m in NYC.

More signage! The fuck is a Culver, though?

Does every subway train in NYC have the US flag on it?

THERE IS A. DOWNTOWN. LOCAL. SEVEN TRAIN TO THIRTYFOURTHSTREET-HUDSONYARDS. APPROACHING THE STATION PLEASE STAND AWAY FROM THE PLATFORM EDGE.

The good: It is HUGE and has connections to almost every line. (it does not connect to lines G, J, L, Z, or the Staten Island Railroad). The areas on the surface are full of activity as well, and the PABT is a major destination. It’s also (relatively) a stone’s throw from Penn Station and Grand Central. There’s also restrooms!

The bad: It can be a little confusing for some! Furthermore, it’s a goddamn sauna during the summer. PLATFORM BARRIERS TOO FHDAIOHFIODPWAYHFIODPASHFA.

Nearby points of interest: Bryant Park, Times Square, the PABT, and the many shops, restaurants, theaters, etc. in the area are the big ones! The main branch of the New York Public Library is at Bryant Park as well. The Rockefeller Center, while not directly here, is a stone’s throw away, as is Grand Central.

Transit connections:
6th Ave. Line (lines B, D, F, FX, M)
7th Ave. Line(lines #s 1, 2, 3)
8th Ave. Line (lines A, C, E)
Broadway Line (lines N, Q, R, W)
Flushing Line (lines #s 7, 7X)
42nd St. Shuttle
MTA bus (M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M7, M20, M34A SBS, M42, M55, M104, Q32, SIM1C, SIM3, SIM3C, SIM4C, SIM6, SIM8, SIM8X, SIM10, SIM22, SIM23, SIM24 SIM25, SIM26, SIM30, SIM31, BxM2, BxM3, BxM4, BxM6, BxM7, BxM8, BxM9, BxM10, BxM11, BxM18, QM1, QM2, QM3, QM4, QM5, QM6, QM20)
NJ Transit bus (101, 102, 105, 107, 108, 109, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 119, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 144, 145, 148, 151, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 177, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 319, 320, 321, 324, 355)
Bee-Line Bus (BxM4C)
Various intercity buses

Overall, this station complex is the single most important station (or station complex, rather) on the entire MTA subway, connecting almost every line with each other. Just be safe and mindful of pickpocketing people. If you’re ever in NYC as a tourist, I wouldn’t say “don’t come here”, and in fact I say do go for it at least once. But, in terms of the station itself, it’s not too grandiose inside, and the relatively high rating comes from the lively vibes of the surrounding areas. Screw those platform fences on 5th Ave. though.

Rating: 7/10

301 (Rural Ride, Westerly/Richmond)

Oh, brother, THIS route. I actually haven’t had the chance to ride it. Well, not until today. And this, is the last RIPTA route I actually had to ride. Meet: the 301 Rural Ride Friday Flyer.

Okay, first off, this route uses a RIde van. What the hell?! This…..is unique. Because RIde vans don’t have Wave readers (they wouldn’t – paratransit doesn’t use the standard fare system that relies on the Wave card or app), you can’t use mobile or card payment. You have to PHYSICALLY HAND $2 IN CASH TO THE BUS OPERATOR. THAT’S RIGHT – YOU HAVE TO PHYSICALLY PAY THE DRIVER!!! I genuinely have never seen anything like this before. Secondly, the driver outright asked if I was sure I wanted the 301 because nobody ever gets on in Westerly. Thirdly, as a fun tidbit, apparently I was the first ever person to board the 301 from within Westerly ever since the driver who does it started working the 301. Neat! 9 AM comes around, and we depart Westerly Station.

Eventually, we turned down a series of streets navigating through Westerly, ending near RI-78 and Dunn’s Corner and Walmart. We sat there for 5 minutes. No ons, no offs. And then, the fun began. We started HAULING ASS down Dunn’s Corner Road and into the middle of nowhere! Yeah, we made a couple of stops that got no ons or offs, but that eventually changed after we crossed into Hopkinton and made our second deviation: Saugatucket Springs!

My favorite park – the INDUSTRIAL PARK! (jkjk)

An old lady got on at Saugatucket Springs, was confused as to why it’s $2 rather than $4 (the driver explained $4 was the round-trip cost), and paid both ways at once. Then, after waiting a little more, we continued on back out towards Hopkinton Town Hall and up RI-3. In terms of scenery, it wasn’t exciting – being much of the usual woodland. This route isn’t called the Rural Ride for nothing!

We had two more boardings – an old woman and a man. The man, in particular, was surprised and a bit confused as to why I was riding the 301. He even asked me if I was homeless and I just said “nah, I’m gonna get an Uber to Kingston Station afterwards” (I did actually do this). With the last deviation done, we continued on towards Stop & Shop in Richmond, entering the village of Hope Valley, and passing through it quickly. Eventually, we reached I-95 yet again and, soon enough, the end of the route at Stop & Shop, where everyone got off to do their weekly grocery shopping.

The good: It’s a lifeline for the three people that boarded it!

The bad: The schedule is terrible – 1 and a quarter round trips a week, Fridays only, and it doesn’t run if Friday is a holiday.

Nearby points of interest: Not a lot. Westerly, maybe?

Overall, it’s an important route, yet also one that’s largely useless outside its one very specific usecase. Please, Canonchet Cliffs and Saugatucket Shores, take it off RIPTA’s hands or fund the route further! It’s a very important lifeline for the three people that regularly take it!

Rating: 3/10, 8/10 for the vibes.

With that, that concludes another bus entry. However, I’d like to dedicate this entry to someone special. Namely, I’d like to dedicate this entry to my late maternal grandfather, who instilled my interest in transit into me (though I never acted on it until relatively recently). Rest easy, and may you ferry people on the buses of the high heavens, champ…

The Future of Chelsea’s Corner

Alright, so a lot has been going on lately with myself and the future of the blog, and I figured I’d set the record straight on what’ll happen soonish. So, with that in mind, let’s dig straight into it with no delay.

SECTION 1: PRISON REVIEWS

Okay, prison reviews. What, exactly, does this entail? Well, it’s a new series I’m planning on doing where I’ll commit various crimes to get into various different prisons, review them and my experiences, and whatnot. Essentially, like station reviews, but even more fun because then I’m required to commit all sorts of (ideally white collar) crimes!
So, stay tuned to watch me commit immigration crimes and insurance fraud, I guess! Maybe bribery, as well.

SECTION 2: ONLYFANS

Yes, you read that right. I’ll be venturing into the realm of OnlyFans. For those who know what OnlyFans is, you know. For those who don’t, it’s where you post your favorite pictures of your fans and everyone foams like crazy over them. Sounds great, no? If it sounds bad, well, I gotta pay the bills somehow and Walmart isn’t cutting it anymore. Maybe you might get to watch me partake in CHALLENGE PISSING. Or, you might get to see me Weston someone’s Whopper. Who knows? Link will be provided when it’s ready, must be 18+ to sign up.

SECTION 3: DIESEL RAPID TRANSIT

Yes, you also read that right. I will be joining the call to dieselize the MBTA rapid transit network by the year 2035, with the pros of allowing EVERYBODY to have the Back Bay Experience(TM)!!! Please do join me in getting this monumental effort underway. Given the MBTA’s aversion to electrification, I’m sure this will be a lot easier than electrifying the Commuter Rail. Viva la diesel, and long live the Budd RDC!

SECTION 4: PATREON

Yes, I’m a money hungry bastard. I’m going to be beginning a Patreon to assist my OnlyFans, both of which will be funding my transit escapades and my transition. But, what benefits will be given to Patreon? Lobbying? Crowdfunded trolleybuses? Nope! You get ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Yes, that’s right, NOTHING! Fuck you if you’re a big enough schmuck to sign up for Patreon! Link will be provided when ready.

SECTION 5: TROLLEYBUSES

Last section for this announcement: trolleybuses! I am going to be crowdsourcing funding for RIPTA to set up trolleybuses all around Rhode Island, much to the demise of NIMBYism. Allegedly they’re superior, but I’ve always maintained the school of thought that trolleybuses absolutely SUCK, and I still stand by that and the fact they’re the most inflexible type of vehicle second to trains. So, while the Washington Bridge is out and the governor is trying to get the Senate President’s brother to do the job to fix it, why not add to the mess by goring up Kennedy Plaza with catenary everywhere? Stay tuned for the Fundrazr link.

So, as y’all can probably tell, this blog is going places locally. And, I’m excited. I hope y’all are too, thanks for the 2+ years of adventures, and I hope to have 2+ more years. And, if you’ve read this far, you’ve probably realized that this isn’t serious by any means of the imagination. (look at the publish date, silly!)
–Chelsea

What’s in a name? (aka The Nomenclature Rant(TM))

Nomenclature: the body/system of names in a field

Why is the above relevant? Well, that’s because we’re going to be talking about nomenclature and naming convention. Lines vs. routes vs. trains, colors vs. alphabet soup, wayfinding, inbound/outbound, the hell even is an “uptown”?! Well, you name it, I’ll be sure to mention it and talk about it a little, and some of the problems a decent naming system can prevent, and a bad naming system can cause.

First, let’s take a look at what I’m most familiar with: the MBTA. So, the MBTA uses terms like inbound/outbound, the rainbow for subway lines (alphabet soup for the Green & Silver Lines specifically, primarily), and overall is pretty damn good with regards to wayfinding. Inbound and outbound are relative to Park St., Downtown Crossing, Government Center, and State Street (going towards these four is “inbound”, away is “outbound”). Then, there’s the Green Line. The Green (& also Silver, as it applies here too) are split into four branches: B-E. Wayfinding here is a bit gorey as all the signage will say “GREEN LINE – [TERMINAL]/PARK ST & NORTH/COPLEY & WEST”. Not exactly helpful for signage, if you were to say “go take a train signed for Heath Street” or “board a D train” – as the signs will NOT tell you this. Good wayfinding consistent with what’s on rolling stock? Well, not entirely…

The Silver Line (at least, the Transitway), however, is different… Yeah. As seen above, not only do you have a map of the Silver Line, you also have signage WHICH TELLS YOU WHAT THE ROUTES ARE SIGNED AS ON THE BUSES AND WHERE THEY GO!!!!!! WOAH, THIS IS ACTUALLY KINDA USEFUL! On the other hand, with the Green Line also existing, this KINDA LEAVES A LOT TO BE DESIRED THERE! Like, why not have signs say “B/C GOVERNMENT CENTER”, “D UNION SQUARE” and “E MEDFORD/TUFTS” (or B BOSTON COLLEGE, C CLEVELAND CIRCLE, D RIVERSIDE, and E HEATH ST.)?!

And then you have wayfinding like in NYC……. Well, to the uninitiated (like myself), it looks immensely gorey. The fuck is an uptown, the hell does all this mean, and why does the Red Line stop on many platforms?! HELP, I DON’T GET ANY OF THIS!!!! Well, chill there, little Timmy…

First off, it’s highly frowned upon to call subway lines by way of the rainbow in NYC. I mean, you can, but then you’ll have a case where “125th St. on the Red Line” can mean 125th & Broadway (the #1 Red Line) or 125th & Malcolm X Blvd. (the #2 and #3 Red Line). For cases like this, it’s usually prudent to just use cross-streets, or simply the service name. What’s a service? Well, think of a service like the Green or Red Line’s branches in Boston. Essentially, services in NYC are what branches are in Boston, and are more “routes” like bus routes are. Furthermore, the colors primarily refer to where in Manhattan the routes run. From left to right, north to south:

Blue: 8th Ave.
Red: 7th Ave.
Yellow: Broadway
Orange: 6th Ave.
Green: Lexington Ave.
Teal: 2nd Ave. (not currently used)
Purple: Flushing (runs underneath 42nd St. primarily)
Silver: Canarsie (runs underneath 14th St. primarily)
Brown: Nassau St.

But then you have the Crosstown Line (which doesn’t touch Manhattan at all), which is also green (but lighter green), and the shuttle lines are also in silver-grey (used for the Times Sq.-Grand Central, Franklin Ave., and Rockaway shuttles). But, whatever you do, do NOT use the rainbow, as tempting as that may be, or this might happen:

This screenshot was doctored, but it illustrates what happens when you use the rainbow in the context of NYC.

What the hell is an “uptown”? Simply put, uptown is north. Downtown, while you might be tempted to think is a synonym for “city center”, and in most cases you’d be right (downtown Boston, City Center Philly, Downcity Providence, can all be referred to as “downtown” and you probably won’t raise eyebrows out of confusion). However, use that in New York, and you’ll invariably raise eyebrows. Where IS “downtown”? Common sense might tell you “it’s near where Penn Station, Grand Central, the World Trade Center, UN HQ, etc. are”, however it’s not that simple…

Yes, there are actually MULTIPLE downtowns in NYC. “Downtown” without any place names simply refer to “south”, and “downtown Manhattan” is synonymous with lower Manhattan. However, you also have downtown Brooklyn and downtown Flushing in Queens. So, while it’s reasonable to think “downtown NYC” if you’re not familiar, just bear that in mind that most will probably default to lower Manhattan.

Back to wayfinding, what the hell does that sign mean? Well, let’s break it down. We’ve established that “Uptown” is north, The Bronx refers to, well, the Bronx, so what does the rest of the signage mean? Local tracks are the outer tracks in a 3- or 4-track setup, with express tracks being the inner tracks. So, essentially, the sign is saying “#2 and #3 7th Ave. Line stops at this platform heading north. #1 and #2 7th Ave. Line stops on local tracks during nights, change at 42nd St. for #3 7th Ave. Line”. That’s pretty much what the wayfinding sums up to. Sometimes, some routes that normally run express will run local at night or weekends, or they might short-turn somewhere before their terminus.

Other cities are relatively tame when it comes to wayfinding, like Chicago or Philly (I sadly don’t have many pictures of either), however typically NYC is considered the goriest and it’s understandable from an outsider’s POV on why that might be so. However, typically, if you need any help figuring out the gorey mess (at face value), usually Google can be of help, as are any staff that are at the station. There’s no shame in asking, and when I was in NYC I may have had to ask for a little bit of help myself.

So, how does this play into my blog? Well, I use the line name in the titles for subway stations, and rail operators for commuter and intercity rail stations. The MBTA was easy enough, as I could just simply suffix (Blue Line), (Red & Green Lines), etc. to each title where applicable. Metro-North is also easy, as I could just suffix (Metro-North) to each station, or (Amtrak/Metro-North) where applicable. But, the MTA? Each subway line is more a “route” than an actual line, as I said earlier. So, how am I handling this? Well, this poses another conundrum. For titles, usually grouping subway lines together is better for readability. I’d be more inclined, personally, to click something that read, as an example:

14th St.-Union Square (Lexington Ave./Broadway/Canarsie)

over
14th St.-Union Square (4/5/6/L/N/Q/R/W).

I mean, yeah, using alphabet soup is quicker, if I’m typing, but it’s also not really pursuant to readability. Plus, using those rules, I’d have to go back and retroactively change every Red Line station to (Ashmont/Braintree), every Green Line to (B/C/D/E), and every Silver Line stop to (SL1/SL2/SL3/SL4/SL5) or whatever is applicable. And, I don’t want to do that. So, for the sake of maintaining consistency between agencies and not pissing off the foamers in the room, I’m using the actual line name rather than the alphabet soup. And, with that, I hereby conclude my rambling on nomenclature and wayfinding.

Now excuse me, I need to go shit on the #7 Flushing Line for being overhyped (or smth, i actually don’t know what to do from here)

TL;DR: consistent naming convention is good. Wayfinding that isn’t a garbled mess or too overwhelming is good. Duplicative naming can be bad if there’s no way to differentiate.

Emergency Providence/Bristol Ferry (Seastreak & RIDOT)

ALRIGHTY! I was NOT anticipating this when a national emergency was declared over the I-195 bridge closure in December. Well, given it just got announced that it’s ending in two weeks due to low ridership, I decided, at 4:15 AM on the day of writing this (1/6/24), that I’m going to ride this ferry and see what it’s like. With that in mind, let’s look at the ferry, shall we?

Now, I WOULD ride the shuttle for the full experience. However, there’s one issue with that: I’m doing this on a Saturday – and the shuttles don’t run on weekends. This means, I’m at the behest of bus routes 35, 60, and 78 on the Providence end (& even then, the closest stop is right before I-195), and route 60 on the Bristol end. Yikes. That translates to a combination of (presumably) uncoordinated headways of 30, 90, and 45 minutes on one end, and 30 minutes on the other (fortunately it’s one route in Bristol!). Anyhow! I got on the second run of the 13, went all the way into Providence, and to the ferry dock. In terms of what awaited me? It’s basically the Newtonville of ferry docks: very barebones and next to I-195. Eww. 1/10 rating from me.

Yep. That’s the entire ferry terminal. Quite sad, to be real.

Upon boarding the ferry though, it was quite nice actually. You have restrooms, a lot of seating, provisions for food amenities (not used), and even television service on the boat I rode down to Bristol. In terms of comfort vs. things that I normally ride, I’d have to actually say this is about on par with an Amfleet. For context, I LOVE the Amfleets with how comfy the seats are and the legroom. Honestly, I’m not sure if the Ventures out west can beat them. Eventually, we got moving and were on the high seas for about 35-40 minutes, before we docked at Bristol’s ferry terminal. So, how was that?

The Bristol terminal was a different story. It’s a small parking lot, yes, but you also have an actual park in the area as well, with benches. You also have shopping in the area as well, which is nice. No sheltered waiting room, though, but meh. Rating: 4/10.

So, why is RIDOT canning the ferry service? Well, I’ve seen many arguments online with people saying “it’s a waste of taxpayer money” and all that usual bullshit. And, to an extent, I might be inclined to agree. However, just saying that alone and not doing an autopsy isn’t good enough for me. While local ridership exists, it’s currently just too niche a thing for more people to use regularly. For one, it just isn’t convenient in comparison to RIPTA’s bus route 60. Take a look at this.

Would “paddle” be appropriate, like with bus runs?

There’s a 3 hour gap midday for servicing and the crew to take their breaks. I mean, I understand that these people need to take breaks legally (& I can’t fault them for wanting one), and the boats need to be serviced occasionally, but there really ought to be some way to mitigate the gap in service. Never mind this, it’s the middle of winter. Only the bravest of souls are going to sail the high seas at this time of year. And, most of all, PVD-Bristol isn’t really that big a commuter market. I mean, if anything, PVD-Bristol is a spring/summer/fall route, not something you’d run in the winter. Seriously, RIDOT, I’d WANT to ride this more if it ran in the spring or summer!!! Even if fares were $4 or smth, and it were under the RIPTA umbrella! Actually, if anything, I’d argue a case where RIPTA gets proper funding AND additional funding to take on the state’s ferry network, presumably contracted out to Seastreak. Also, shoutout to the friendly people working the boats at Seastreak.

With all that in mind, I’d actually have to give the ferry service itself an 8/10. I mean, it’s reasonably fast, or at least time-competitive with RIPTA’s 60, and the Bristol terminal is in a central location. The biggest issues here boil down to the Providence terminal basically being another Newtonville, and with minimal bus connections (& no references to the ferry on said buses). The midday gap is also bleh, I get it exists for servicing reasons, but it hinders the usability of the ferry. Overall though, it’s pretty good, and I wish RIDOT wasn’t prematurely killing it off.

Rating: 8/10